Windows - Tray Notification - Reset Branding Icon

What the Automox Agent tray icon reset does

This Automox Worklet™ restores the Automox Agent tray icon to its default Automox branding on Windows endpoints. The Worklet calls the agent's built-in reset path, drops the saved branding state on disk, and stops the tray UI process so the next launch picks up the default icon from the shipped agent asset.

The Worklet executes the amagent.exe binary with the arguments notifications set_icon --reset, which signals the Automox Agent service to clear the custom icon configuration. After a successful reset, the Worklet removes tray_branding_icon_state.csv from the Automox installation directory so the agent does not reapply the previous custom branding on the next launch. The Worklet then runs Stop-Process -Name amagent-ui -Force so the tray UI relaunches against the default Automox branding asset.

A version gate keeps the Worklet from running on endpoints that predate the reset command. The Worklet reads the Automox Agent DisplayVersion from HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall and exits without remediation if the version is below 2.5.0.

Why enforce default Automox Agent branding

Custom tray branding is useful while a managed service provider, internal IT brand, or rebranded business unit owns the endpoint. The moment the relationship changes, the custom icon becomes stale and visibly inaccurate on every Windows endpoint that still carries it. End users see a logo that no longer reflects who manages the endpoint, and help-desk teams field tickets about the wrong contact identity. Resetting the icon is also a known fix for tray render glitches where Windows continues to display a cached version of the previous icon out of HKCU:\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\TrayNotify, where the IconStreams and PastIconsStream values hold the shell's icon history. On endpoints that exhibit the cached-icon symptom, the documented remediation is to clear those two values and restart explorer.exe so the shell rebuilds the notification area from scratch.

An endpoint that still carries a custom Automox Agent tray icon after a rebrand stands out the moment an end user sends a screenshot to the service desk. This Worklet evaluates the agent's TrayIcon registry value on every cycle, removes any custom icon override, and lets the agent fall back to the default Automox branding across every laptop, desktop, and server in scope.

How the Automox tray icon reset works

1. Evaluation phase: The evaluation script reads the Automox Agent DisplayVersion from the Uninstall registry hive (HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall) and compares it against the minimum supported version 2.5.0. The script exits 0 by default so remediation does not run on a schedule; an admin replaces Exit 0 with Exit 2 to run on policy cadence, or uses the FixNow action for one-shot execution from the console.

2. Remediation phase: The remediation script locates amagent.exe under %ProgramFiles(x86)%\Automox\amagent.exe (falling back to %ProgramFiles%\Automox\amagent.exe) and runs it with the arguments notifications set_icon --reset. On a successful reset (LASTEXITCODE 0), the script removes %ProgramFiles(x86)%\Automox\tray_branding_icon_state.csv with Remove-Item -Force, then issues Stop-Process -Name amagent-ui -Force so the tray UI relaunches against the default Automox branding asset. The script exits 0 on success or 2 with the failure written to stderr if amagent.exe is missing or the reset returns a non-zero exit code.

Tray icon reset requirements

• Windows 10, Windows 11, or Windows Server 2016 or later

• Automox Agent 2.5.0 or higher (the Worklet exits without action on older agents)

• Automox tray UI component installed (amagent-ui.exe present in the Automox install directory)

• PowerShell 5.1 or later (the Worklet uses Get-ItemProperty, Test-Path, Remove-Item, and Stop-Process)

• Local administrative privileges (the Automox agent runs as SYSTEM by default and already meets this)

• Run the Worklet through the FixNow action for one-shot remediation, or change the evaluation script's Exit 0 to Exit 2 to put it on a recurring policy

Expected tray state after the reset

After remediation completes, the Automox tray reloads with the default Automox branding asset. The state file %ProgramFiles(x86)%\Automox\tray_branding_icon_state.csv is removed, so the agent treats the endpoint as having no custom branding configured. The amagent-ui.exe process is terminated and relaunched by the Automox Agent service, which gives end users a brief moment without the tray icon before it returns with the default logo. Automox activity logs record exit code 0 and the line "Successfully reset branding icon to default Automox branding."

If the Windows shell continues to display the previous icon from its own cache after the reset, the documented secondary remediation is to clear the IconStreams and PastIconsStream values under HKCU:\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\TrayNotify and restart explorer.exe (Stop-Process -Name explorer -Force; Start-Process explorer.exe). That step is rarely needed because the Worklet's amagent-ui restart usually triggers a refresh on its own, but it is the fallback when the shell holds onto a stale image. Validate the result on a pilot endpoint by opening the notification area and confirming the icon matches the default Automox branding, then run Get-Item "%ProgramFiles(x86)%\Automox\tray_branding_icon_state.csv" to confirm the state file is gone before promoting the Worklet to broader policy scope.