Windows 10 black screen with cursor after login

Anonymous
2018-04-13T19:24:03+00:00

Hi, I have been trying to login to my computer for two days but every time I enter my password a black screen with only a cursor appears. I am unable to access anything on my computer besides task manager. I tried to run explorer.exe which did not do anything, I also tried many different fixes which all did not work. Hope you can help.

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Performance and system failures

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Anonymous
2018-04-20T04:43:33+00:00

I hope, you might have resolved the issue.

In case, if anyone out there has the same issue, you can try the following option to resolve the issue.

Whenever you end up with 'Windows 10 blank screen with cursor after login' follow below solution.

Step 1: on the blank screen with cursor, Click 'Ctrl+Alt+Del' it will bring you the option for "Task Manager" along with other options

(You can also use the key combination CTRL+SHIFT+ESC to open the Task Manager directly.)

Step 2: Click on Task manager 'File '-->New Task (run)

Step 3: Type at Run 'services.msc' (without quotes), it will open windows services.

Step 4: Under the services, look for the service name 'AppReadiness' and double click on the 'AppReadiness" service.

Step 5: It will open 'AppReadiness' properties. Click on startup type and select 'Disabled", Click Apply and click ok.

Restart the PC:

Step 6: Click on Task Manager 'File' --> New Task (run)

Step 7: type at Run 'CMD' (without quotes) -->It will open command prompt

Step 8: At the command prompt type 'shutdown /s /f', this will shutdown the system.

Restart the system and you should be able to login without any issues. 

The above fix resolves what it says in the subject and could be a workaround solution only.

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DaveM121 931.2K Reputation points Independent Advisor
2018-04-13T19:25:01+00:00

Hi Sean,

Start your PC, just as Windows attempts to load (spinning dots), press and hold Power Button for 5 - 10 seconds to perform a Hard Shut Down

Do this twice

On the third start Windows will boot into the Recovery Environment and from there you can access System Repair, Safe Mode, Command Prompt . . . etc.

Please try each option one at a time, then see of Windows will boot . . .

Go to Troubleshoot - Advanced Option - Startup Repair

See if Windows startup can repair itself

Go to Troubleshoot - Advanced Option - System Restore

Check to see if you have a restore point you can go back to

If you do not have a Restore Point, go to Troubleshoot - Advanced Option - Startup Settings and click Restart

Upon restart, press 4 to enter Safe Mode

Once in Safe Mode, backup your data if you do not already have a backup

Open Device Manager and check to make sure all your Drivers are up to date

Reboot to see if Windows will start Normally

If the above fails, go to Troubleshoot - Advanced Options - Reset this PC

Choose to keep your files and apps, just your files or to keep nothing

Then start the Reset

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  1. Anonymous
    2021-01-03T13:54:51+00:00

    I hope, you might have resolved the issue.

    In case, if anyone out there has the same issue, you can try the following option to resolve the issue.

    Whenever you end up with 'Windows 10 blank screen with cursor after login' follow below solution.

    Step 1: on the blank screen with cursor, Click 'Ctrl+Alt+Del' it will bring you the option for "Task Manager" along with other options

    (You can also use the key combination CTRL+SHIFT+ESC to open the Task Manager directly.)

    Step 2: Click on Task manager 'File '-->New Task (run)

    Step 3: Type at Run 'services.msc' (without quotes), it will open windows services.

    Step 4: Under the services, look for the service name 'AppReadiness' and double click on the 'AppReadiness" service.

    Step 5: It will open 'AppReadiness' properties. Click on startup type and select 'Disabled", Click Apply and click ok.

    Restart the PC:

    Step 6: Click on Task Manager 'File' --> New Task (run)

    Step 7: type at Run 'CMD' (without quotes) -->It will open command prompt

    Step 8: At the command prompt type 'shutdown /s /f', this will shutdown the system.

    Restart the system and you should be able to login without any issues. 

    The above fix resolves what it says in the subject and could be a workaround solution only.

    Worked Perfectly!  Thanks!

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  2. Anonymous
    2020-12-14T10:02:29+00:00

    [I solved this issue by updating to Windows 10 Home version 20H2]

    I have a Surface Go 2 with Intel M3 and 8GB ram, of recent acquisition. The operating system is the one that came with the computer (windows 10, I believe it is a modified Home edition, though I'm not entirely sure).

    After around one month of usage, I started having a delay of 3 minutes after login and before I obtained my normal desktop. The login process is regularly carried out by the Hello! face recognition service. During  the 3 minutes delay, I see a black screen with my arrow cursor. 

    During the 3 minutes of black screen, many controls are active:

    • the "Windows" key correctly spawns the "start menu"
    • Ctrl+Alt+Del spawns a blue screen where I can select Task Manager, reboot, etc
    • Windows+P opens the screen projection options
    • Alt+Tab moves between open apps

    ...and so on.

    But whatever app I choose to run or move the focus to, be it Task Manager, the terminal, or anything else, cannot be seen during these 3 minutes of black screen. 

    Looking at the notification pane (which I can also access during the 3 minutes of black screen), I noticed a warning to the effect that notifications would not be shown during "Full screen mode", whence I formed the theory that there is some application, program, or service, which puts itself in full screen mode, captures the focus continuously, preventing other applications from obtaining it, and then attempts some task which does not succeed, and only gives up after a 3 minute time-out. This is simply a theory which would explain the issue, but I have no proof, only the evidence of the notification pane warning.

    Unfortunately, I cannot look at the task manager during the time-out, so I cannot see the full list of what's active. I can only catch a glimpse of it when I press Alt-Tab and keep it pressed, since I'm given the usual "Active icon view" of the open programs, including the Task Manager (whenever I open it first, of course, using Ctrl+Alt+Del and selecting it from the blue screen). The only visibly active task is the Anti Malware program in Windows Defender, but this may not be the task that's making the screen black for 3 minutes.

    I have tried most of the non-destructive advice found online (and in this trend). My "App Readiness" is disabled, I tried removing the Fast Boot Option, rebooting in various ways multiple times, etc. Nothing helped. I have also disabled all of the Start-up programs and services which I could be sure would not prevent the OS from working, to no avail. 

    I have no external monitor attached to my surface. This issue presents itself when rebooting as well as when restarting. There is nothing wrong in my hardware since, after the 3 minutes, I can use the Surface without any issues for indeterminately long amounts of time. The issue does NOT occur when waking up from sleep: only when rebooting and restarting. 

    The only unusual event I remember happening before this black screen issue happened is that I mistakenly inserted a broken USB key in the Surface, which immediately crashed it. It then rebooted itself while it was still inserted, so there was a (failed) reboot attempt from a broken USB drive. This USB key was "broken" in the sense that it could not be reformatted by any operating system I have tested (Windows, Linux, MacOSX -- in Linux I also tried to clear the partition table to no avail). So I believe it was genuinely broken rather than having a nasty boot sector virus (moreover, the key had lain unused in my drawer for years, so if it were a virus, it would likely be a well-known one by now, and it would have been spotted by Windows Defender. I have since gotten rid of the key to prevent myself from using it again, so I cannot do any further analysis on it). This event may or may not be connected to the issue I am discussing in this post. I am reporting it since it was the only notable event prior to the onset of the issue.

    Thanks for your attention.

    Leo Liberti

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  3. Anonymous
    2020-06-22T04:00:59+00:00

    I have an older Dell XPS8700 desktop tower. I had updated the drivers for the video card. But when I go to boot up the computer, it seems slower. I log on to my screen and it sits there at a black screen with just a cursor. Normally before the update, it shows my desktop and icons would start loading on the dock. But now it seems to just sit on the black screen for a few mins. The system has an SSD for the boot drive.

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