1173. BAD MICROSOFT: Use the LOCAL ACCOUNT logon to Windows instead of MICROSOFT ACCOUNT logon

 Are you tired of running into Microsoft changes to your Windows 11 system without being told about them? Are you seeing new PREVIEW ICONs appearing on you Task Bar and wondering how they got there? Are you losing functions that you had in Windows 10 that you depended on?

Well, it’s probably because you are using the Microsoft Account to logon to windows when you start/restart your system instead of a Local Account. What's the difference? Microsoft wants you to believe that there is a reason to use a Microsoft Account. Years ago, I was nailed when I had to do a SAFE boot to do some repair work. I believe it was related to doing a system restore or something recommended by Microsoft. Only problem was that it always failed. Searching the web, I learned that I would have to use a Local Account logon to fix the issue. That worked like a charm. Since then, I have been leery of the Microsoft Account and reasons why I needed it. Now, I have learned that Microsoft can slip a new function onto your system without your acknowledgement under the guise of a PREVIEW. First time I saw this was when I was helping another user who used a Microsoft Account logon Windrows, i.e. Start/Restart Windows on your pc system. It was an AI Search Icon installed onto the Task Bar. Well, I tried it out and on the first several tries I could NOT get it to locate anything that I could locate via a simple Goggle search! Plus, for my client who is essentially legally blind, this was just one more annoyance to a routine he had learned to find things via a browser search which was as much as he needed. He did NOT need an AI search, particularly one that didn't produce results! You can read yourself about the AI PREVIEW Search Icon on the Task Bar to learn how it got there and its purpose. I found it useless and even more so for my blind client. Then I had to search for quite a while to find out how to remove it! I really need these interruptions, hurdles, and delays! Another PREVIEW that apparently went onto his system before I started working with him was the new PHOTOS APP that replaced PHOTOS and its GALLERY index to all your pictures that appears at the top of your File Explorer window. You can read about that at this post. I recommend an additional link there for information so I don't have to explain these and couldn't explain it any better It used Regedit to make a change to the Registry, so,  but I want to first caution you to ALWAYS back up the Registry when you need to use REGEDIT! Either EXPORT the entire Registry by selecting the top entry or go ahead and traverse the tree to get where you need to make changes and EXPORT just the part that you are changing. That way, should something not work, you can simply double-click the saved .reg file to put it back together the way it originally was before your changes.

But for now, get off Microsoft Account and gain control back to how YOU want to manage your system.

First BEWARE. Microsoft has made it difficult to return to a Local Account once on a Microsoft Account. That’s why every time I install a new Windows version I make sure I don’t blindly follow the instructions up front that lead you to a Microsoft Logon! Select Local Logon instead there. Microsoft removed all the ways you used to be able to do so with another interface (as of 10/6/2023). You can find ways by doing a search that give Instructions to go to Settings > Accounts > Your Info > then simply:

1. Select "Sign in with a local account instead"
2. Followed by Type the user’s name, password, and password hint for your new account.

 

NO MORE!  Now instead go to Settings > Accounts > Your Info > Select "Stop signing in to all Microsoft Accounts Automatically"

The rest of the instructions also do not apply. When I "TRIED" the above out of desperation since no really current nor correct solutions could be found, it returned immediately and changed the Settings text above the selection from "Microsoft Account" to "Local Account". That was easy, but It did NOT let me choose a User Name, password, and password hint for your new account as the incorrect search article stated. Knowing from MY system that a name should be assigned, as well as a password, etc. prompted me to find out how to do that, but I had little patience by this time and simply wanted to get a Local Account up and running. Probably I could have determined what to exactly do, but  I was in a rush for what turned out to be another 3-hour repair of what my blind client messed up because of the Preview Photos App and Gallery (Go Here  to read about it). Thus, I settled on just how to use the existing account name "User" (Yes, whoever created his system didn't even create a name different from the default which shows up as "User User" in file explorer as the lead in all file paths. Fine, I could live with that initially -- just needed to assign a password which he never had making his PC vulnerable to anybody getting onto! Of course, Microsoft changed all its procedures to do that too! In other words, Microsoft does NOT want you to use Local Account! Luckily, I found this "How to Change a Windows Password Using Command Prompt" that is invoked in a basic DOS via Start > CMD > Run as Administrator :

"To change a password in the Command Prompt, type "net user [username] [new password] and press "Enter." For a more discreet option, you can type "net user [username} *" and press "Enter." Then enter the new password twice. You must have administrative access to change a password using the Command Prompt.Apr 26, 2023"

Note, that when you type the password, it does NOT display while typing. Confused me at first. Just enter it and you'll be prompted to enter it again (not displaying) for confirmation. That did it. I restarted, the user account poppet up, entered the password and now home safe for once, never to be bothered by Microsoft's experimental PREVIEW functions.