Old machine acts as if brand-new; wants me to start all over ?


  1. Posts : 7
    windows 7 pro
       #1

    Old machine acts as if brand-new; wants me to start all over ?


    My 80+-yr-old mother brought me her Windows 10 HP laptop, saying "it has just went crazy"

    For several years, she has been using it as normal.

    When new, I set her up as automatic user with no password --- no matter how simple, she does not need a password.

    I set up myself an Administrator account for just-in-case.

    Okay, now, I plugged it in and raised the lid = everything is as if it is Off --- not asleep --- Off.

    I pressed the Power button and I get the screen one would get on a brand-new machine, asking me to choose language and such, and asking me to sign-in to a Microsoft account.

    Nothing I do will allow me to access the machine into the existing accounts.

    I have no idea what she may have done to get in this fix.

    I don't really want to have to start all over and it is un-telling what all she will lose if I do.

    Any ideas as to why it is behaving as it is and how do I fix this ?

    Thanks.
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 9,810
    Mac OS Catalina
       #2

    Sounds like it did a major update.
      My Computer


  3. Posts : 33,914
    10 Home x64 (22H2) (10 Pro on 2nd pc)
       #3

    BuckSkin said:
    I pressed the Power button and I get the screen one would get on a brand-new machine, asking me to choose language and such, and asking me to sign-in to a Microsoft account.....

    ....I have no idea what she may have done to get in this fix.
    bro67 said:
    Sounds like it did a major update.
    No, that's not it. Even an upgrade to Windows 11 would have preserved all the user accounts, apps and user files.

    Sounds very much like she went into Settings > System > Recovery and clicked Reset this PC. Either that or it had problems, had booted to the blue Advanced Startup screen and she chose Reset in the Troubleshooting section there. A Reset is the only way to get a 'like a new PC' setup prompt at boot up. Was her account an administrator? If so she could easily have done so.

    Old machine acts as if brand-new; wants me to start all over ?-image.png

    Reset Windows 10

    Looks like you will have to set up the PC again. To avoid having to set up the first account as a Microsoft account, disconnect from the internet before powering up the PC and completing the OOBE initial setup. The first account will be an administrator. I suggest you use that as your 'just in case' account and create a new local user account for her to use, making it a Standard user to avoid another case like this.
      My Computers


  4. Posts : 189
    Win10 Pro X64 22H2 build 19045.5131
       #4

    If she had any irreplaceable stuff (family photos, etc) on the computer, DON'T DO ANYTHING MORE WITH IT. Remove the system disk and send it out for recovery: my guess is that most of it might be recoverable. Instead, install a new disk (e.g. 256 or 512 GB SSD -- they're less than $50) and do a fresh install on that.
      My Computer


  5. Posts : 7
    windows 7 pro
    Thread Starter
       #5

    Bree said:
    To avoid having to set up the first account as a Microsoft account, disconnect from the internet before powering up the PC and completing the OOBE initial setup. The first account will be an administrator. I suggest you use that as your 'just in case' account and create a new local user account for her to use, making it a Standard user to avoid another case like this.
    Thanks.

    I have tried and tried and it will go no further than the "connect to the internet" page until I connect to the internet.

    Then, it refuses to go any further than the "create a Microsoft account" page.

    Is there a trick or work-around that I am missing ?
      My Computer


  6. Posts : 33,914
    10 Home x64 (22H2) (10 Pro on 2nd pc)
       #6

    BuckSkin said:
    ....it refuses to go any further than the "create a Microsoft account" page.
    Is there a trick or work-around that I am missing ?
    Yes. At the 'connect to the Internet' screen press Shift+F10 to open a Command Prompt. Type the command OOBE/BypassNRO (all one command, no spaces) and press Enter. The PC will reboot and restart the OOBE, this time when you get to that screen there will be an option to continue without connecting. Then you'll be able to create a local account.
      My Computers


  7. Posts : 7
    windows 7 pro
    Thread Starter
       #7

    Bree said:
    Yes. At the 'connect to the Internet' screen press Shift+F10 to open a Command Prompt. Type the command OOBE/BypassNRO (all one command, no spaces) and press Enter. The PC will reboot and restart the OOBE, this time when you get to that screen there will be an option to continue without connecting. Then you'll be able to create a local account.
    Whenever I tried this, it would freeze progress and nothing more could be done until I shut it down and started over; I tried several times.

    A bit of searching led me to press F11 immediately upon start-up and that would allow me access to Advanced Troubleshooting where I could access Command Prompt; however, typing the command there yielded "Not a recognizable command"

    A bit more investigation led me to THIS PAGEHow to Install Windows 11 Without a Microsoft Account | Tom's Hardware

    The first procedure outlined did not work.

    What did work was the "No Thank You" method described further down the page, using no@thankyouDOTcom for the e-mail address and any random text for a password.

    Another thing I did learn, and probably why the trick you suggested did not work, is that this machine has been "updated" to Windows 11, which appears to be a bigger joke than Windows 10.

    All of the screens I was getting matched those pictured to be Windows 11 and it said Windows 11 on the start-up Troubleshooting screen that I accessed.

    I thank you very much for helping and I probably would not have got this figured if you hadn't offered the suggestion that you did = although it did not work in my case, it did get my brain to working.


    I am now curious if I could have accomplished my goal from the Command Prompt that I was able to access in Advanced Troubleshooting (F11) had I known the correct commands.

    - - - Updated - - -

    selden said:
    Remove the system disk and send it out for recovery.
    In my situation, where the machine was at the initial setup/reset this computer phase, could I not have accessed everything simply by plugging the disk into one of my various hard-drive adapters in the same manner as if it were a disk from a failed machine ?
      My Computer


 

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