Disable or Enable Auto log on in Windows

Illustration of a hooded figure representing a hacker, with the text 'ADMINISTRATOR' and a password input field.

Embarking on this act is not a good idea as your PC can be compromised. You can only do this if you are the only user of your PC and you have restricted access to your PC. That being said, it is recommended you protect your PC with a Password, PIN, or biometric authentication. Kindly follow the steps below in order to perform this task. We will be using the built-in command prompts to discuss the following steps below. In this article, we shall discuss how to Disable or Enable Auto log on in Windows. Please see how to fix Auto Logon Error “The username and password specified is not valid”.

Here are some other articles relating to automatic logon. How to enable or disable automatic login on macOS, how to prevent MacBook from automatically Logging out, how to start an application automatically on macOS, and how to disable automatic screen lock on Ubuntu Desktop with the GUI and dconf Editor.

Enable Automatic logon

Method 1: Using the User Account Settings

1: In the Windows search icon, type “RUN” and click on enter as shown below or
2: Press the Windows Key + R on your keyboard to launch the run Window.

Windows search interface showing the 'Run' app as the best match, with options for 'Command Prompt' and 'run.bat'.

In the RUN dialogue window, type netplwiz as shown below and click on ok or enter on your keyboard

Windows Run dialog box with 'netplwiz' entered in the Open field.

This will open the User Accounts window as shown below. Uncheck Users must enter a username and password to use this computer.

This will prompt you to enter your password as shown below. This will ensure the user does not enter a Password when accessing the PC and press enter.

Login prompt for automatic sign-in with fields for username, password, and confirm password.

Note: When next you reboot you will no longer need to type in your password.

Here are some exciting articles: Enable Automatic Logon on Windows 10, How to disable auto login in Windows, Enable Automatic Logon via Windows Registry, and How to configure the FrontFace Lockdown Tool.

Method 2 Using the builtin Command Prompt

Enable Auto log on in Windows Using built-in Command Prompt “Control userpasswords2”

Press the Windows Key + R on your keyboard to launch the run Window. Type control userpasswords2 then click on ok.

Windows Run dialog box with 'control userpasswords2' inputted in the Open field.

This will launch the User Account Window as shown above.

User Accounts window displaying user access settings, with options to grant or deny access, change passwords, and a list of users including 'Christian' with admin privileges.

Please see Error 1385: The user has not been granted the requested logon type at this time. Also, see “The different Windows Logon Types“.

Disable Auto Logon

Now switch to the Users tab. Uncheck the option “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer”.

Click on Apply. Now in the automatically sign-in window type your password and confirm it.
Click on OK and that’s it.
Next, whenever you open Windows, you will be automatically signed in. Now you can restart your PC and the login screen will not be displayed.

Note: Do this only if you are restricted to the area where your PC is located. To activate the login again, please follow the same steps to activate the sign-in screen again.

I hope you found this blog post helpful on how to Disable or Enable Auto logon in Windows. If you have any questions, please let me know in the comment session.