Switching between user logins freezes taskbar

Anonymous
2020-12-23T12:44:15+00:00

The case:

My wife and I share the same home PC for work, that we use independently throughout the day. We would like to be able to switch between our users without having to log out and close/reopen our respective documents and apps. Kinda like how it works on a Mac when you switch between multiple active user login sessions.

The Problem:

Whenever we try to use the "Switch User" functionality, the taskbar freezes (doesn't load) on whichever user you switch to. The only way to unfreeze the taskbar is to log out completely on one user (and subsequently close all apps/documents), and then login to the other user afterwards.

What I have tried:

  • A fresh Windows install
  • Add a new and fresh user (stops working after a reboot)
  • Running DISM.exe /CheckHealth, /ScanHealth, /RestoreHealth
  • sfc /scannow

Extra info:

Both users have Admin account type and our Windows 10 is updated to the latest version.

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Family and online safety

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
2021-04-22T14:50:25+00:00

It is very discomforting to see that relatively simple and ubiquitous peripherals like mice and keyboards can interfere with the OS so badly. Disabling HID devices is a poor workaround for something that MS should fix in the OS or the OEM manufacturers like RAZER should comply with MS specs. But then you have a MS intellimouse freezing the taskbar on an MS OS, it seems that MS itself has an internal interoperability problem.

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  1. Anonymous
    2021-02-28T11:10:04+00:00

    It is sorta reassuring to see that other people than me are having the same problem. Hopefully this will result in Microsoft taking notice and developing a solution for this.

    I would urge anyone with similar problems to share their story and subscribe to the thread.

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  2. Anonymous
    2021-02-27T18:53:14+00:00

    Same happens for me, sooo annoying

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  3. Anonymous
    2021-02-25T02:24:15+00:00

    I have the same problem as well, it's pretty crazy that this is happening to so many people and yet there is no fix from Microsoft yet.

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  4. Anonymous
    2021-02-15T22:55:22+00:00

    I have the same issue as described in this thread.  Thanks for well documenting it.

    **

    1. Once you are on user #1, sign in to user #2, then immediately switch back to user #1; no need to wait. Come back to user #2 a bit later and you should find that it unfroze on its own in the background.
    2. Hibernate your PC instead of shutting it down and both accounts can switch back and forth without issues until the next shutdown or reboot.

    @Prootproo #2 I have to try this.  I'm not sure if my hardware supports hibernate though...   But this is good advice.  With #1, hit an miss.  It takes a while to switch.

    **
    Another good tip I saw before was to press  Ctrl + Shift + Esc  (to launch Task Manager) when you are stuck with no taskbar.  You can go into the 'Users' tab, and sign out the other user.  This is a workaround, not a solution, as you are ending all of the other user's processes.  

    For me, not only is my taskbar stuck, but it seems my networking is halted too.  My browser wont load webpages while the taskbar is stuck. Being unable to flip between users (with ease) really detracts from my user experience.

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    4 people found this answer helpful.
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