Thursday, October 27th 2022
PSA: How to Use a Local Account During Windows 11 22H2 Clean Install
Microsoft is finding more genius ways to prevent you from creating an offline (local) account for your Windows 11 PC, with the latest Windows 11 22H2 setup completely missing the option to use a local account, forcing you to either use a Microsoft account, or create one if you lack it. The side-effect of forcing you to either use or create an online account, is that you can no longer clean-install Windows without an active Internet connection. "julianxhokaxhiu" on GitHub Gist found a simple method to bypass this. According to a new method discovered by them, you simply let Windows 11 22H2 setup present you with the screen where it asks for an e-mail address (of your Microsoft account); and enter "test@test.com" with "test" as the password. Let setup fail the login, and click on "next." That's it. Windows setup will proceed without needing an active Internet connection, and you can create a local account.
Update Oct 27th: What to do if you don't have Internet, or your network adapter isn't detected by Windows Setup:
The above method won't work if you're trying to install Windows 11 on a new platform with a network adapter that Windows Setup doesn't recognize, and doesn't have basic drivers for. When this happens, the "next" button is simply grayed out. Here's what you can try:
Use a different bypass method, to enable the "I don't have Internet" link.
Hold down Shift+F10 to pull up a Command Prompt. Type oobe\bypassnro (o not zero at the end), or oo <tab> \ byp <tab>. Hit enter. This will enable the "I don't have Internet" link, and you can go ahead setting up Windows with a local account.
Source:
julianxhokaxhiu (Github)
The above method won't work if you're trying to install Windows 11 on a new platform with a network adapter that Windows Setup doesn't recognize, and doesn't have basic drivers for. When this happens, the "next" button is simply grayed out. Here's what you can try:
Use a different bypass method, to enable the "I don't have Internet" link.
Hold down Shift+F10 to pull up a Command Prompt. Type oobe\bypassnro (o not zero at the end), or oo <tab> \ byp <tab>. Hit enter. This will enable the "I don't have Internet" link, and you can go ahead setting up Windows with a local account.
71 Comments on PSA: How to Use a Local Account During Windows 11 22H2 Clean Install
"Search" well you can see ms's priorities right here :laugh:
I can see how it goes now, 23H1 will need CLI setup from recovery environment, 23H2 will require to you slipstream some modded libs, 24H1 will have you hack the firmware, 24H2 will be Windows 13 and you'll have to do some dns/ip hijacking to your own activation servers because MS transitioned to always-online, subscription model, requiring daily credential checks...
Remember when we're only complaining about being forced to connect to MS servers to send some "anonymous" data? Good times!
EDIT: I should mention THANK GOD FOR LINUX, by the time windows 10 goes out of support 11 will be almost totally online, DRM and all. By then hopefully GPU passthrough has had most of the bugs sorted out so I can set up a win10 VM for the 1 or 2 things that dont work right in linux itself....
No joke, in a few years people won't be allowed to own anything.
You can still use shift+F10 after asked and use oobe\bypassnro in cmd
That way is dying fast thus why the op exists
The oobe is the new best way to do it if you run into the issue
I've not clean installed in a long time.
I recently did a fresh install of Windows 10 Pro and it was the biggest nightmare getting rid of this "Hello" bullshit protection.
Yep ms got a hardon to push ms accounts
Walled garden coming fast.
using test@..... way you have to wait for ms to give up
oobe is the fastest way to get around the nonsense.
Might have to use caps on OOBE\BYPASSNRO if oobe.... fails
All I did was disconnect from my network and the OOBE setup asked me to create a local account:
They said disconnecting internet trick doesn't work anymore for a win 11 home or pro installation.
So I went with the Shift + F10 “oobe\bypassnro” in May 2022 when I installed my OS... Not sure if that still works though..
Such a ridiculous situation to be in but that's MS for you...
This is the same company that thinks saying mean words is worthy of banning you from ALL games you have ever purchased from them on your account. The same company that keeps trying to tie everything into a cloud subscription service they control.
Money and control. That's all this is about.
Yeah personally I'm not getting used to using 11 so when the rug is pulled out from using a local acc I wont care all that much
I mounted 22h2 iso end of last week without internet and it went okay.
Doubt I'd ever clean install I'd just restore a system image to even a new machine and do some driver cleanup.
Oops I did use rufus on the 22h2 iso to get past restrictions.
Yep show more on context menu is a creation of the dumbest person on earth :laugh:
Linux with GPU passthrough to Win10 VMs. With Steam working hard on pushing their Deck handheld hopefully most games in my Steam library will work properly in Linux soon. In that case GPU passthrough is no longer required and Win10 VM will be solely used for work related stuff only.