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I am in the process of setting up a new computer and have gotten stalled where it asks you to sign in to your Microsoft account. It used to be there was an option to skip or bypass this step but can’t find anyway to get around it. I really don’t want to phone the owner and tell them I need their Microsoft login information and password as I’m sure the first thing they’ll ask is what do you need that for. I don’t need it and will have to tell them i don’t need it to setup the computer by for some unknown reason it seems Microsoft has decided to make it mandatory.
i hope someone can suggest a way around this as I really don’t like phoning people and asking for their passwords without any justifiable reason.
Primary alias is not where it sent security alert, Security info is.. I am not sure how else to tell you, other than what I already told you. As I already said, what's the point to send security alert to your outlook.com in the case Microsoft has to lock you account temporarily, you wouldn't be able to access your outlook.com address then.
I would like to know what comment was posted that violated the code of conduct?
I am not saying you are wrong just find it odd if I picked an new email address and made it my primary address why they would send emails to the secondary address, but you certainly very well could be right. Hopefully i won’t have any additional unusual activity notifications.
thanks for all of your help and I think everything should be set.
It was my own comment I had to delete as I posted a duplicate. Somehow it was all labeled as violation of code of conduct - don't worry about it. Platform issue.
Once again, it is not about sending email to primary or secondary, it is about sending emails to the security information you have set up, which is in https://account.live.com > Security > manage how I sign in. These are your security contact info.
Thanks again, and really sorry for dragging this on so long but want to be sure I understand the purpose of designating a primary and secondary address if that doesn’t determine which email address they should use. If I actually wanted to make the outlook account the account they used for notifications how would a person do that?
Thank you for the explanation on the code of conduct as didn’t want you to think I said something inappropriate, although you might already be thinking that with all of the questions.
Sorry, I thought I had already answered this several times. Aliases are not used as security contact information. As I’ve mentioned before, you need to go to https://account.live.com > Security > Manage how I sign in — this is where you set up your security contact method.
And no, you can’t use an outlook.com address as your notification contact. Think of it like setting yourself as your own emergency contact — it defeats the purpose.
I really hope this explanation clears things up. I know I’ve repeated this a few times, but it doesn’t seem the meaning has come across yet.
Sorry yes you answered that several times, the only thing I am confused about is what does designating an email address as primary and secondary do? Security notifications will go to the a non outlook address, I get that as well, just confused what the primary and secondary designations do?
Primary determines what represents your account. So if you link your Microsoft account to Windows, it is the primary address that would be shown at the Settings page. Think of the other ones are simply nick names.
Thanks again and sorry for all the hassle.
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I’m not finished setting up Windows yet. This came up right after the sign in i mentioned above,
Well I finally got around to getting back to the setup. Now it wants me to create a PIN or a Passkey or to setup to use and iPhone, iPad, Android device or face recognition or fingerprint or a myriad of other things. This was after entering a password. I don’t want to use any of those options only a password. I don’t understand why Microsoft is trying to make something that has been so simple for years into something that is one frustration after another.
Go to Settings > Accounts > Sign in options, scroll down to mid page, under "Additional Settings",Make sure "For improved security, only allow Windows Hello Sign-in for Microsoft accounts on this device (Recommended). " is turned OFF.
I’m not finished setting up Windows yet. This came up right after the sign in i mentioned above,
Oh I see. Then set up a PIN for now. Once set up is all done, you can continue the rest of the steps. At the end, this user is going to be gone anyway.
What a frustration and complete nonsense to go through all of this for no reason. I hope the next step isn’t to force me to sell my house or have a sex change. 😊
With the home edition, it is indeed a process. Sorry.
No need to apologize as my frustration was not aimed at you whatsoever and I do really appreciate your assistance. I have setup hundreds of computers since the mid 1980s but am pretty much retired so haven’t done much in the last few years. Years ago there was quite a bit involved in setting up a computer and over the years they made it very simple and now they have made it a pain when there was no need to do so. I don’t see how anyone gains by forcing you to setup a pin and a passkey, or frankly even to have to login to a Microsoft account to be able to setup the computer.
Anyway thanks again for your assistance and again my frustration was not aimed at you,
Thank you..
It really is a double-edged sword. With so many bad actors and evolving security threats, security measures keep tightening, and that can make things pretty unfriendly for everyday users. It’s unfortunate. I’ve been using computer since the DOS days, and I do miss when things were simpler. At the same time, I understand why the complexity is necessary today.
That said, there is another bypass method for the Home edition (for your reference). If you check the link below and scroll down to Johnny’s post, you’ll see the details. I haven’t tested this method recently, so I can’t say for sure if it still works. With BitLocker now being enabled by default on Home as well, I’m not entirely confident it’s still effective, which is why I pointed you to the most organic method to cover all bases.
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/2350856/set-up-windows-11-without-internet-oobebypassnro
I’ve been involved since the DOS days as well. You used to buy a computer and in many cases you had to partition the hard drive, then format it and install the OS. Of course there was no internet so the odds of a virus was pretty slim.
i just received the attached email and normally would just ignore it but with what has been going on thought I should check into it. First I’ll say I have not used the computer this morning that I am setting up so any login would have taken place last night and it wouldn’t have been with edge it was through the setup process. I did use my iPad and went to Microsoft and it showed I was already logged in and was using Safari and not Edge, so I’m not sure what to make of the message unless it is a scam.
I also looked at my account and it showed the computer I am setting up and showed the OS Version as Windows Core while my own computer shows it as Windows 11 Home. So not sure why it shows Core instead of 11 Home. They both show the Version as 2009 and the same OS build number. I would have thought it there was a warning or unusual login activity it wouldn’t have shown it there but perhaps I am not looking in
the right place.
“Core” is the alias used for the Home edition. In your account, the Windows 11 version will always display as 2009. There are plenty of online discussions about this—2009 refers to the ReleaseID, while the actual OS build number reflects the true version.
For the login you noticed, is the IP address yours? If so, it likely just shows a sign-in from the new device. As for Edge, it’s now fully integrated into Windows. That means if the device has gone through updates or other activity, it could show up as an Edge browser login.
Thanks again for the reply. If that email notification was legitimate I am not sure why it would consider it suspicious activity. I am not in the U.S. which is what that shows and I don’t believe that is my IP address. It mentions I can go to their website to see the suspicious activity but I cannot find it on their website but possibly just don’t know where to look. I would have liked to be able to simply click on the link in the email but if it is not legitimate than I am giving my password to a scammer. I would really like to determine if this email is legitimate or not as perhaps my account has been hacked. I’m not really sure what they could or would do in my Microsoft account.
You can always compare the log in activities in your account via https://account.live.com > Security
I have had three more notifications this morning and have not used the one I am setting up. Up until that time I had not logged in with either my computer or iPad and again the IP addresses are not mine. I went to my activity and the ip address ending in 88 is not in my activity but the others are.
I then changed my password and was presented with the following. I selected the second option check if windows updates are turned on and then received the second capture below. I then selected advanced from that screen and the received the message shown in the third capture but am not sure what they mean.
The other thing is Microsoft wants to send a code to my email a few times and each time I have entered the code but I’m not sure how these other logins are happening as any code would be sent to me and I didn’t get any codes other than the ones I was expecting.
So these IP addresses are not yours?
Can you go to your account https://account.microsoft.com > Devices, make sure all devices are yours. If you recognize any of them not being yours, delete.
Then go to Security > Manage how I sign in, once again, if anything that's not yours, delete.
No none of those IP addresses are mine although my login from my iPad and my laptop are shown there with the correct ip address.
I'll have a look at the devices that are logged in.
It does show the computer I am setting up as I decided to use my own account. It shows the wrong model number but the serial number matches. It does not show either my iPad or my laptop which are also logged in so it would seem pretty likely someone else could be logged in and their computers not show up either just like mine.
It does show the computer I am setting up as I decided to use my own account. It shows the wrong model number but the serial number matches. It does not show either my iPad or my laptop which are also logged in so it would seem pretty likely someone else could be logged in and their computers not show up either just like mine.
why don't you finish setting up the computer for your friend by finishing up the steps I gave you originally. That way your account will be gone from that computer anyway.
Then do this:
Go to your Microsoft account online https://account.live.com > Sign in > Your info > Sign in preference.
Add an alias - You have two options here:
Create new: this will allow you to use the native domain outlook.com to create a new alias.
Add existing: this will allow you to add a 3rd party email address, such as yahoo, gmail, as long as they are not already associated with another Microsoft account.
Once added, make this new alias your primary alias, do NOT delete the old alias. Then at the bottom, click on "Change sign in preference". On the next page, uncheck the box for the old alias. This means, from now one, the old alias cannot be used to sign into your Microsoft account, but it can be still used to receive emails, etc.
I’m not sure if it affects anything but I do not use outlook and I’d prefer not to have to setup a third party email if at all possible. I do have other email addresses through my isp that I could use but not sure if I should just delete my existing account and create a new one with one of my other email addresses or if you have another suggestion. Can the alias be created without outlook or by using one off my other email addresses.
Another concern which you haven’t mentioned is the notification I received and posted above that my connection isn’t private. It would seem that needs to be addressed.
Regarding the site not being private - that's an outdated link Microsoft should have scrubbed. That link has certificate issue on their end, nothing to do with your account or your computer. I have the same problem when launching the same link.
As for my last suggestion, it’s completely your choice: you can either close the account, or add an Outlook.com alias and remove sign-in permission for your current alias (shaw.ca). Aliases are simply usernames for signing in, and you can use an ISP email address too. The difference is that your ISP email may already be widely known from sign-ups and sharing among friends, while an Outlook.com alias can stay private if you never share it. That way, only the Outlook.com alias can be used to sign in, and if someone knows your shaw.ca address, they won’t be able to use it to sign in/attempt to sign in once you’ve removed its sign-in permission.
I hope this makes sense.
Ok thanks for the additional suggestions and information. If I am understanding correctly I don't actually have to use outlook or setup an outlook account only use it as an alias or am I wrong?
Thanks again
I went to sign in and entered my email address and selected next and was presented with the capture below and was not able to find where to create the alias or do I do that after I have signed in?
Thank you
Use the last two options - either one is fine. Then go to Your info > Sign in preference to add alias.
I think I have everything done. Just to conform the alias created at outlook.com is not simply an alias but an actual new email address?
It is an alias, it also has mail box feature via www.outlook.com but you don't have to use it if you don't want to.
I think I have everything done. Just to conform the alias created at outlook.com is not simply an alias but an actual new email address?
I thought i did everything right but sent a test email to that account and it accepted it. I went to Outlook.com and there is now an email with that address. Is there a way to change it to simply an alias instead of a valid email address? I guess I need to go there all the time as if I get any further notifications of unusual activity it will go to the Outlook account instead of my current account? Sorry for all of the hassle but have tried to follow all of your instructions precisely and somehow ended up with a new email account and not just an alias.
Thank you
As I said, you will get mail box service with an outlook.com alias but you don't have to use that mailbox if you don't want to. When you go to your account online > Security > Manage how I sign in, you would still have your shaw.ca email address here, so security alert emails would be still sent to shaw.ca. It won't be sent to this outlook.com inbox. Imagine if you run into issue where your Microsoft account is locked, what's the point to send it to this outlook.com address if it cannot be addressed? This is what the security info is for.
Ok, but the new email/alias is now shown as the primary address so would notifications of unusual activity not go to that account by default? Sorry for dragging this on just want to be sure I m fully aware of the ramifications, and certainly don’t want to miss notifications if there is any that are urgent or at least important.
Sorry I misunderstood your comment on Windows 11 pro vs home.
i want to have them be able to delete the phoney account once they have setup their own account so assumed they would have to follow the instructions above the double dashed line as well.
No, all of the instruction above the double dashed line is done by you.
They don't need to repeat those steps. They just need to link their own Microsoft account to the local user you create for them, which is the instruction below the double dashed line.
