cant log in to windows

James Emerson 0 Reputation points
2026-09-12T20:11:11.1933333+00:00

it was working fine this morning. went to lunch, came back. Immediately asked for my PIN upon startup. Entered PIN, and was told incorrect. Tried password, was told incorrect. Cannot get onto PC and have a lab to work on...

Windows for home | Windows 11 | Accounts, profiles, and login
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  1. Kai-H 26,580 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2026-09-13T10:01:30.15+00:00

    Hi, James Emerson

    A sudden rejection of both the PIN and password can be caused by the wrong keyboard layout, an account lockout, or a recently installed update rather than incorrect credentials.

    Besides the solutions provided by the Q&A Assist, here are some suggestions you can try: 

    On the sign-in screen, check the language indicator near the lower-right corner and select the correct keyboard layout. Also confirm that Caps Lock and Num Lock are not affecting what you type.

    Select Accessibility in the lower-right corner, then open On-Screen Keyboard and enter the password with it. This helps rule out a faulty keyboard or unexpected key mapping.

    If another account appears in the lower-left corner, try signing in with that account. An administrator account may then be able to check or repair the affected profile.

    If this began after an update, enter Windows Recovery, then select Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Uninstall Updates > Uninstall latest quality update. Some updates cannot be removed.

    If this is a work or school PC, contact the organization’s IT administrator. The account may be locked, disabled, or waiting for an expired password to be changed.

    Thank you for your patience in reading, I hope this information has been helpful to you. 

    If the answer is helpful, please click "Yes" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment."    

    Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread. 

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  2. AI answer

    2026-09-12T20:11:28.4066667+00:00

    Try these in order:

    1. Restart once On the sign-in screen, select Power > Restart. If updates are pending, use Update and restart.
    2. Check internet on the lock screen If this is a Microsoft account, sign-in can fail without connectivity. On the lock screen, select Network and confirm the PC is online. If Wi‑Fi is unstable, use Ethernet if available.
    3. Use another sign-in method if shown On the sign-in screen, look for Sign-in options. If available, try the account password instead of the PIN.
    4. Reset from the sign-in screen
      • If I forgot my PIN appears, use it to reset the PIN.
      • If I forgot my password appears, use it to start password recovery.
      • For a Microsoft account, account recovery can also be started here: Recover your account
    5. Start in Safe Mode PIN and biometric sign-in are unavailable there, so this helps test password sign-in.
      • On the sign-in screen, hold Shift and select Power > Restart.
      • Go to Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Settings > Restart.
      • After restart, press 5 or F5 for Safe Mode with Networking.
      • Try signing in with the account password.
    6. If no password option is available after repeated PIN failures A Microsoft Q&A accepted answer describes a workaround from Windows Recovery Environment to restore password sign-in options by changing a registry value. Warning: editing the registry is risky. A wrong change can cause additional sign-in or system problems.
      • From the sign-in screen, hold Shift and select Power > Restart.
      • Select Troubleshoot > Advanced Options > Command Prompt.
      • Type regedit.
      • In Registry Editor, select HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE.
      • Select File > Load Hive.
      • Open C:\Windows\System32\Config\Software and load it with key name 1234.
      • Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\1234\Microsoft\WindowsNT\CurrentVersion\PasswordLess\Device.
      • Change DevicePasswordBuildVersion to 0.
      • Restart, then use Sign-in options and sign in with the Microsoft account password.
    7. If password still fails after reset Use the Microsoft account recovery flow and verify the exact account name and domain being used. If the account is still not recognized, contact support.
    8. If Windows still will not accept any sign-in Enter Windows Recovery Environment and try System Restore or Startup Repair from Troubleshoot > Advanced options.
    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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