Windows 10 Lockscreen forces Microsoft Account entry each time

Hey there

I was recently stuck on the .661 build of 20H2, facing 0x800f081f when trying to install the latest KB4592438.
After trying the usual approaches, I did go with an In-Place Upgrade (alongside the script to keep my files).

While I am now on .685 and hopeful that newer updates will install just fine, I am now facing a different problem that has reared its head after the In-place upgrade.
My logon screen is no longer asking for a password directly but instead shows the "Sign in" text below my account.
When I click that text, it is asking me for the Microsoft account password - but it is doing so via the app / window that appears when first logging into a Microsoft account.
Presumably, my Windows is no longer storing the account information and has only got the account name there, forcing me to go through this procedure at every login.
Afaik, this app should only show up when logging into a Microsoft account for the first time.
I can't screenshot the lockscreen, so I had to take photos.
The lockscreen appears like this:
Attachment 310877
And the app shows up like this:
Attachment 310876

As this seems quite odd to me, I would like to solve this issue.
This happens at every login - regardless whether I have just powered on my pc or whether it was locked for 5 seconds.
This leads me to believe that something wonky is going on with my local Microsoft account's settings.
I tried checking with sfc and DISM but came up empty, and switching my login for this account to local and back to Microsoft account did not resolve the problem either.

The problem with this login is that it requires the pc to be online.
Being offline (which is going to happen as it is a laptop) results in the app showing "You'll need the Internet for this" and refusing to proceed.

Has anyone faced a similar situation before?

Thank you very much for any assistance.

//UPDATE 14:43
For some reason, my option for the pin-login is not availabe (even though I am not aware of any group policy entries that might affect it) and the list of login options does not show the password at all:


After going through some of the Settings-windows, I have come across the account protection asking me to setup my account for Windows Hello:

However, whenever I click "Set up", the Windows Account app opens and closes immediately after.

Hi again. If you setup Windows Hello, assuming it works, you should then be able to sign in with a PIN.
I had that when I was using my Microsoft account to sign in to Windows, but when I reverted back to a local account I could use a password again. The PIN does have the slight advantage that it logs in immediately you complete the PIN entry on the login screen, you don't have to press "enter"!

Hello and thank you for the advice

DaveH1 said:

If you setup Windows Hello, assuming it works, you should then be able to sign in with a PIN.

Unfortunately, I can't set up Windows Hello.
Clicking on "Set up" just opens and immediately closes a window, leaving me at the old screen as if nothing had happened and if no button was clicked.

Paul Black said:

Maybe one of these will help . . .

I did go through all of them in alphabetical order, but can't try most of them as they use the PIN-option for their steps, which is greyed out for me.
The fix regarding "How to Fix Unable to Add and Use PIN Sign-in Option in Windows 10" did not solve my issue.

kado897 said:

How is this set for you. If it's on it may explain the missing Password option.

It is set to on.
However, it can't be deactivated, unless I set up Windows Hello, which I can't due to the opening and closing app.

Paul Black said:

Out of interest, have you made a REG changes using a .reg file?

The last .reg changes are some while back and should (I'm assuming here) not affect the logon, as it was working just fine before the in-place upgrade.
I am no longer aware what I did change specifically in my registry.

Regarding Windows Hello: I have come across a thread that mentions TPM being the culprit.
My device (a Tornado F5 by Eurocom, a rebranded MSI 16L1) does not show a TPM device in tpm.msc or in the bios.

Try going back to a local account again, does that give you back a normal password login?
If so, then try completely logging out of your Microsoft account everywhere, on the website and log out of Cortana and any other MS apps.
Reboot and then try setting it up again from scratch.

Hey there

Paul Black said:

> Require Sign-in option in Windows 10 is greyed out
> Set Up Windows Hello to Sign in to Microsoft Account in Microsoft Edge

After seeing that PIN with Windows Hello, I remembered that I had previously used it on this device (despite the lack of TPM).
A quick search later I found the GPO's I had set to circumvent Microsoft's nagging to create a pin.
I had set the following policies in "Local Computer Policy / Computer Configuration / Administrative Templates / Windows Components / Windows Hello for Business " to disabled:
Use Biometricts
Use Windows Hello for Business

Re-enabling them did bring up the PIN-option and it is working, i.e. entering a PIN pushes me directly to the desktop and does not show the Microsoft Account app.
Removing the PIN does not really work, as the Remove button is greyed out.
I found a workaround (reset pin, then cancel the reset procedure) but that has left me with a corrupt pin and forces me to set a new PIN on the logon screen...

So, yeah, PIN is working, password not so much.

DaveH1 said:

Try going back to a local account again, does that give you back a normal password login?
If so, then try completely logging out of your Microsoft account everywhere, on the website and log out of Cortana and any other MS apps.
Reboot and then try setting it up again from scratch.

I tried this approach but frankly I am not even sure where my account is logged in.
Is there any way to remove it from a system perspective, i.e. remove a folder / registry entry / ... ?
(UPDATE: I have found an option in the web frontend for my Microsoft Account that is supposed to log me out on all devices - we will see)
Removing it from my Windows account (i.e. making it a local account), afterwards rebooting, changes the login options and I am able to choose a password as well as removing the PIN.

Converting the local account back to a Microsoft account and rebooting removes the password-option again.
With the Microsoft account active, each login attempt tries to validate the Microsoft account...