Why convert DLL to ICON?
Windows stores many application and system icons inside DLL files such as shell32.dll, imageres.dll, and moricons.dll. Extracting them is useful when building custom shortcuts, borrowing icons for a development project, or archiving system visuals. The icon data already sits inside the DLL's .rsrc section in ICO format; the extraction tool removes the PE wrapper and saves it as a standalone file.
How to convert DLL to ICON
Resource Hacker FREE
Open the DLL in Resource Hacker, expand the Icon Group node, right-click an entry and choose Save resource to *.ico file; rename the result to .icon if the target tool requires that extension.
ResEdit FREE
Open the DLL in ResEdit and export the embedded icon resources to a standalone icon file.
Programs that convert DLL
About these formats
.DLL
Dynamic Link Library
A DLL (Dynamic Link Library) is a Windows library file holding compiled code that programs load while they run, so it is not something you open by double-clicking. If an app reports a DLL…
Open .DLL details →
.ICON
Icon Image File
A .icon file is a small image used as a computer icon, most commonly in Windows ICO format. To open one, try renaming it to .ico and opening it in GIMP or IrfanView. The file contains no…
Open .ICON details →Quality & what to watch
- This is extraction, not conversion - the icon data already exists in the DLL's
.rsrcsection; no re-encoding occurs. - Not every DLL contains icon resources; if the Icon or Icon Group node is absent in Resource Hacker's tree, the DLL has no icons to extract.
.iconis not a standard Windows extension - Microsoft uses.ico; if a form or tool requires.icon, it typically accepts.icocontent with a renamed extension.
Frequently asked questions
Is .icon the same format as .ico?
.ico is the standard Windows extension, while .icon is a non-standard label - renaming the extension is all that is needed.What if the Icon Group node is missing in Resource Hacker?
.rsrc section at all.
