Windows 11, forgot pin and can't use other sign in options

Hi, Kareena Chin wing

Welcome to the Microsoft Community.

If you're unable to log into your Windows 11 computer because you've forgotten your PIN and can't use other sign-in options like fingerprint, here are some steps you can try to regain access without resetting your laptop:

1. Boot into Advanced Boot Options:  Restart your computer and as soon as the Windows logo appears, press and hold the power button to force a shutdown. Repeat this process twice. On the third start, Windows should enter the Automatic Repair environment.
2. From there, navigate to "Troubleshoot" > "Advanced options" > Command Prompt. This will open the Command Prompt before booting into Windows.
3. Replace the Utility Manager with the Command Prompt: At the Command Prompt, type the following commands and press Enter after each command:

    c:
    cd windows\system32
    ren utilman.exe utilman.exe.bak
    copy cmd.exe utilman.exe
   

   This will replace the utility manager on the login screen with the command prompt.
4. Type and press Enter to restart your computer.wpeutil reboot
5. On the login screen, click on the Utility Manager icon, which should now open the Command Prompt.
6. At the Command Prompt, type this command and press Enter:

    net user /add [username] [password]
    net localgroup administrators [username] /add
   

   Replace and with the desired username and password. This will create a new administrator account.[username][password]
7. You can now log in to this new account, which should have admin permissions and allow you to reset your original account's PIN or password.
8. Run the following command:

    takeown /f %windir%\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Local\Microsoft\NGC /r /d y
    icacls %windir%\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Local\Microsoft\NGC /grant administrators:F /t
   

9. Navigate to the path below and delete the entire contents of this folder:

    C：\Windows\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Local\Microsoft\NGC
   

10. Try logging in and resetting the PIN of the previous account.

If there is anything not clear, please do not hesitate to let me know.

Best Regards

Martin | Microsoft Community Support Specialist

Hi! Thank you so much for the reply however I'm a bit stuck on step 6 to add an administrative user, it doesn't read the line instead it gives me a message about syntax in the command however I believe I may have an administrative account but I don't know how to use it or how to access it

Hi, Kareena Chin wing

I'm guessing that there is a problem with command input in your case, forgive me if I may not have explained it clearly, here I am giving you a specific example:

The first command is to create a new user. For example, if I want to create a new user with the username Martin and set the password of this user to 123456, then the command should be as follows:

net user /add Martin 123456 

The second command grants administrator privileges to the user. For example, if I want to grant administrator privileges to the user with the username Martin, then the command should be as follows:

net localgroup administrators Martin /add 

Yes, normally you are using an administrator account, the purpose of creating a new user and granting administrator privileges is to log in to the new account in case the original account is not able to log in successfully, and manage account access control through its administrator privileges.

You can log into the new administrator account with the window closed and rebooted for further action.

If I didn't understand your concern or if there are any new developments in the issue, feel free to sync in your reply.

Best Regards

Martin | Microsoft Community Support Specialist

Hi thank you for the reply, it didn't work before when written like that so I ended up going and reset the laptop itself and keep my files, however now my file explorer refuses to open. It's not showing that it's not responding or so but when I click on it, the cursor shows the loading symbol and the computer turns to a blank background screen for a few seconds and then back to normal, it doesn't open no matter what I do, I tried the system recovery and it didn't change so now I can't open file explorer and access my files.

I also have a problem with my verification code for my Microsoft account, I had to change the verification option but it'll take a month for it to change? Why? It's hindering alot of sites I need to re-sign in to because the verification code wasn't sending to my number, im sure it recognized the right number because when I went to change it for an alternative it said the number is in used in this account so I'm very confused why it's not sending a code. Issues after issues keep arising and it's very frustrating since my laptop was normal like two days ago and now this problem occurs because of a pin that I can't change

I cannot log onto my computer using my pin