I’m having trouble logging in to my Windows account.

Question

Yesterday, I force shut down a Dell PC (OptiPlex 3050) running Windows 10 Pro.

After restarting the PC, I am unable to log in to my Windows account and can only access a temporary profile.

However, I can still see my account data under the C drive and Users folder.

I would appreciate any assistance in restoring access to my original account or guidance on how to resolve this issue.

Answer 1

Welcome kasai,

Thank you for reaching out to the Q&A forum.

I understand that Windows 10 Pro is logging you into a temporary profile rather than your original account. Your original user folder and data still exist under C:\Users, but because the correct profile isn’t loading, you’re unable to access Microsoft Office. Please try the method below using Registry Edit:

Important note: Before trying any fixes, please copy your entire original user folder from C:\Users\YourOriginalUsername to an external drive or another disk.

Disclaimer: Modifying the registry or workgroups is usually geared towards advanced users, administrators, and IT professionals, and it can help fix some problems, however, improper registry modifications can cause serious problems. Therefore, please make sure to follow the steps below strictly. For further protection, make a backup of the registry before modifying it. For more information on how to backup and restore the registry, please refer to: How to back up and restore the registry in Windows - Microsoft Support 

Do this:

1. Press Win + R > type regedit
2. Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ProfileList
3. Look for a folder that ends with .bak

Rename the folder without .bak

Set State and RefCount to 0

If either value is missing, create a DWORD (32‑bit) value and set it to 0.

4. Close Registry Editor > Restart

Hope this helps. Please let me know how it goes!

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Answer 2

Can you launch your File Explorer, go to C: drive > Users > Your username folder. Then go to Desktop, or Documents, etc to verify if you can see your personal files there. If so, I suggest that you copy them out to an external drive, such as flash drive. Very important - do not copy them to your current account.

After that, see if it allows you to do the following: hold down Windows + R keys, then type in netplwiz and hit enter. If it opens up, click on Add. Then choose the option that doesn't require Microsoft account. Then click on next, and choose local account. Follow the rest to create the local user. Once the user is created, double click on it, go to group membership tab, and make it admin.

Restart the computer and see if you can sign into this admin account.

If you can, hold down Windows + R keys again, then type in netplwiz and hit enter. Delete the old account. Restart the computer.

Go to Settings > Accounts > Your Info, click on "sign in with your Microsoft account". Go ahead and sign into your Microsoft account. After that's all done, you can copy your files back from external drive to this new account.

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If it won't allow you to create a new user, then do the following:

After you have your data all secured, please hold down the Shift key while you select the Restart option. That should pull up the WinRe environment. Choose Troubleshoot > Advanced Options > Uninstall Updates. See if you have two options listed. If so, uninstall one at a time and restart the computer back up to see if it helps.

If not, use the Shift + Restart method again, go to Troubleshoot > Reset this PC. And consider a reset.