Configuration of Windows Login Interface

The level of access that one has to his/her Windows machine depends on whether the Windows Login interface is enabled or disabled. When the logon screen is enabled, the user is prompted to select an account username and put in a password for the account selected. This allows users to access a single computer via many accounts when it has been preconfigured for this purpose. Individuals who are the sole users of their computer prefer to disable the Windows logon screen. They may also use a single account and therefore do not need to provide account access prerequisites for the machine users.

Turning off The Logon Screen

Note: Only those with administrative privileges can make changes to the logon requirements.

Access to the Windows Login interface settings can be gained by using the Run dialog (Keyboard shortcut = Hold Windows Key + R). Type in "control userpasswords2" into the Run Dialog and hit enter or select "Ok" to get directly to the settings selection needed.

Deselect the "Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer" checkbox and select "Apply." This will prompt the user to put in the account password to allow for automatic login at startup.

The administrator can re-enable the Logon Screen through the same process.

Issues with Turning off Login Screen

This disables the ability to quickly change between user accounts. This may be a problem when there is more than one user account set up on the system. If something goes wrong with the default user account (such as a computer virus disabling access to account functions) it may be difficult to switch to other user names to attempt to fix the problem.

Enabling Secure Logon

Note: Only those with administrative privileges can make changes to the secure logon requirements.

Users can gain access to the Windows Login interface settings by using the Run dialog (Keyboard shortcut = Hold Windows Key + R). Type in "control userpasswords2" into the Run Dialog and hit enter or select "Ok" to get directly to the User Account window.

Select the "Advanced" tab and select the "Require users to press Ctrl+Alt+Delete" checkbox and select "Apply". This will force users to login through the authentic Windows Logon prompt when the computer is started up.

The Secure Login process can be reversed so that users will no longer be asked to go through the secure login process.

Issues with Secure Login

Secure login often requires users to remember both their account username as well as their password. Users with usernames that are long, case sensitive or have foreign/Unicode characters may find it difficult to gain access unless their username and password are typed in correctly. If it becomes an issue, an administrator can change the account information with the User Accounts settings. These settings can be found by clicking the Start Menu, then the Control Panel tab, and under the "User Accounts" selection. Typing "control userpasswords" into a Run Dialog (Windows Key + R) and hitting enter or selecting "Ok" will take the user to the User Accounts window quickly. From this option one can change user account names and other variables such as passwords and logon requirements.