How to remove the login screen on Windows devices?Solved

Hello @isaiah

Thank you for reaching out to Hexnode. I understand your situation and can help you with a solution.

On Windows devices, you can enable automatic login without providing user credentials each time. This is done by storing the user credentials in the Windows registry. Follow these steps to set up automatic login on Windows devices:

1. From the Windows desktop, click on the Windows Start button and open Settings.
2. Navigate to Accounts > Sign-in options > Additional settings. Under “Require Windows Hello sign-in for Microsoft account,” turn off the option “For improved security, only allow Windows Hello sign-in for Microsoft accounts on this device (Recommended).”
3. Press Win + R, type “netplwiz,” and click OK to run the command. This will open the User Accounts control panel.
4. A list of local Windows accounts will be presented. Select the user account for which you want to enable automatic login. Ensure the option “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer” is unchecked. If it is already unchecked, try checking and unchecking it. This will bring up a dialog box where you need to enter the username and password (twice) of the selected account. Click OK.
5. Restart the computer.

This process ensures that Windows boots directly to the desktop without requiring a password.

I hope this information helps your situation, please feel free to reach out to us for any further clarification.

Regards,
George
Hexnode UEM

Hey George,

That is very helpful information, buddy. I know it’s asking a lot, but is there a way to automate these steps somehow? We have around 73 Windows devices in our organization that need this setup. Doing the entire process on all those devices is cumbersome. Can we find a way to automate this?

Hello @monty ,

I’m glad I could be of help. Yes, there is a way to automate the aforementioned steps using a custom PowerShell script. Hexnode supports a remote action called “Execute Custom Script,” which allows IT administrators to deploy and execute scripts on Windows devices remotely.

Hexnode provides two script documents for this case, each having its own unique effect on the Windows devices. Please refer to the following help documentation:

Script to automatically log in to a user account on Windows

Script to enable Windows automatic logon for screenless kiosk

These scripts can be used to automate the steps mentioned in the initial reply. Choose the script that best suits your organizational needs. Make sure that user credentials are handled with care, as any errors can prevent the automatic login from working.

I hope this can help. Feel free to reach out if you need further assistance.

Regards,
George
Hexnode UEM.

Hey man,

I was following the steps you suggested in your first reply, but I couldn’t see the options “Require Windows Hello sign-in for Microsoft account” in the settings and “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer” in the User Accounts control panel. This got me stuck. Any idea about this issue? Any assistance would be helpful, man.

Thanks.

Hello @otis ,

Thanks for reaching out to Hexnode. I understand the problem you’re facing with the options mentioned in the solution.

Starting with Windows 10 version 2004 (20H1), the options “For improved security, only allow Windows Hello sign-in for Microsoft accounts on this device (Recommended)” and “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer” may not be visible by default depending on the type of account used to sign in to the device (local or Microsoft). This can be resolved using a PowerShell script.

The following script will disable the “Require Windows Hello sign-in for Microsoft accounts” option by modifying the respective registry settings:

New-ItemProperty -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\PasswordLess\Device" -Name DevicePasswordLessBuildVersion -Value 0 -Type Dword –Force

Execute the above script in Windows PowerShell and then try to re-open the User Accounts control panel. You should now be able to access the “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer” option.

I hope this helps. Please feel free to contact me if you need any further assistance.

Regards,
George
Hexnode UEM

Hey George,

After seeing the issue that @otis faced, it has raised a concern about whether this case will be a problem when we are dealing with this issue using the scripts given above. Will the scripts also require modification?

Hello @monty ,

I understand your concern about the change in steps. But the changes suggested are describing an issue regarding option visibility. This will have no effect when we are dealing with system registries. Thus, the scripts require no modification to obtain the expected results.

I hope this clarifies your doubts. Feel free to reach out if you need any further clarification.

Regards,
George
Hexnode UEM