Windows 8 keeps loading with temporary profile

Anonymous
2012-11-22T02:28:10+00:00

I upgraded my Windows 7 to Win 8 Pro. Today my power cable got unplugged and the computer restarted but cannot open my default profile. It keeps logging me to a temporary profile and states that the default profile could not be loaded. I check through the error logs and it states that the Registry may have gotten corrupted. How would a restart of the computer corrupt my registry. The problem is that everytime I restart it keeps taking me to the temporary profile which is new everytime I log in. None of the settings are saved. How do I get back to my original profile. I tried Refreshing the PC and it failed. Is this fixable?

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Performance and system failures

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

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Anonymous
2012-11-22T16:59:04+00:00

Hi

We are glad to get your query on Windows Community.

As far as your query is concerned, It seem that you are having a tough time logging to your default account.

I will surely help you with issue. But I still require certain information to get the right resolution:

May I know whether the default account is an Admin account or a standard user account?

I would recommend you to follow the methods below to resolve the issue:

Method 1:

Enable Built Admin account.

a) Press Windows and x key together on your desktop screen.

b) Click on Command Prompt (admin).

c) Type: net user administrator /active: yes

Note: Please follow the same steps and type net user administrator /active: no to disable admin account after the troubleshooting is done

After enabling Built-in admin, please try with the steps below:

Step 1:

Perform SFC Scan

Please follow the steps to perform SFC Scan:

a. Press “Windows Key + Q” to open Charms Bar.

b. Type “cmd” without quotes in the search box.

c. On the left pane, right click on the “cmd” option and select “Run as Administrator”.

d. Type ‘sfc /scannow’ without quotes and hit enter.

Note: It may ask for windows installation DVD to fix and to enable SFC to make more than minor repairs. Some files saved on your computer might get deleted when fixing corrupted files.

Step 2:

Please perform Microsoft Safety Scanner to scan your computer for infections.

To download and run the Microsoft Safety Scanner, follow these steps:

a) Go to the Microsoft Safety Scanner site at: Microsoft Safety Scanner

(http://www.microsoft.com/security/scanner/en-us/default.aspx)

b) Click Download Now.

c) If prompted, click Run. Follow the on-screen instructions to download and install the Microsoft Safety Scanner. When prompted, add a shortcut to the Microsoft Safety Scanner to your desktop.

d) From your desktop, double click the Microsoft Safety Scanner icon. When the Microsoft Safety Scanner program launches, click Scan Type, then click Full Scan, then click Next.

e) After the scan is complete, remove all detected malware entries

Note: Any data files that are infected may only be cleaned by deleting the file entirely, which means there is a potential for data loss.

For more information refer:

Microsoft resources and guidance for removal of malware and viruses (Microsoft Safety Scanner).

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2671662

Step 3:

Please restart your PC and check if you are able to log in to your Default Profile.

Method 2:

From Built in administrator account create a new user account and transfer the profile data.

Please follow the steps below to do that:

a) Press Windows and x together and select Windows Explorer.

b) Click on View tab and Click on Options at the top right corner.

c) Click the View tab, and then click Show hidden files, folders, and drives.

d) Uncheck the box which states **Hide protected operating system files.**e) Click Yes to confirm, and then click OK.

f) Locate the C:\Users\Old_Username folder, where C is the drive that Windows is installed on, and Old Username is the name of the profile you want to copy files from.

g) Select all of the files and folders in this folder, except the following files:

•Ntuser.dat•Ntuser.dat.log•Ntuser.ini

h) Right click and Select Copy.

i) Locate the C:\Users\New_Username folder, where C is the drive that Windows is installed on, and New Username is the name of the new user profile you created.

j) Right click inside the folder and select Paste.

k) Restart your PC and check if you are able to log in to default profile.

Please reply us back if the issue still persists.

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  1. Anonymous
    2015-08-02T02:13:08+00:00

    How do I create a admin account just like the one I had... IF I am using the same e-mail address for my Microsoft account ????????

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  2. Anonymous
    2015-08-02T02:10:12+00:00

    NOT HELPFUL.... hate Windows.... Especially Windows 8

    This was Not helpful.... 

    1. In method 2 you say "

    From Built in administrator account create a new user account and transfer the profile data.

    Please follow the steps below to do that"

    but you do not say how to do that????????

    When I did finally figure this out for myself... it does not let me do it because I only have 1 account the admin account, & when I create one just like it tells me I can't because I am using my same e-mail address.... very frustrating to have instructions that are not complete on how to create another admin account when using the same user/email address....

    How do I do this ?????

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  3. Anonymous
    2015-05-27T15:09:20+00:00

    I went to the same path and found my profile looked something like this:

    5-1-5-21-557812858-3650550099-3850275229-1001.bak

    I removed the .bak and logged in my user account,no problem!

    Hope this helps someone

    Delete the ".bak" and solve the problem.

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  4. Anonymous
    2015-05-25T19:41:23+00:00

    I too thought this was a way of raising issues with Microsoft, or at least trying to find a REAL fix. Having to rescue ones user profile every other weekend is NOT a feature of a robust operating system. We are all waiting for an expert to come up with a way of PREVENTING this from happening, not for a means of repairing the damage once it's done.

    I seem to have managed to fix this bug by removing AVG Free antivirus, including the update scheduler (this runs as a Windows service, and has to be disabled before it can be uninstalled). It means that I can't safely connect my working pc to the internet, and have to virus-check every piece of media on a separate pc before I use it, but I think I've cured it (It hasn't occurred in the last eighteen months since I uninstalled AVG, whereas it was previously happening every other weekend).

    What seems to be happening is that a service application (in my case AVG updater) obtains an exclusive lock on the user hive of the registry at boot-up time. Meanwhile the Windows boot programme also tries to access the same file. Because the service application doesn't release the lock until Windows has reached some predetermined point in the boot sequence, Windows instead times out and creates a new temporary user profile. It would be fantastic if someone from Microsoft (or a Microsoft MVP) could spare the time to investigate this and offer a PRACTICAL solution.

    I'm not blaming AVG - a robust operating system should work reliably with all compliant applications. If an application is not compatible with the OS, Microsoft should come out and say so. Either that or offer a hotfix.

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