Locked out of account through suddenly unavailable PIN number.

Hi @Benjamin Davis

Thank you for posting your question in the Microsoft Q&A forum.  

Regarding your issue, “Something happened and your PIN isn’t available” usually means the Windows Hello PIN data became corrupted during the update. The most effective fix is to remove the old PIN configuration and set up a new one. 

Here are a few steps you can try: 

1. Boot into Safe Mode from the Sign-in Screen 

• Restart the PC.  
• When you get to the sign-in screen, hold the Shift key down while selecting Power > Restart. 
• After the PC restarts to the Choose an option screen, select Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Settings > Restart. 
• After the PC restarts, there is a list of options. Select 4 or F4 to start the PC in Safe Mode. Or in order to use the Internet, select 5 or F5 for Safe Mode with Networking. 

For more details, please refer to: Windows Startup Settings

• Sign in using your password (not PIN). 
• Open File Explorer and go to:     C:\Windows\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Local\Microsoft\NGC 
• Delete all contents inside the NGC folder.  (This clears the corrupted PIN configuration.) 

For more details, please refer to: Something happened and your PIN is not available

2. Restart and Set Up a New PIN 

• Restart your PC normally. 
• Sign in with your password. 
• Go to Settings > Accounts > Sign-in options and create a new PIN. 

For more details, please refer to: Windows Hello errors during PIN creation

If BitLocker prompts for a recovery key and you don’t have it, unfortunately, there is no way to bypass encryption. In that case, the only option is a clean reinstall of Windows. 

Hopefully it will help with your issue and please give it a try and update for me to know if it helps. 

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