Can you install 22H2 without a Microsoft account?

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In a word yes. There is a new way you have to do it. In the past the way you got around the Microsoft account mandate on a Home computer was to disabl
[See the full post at: Can you install 22H2 without a Microsoft account?]

Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

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TechTango, abbodi86, Cybertooth, opti1, dgc-art, BobbyB, klang, Save_Us_from_MS, rick41, Alex5723, SteveTree

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Screen shots from the Pro sku

Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

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abbodi86, Cybertooth, JPMedia, Save_Us_from_MS

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That’s a neat trick. but one question remains, will it force you to login to MS account later, for example if you try to update apps in Microsoft App Store?

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It does not.  No need to be logged in to update your apps from Microsoft Store.

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GeeBeeDee, Cybertooth, Save_Us_from_MS, geekdom, BobbyB, Just another Forum Poster

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For Windows 11 22H2 professional, it too allows you to set up a user without a Microsoft account.

Sorry, I’m a bit paranoid about this.

If I correctly understand this, another way of saying it is “Windows 11 22H2 professional also allows you to set up a user without a Microsoft account using the ‘Type in no@thankyou.com with ANY password’  method”.

Is that correct?

Also, if I’m updating from Windows 10 to Windows 11 22H2 does the update respect an existing Windows 10 local account or does it try again to get me onto a Microsoft account?

Thanks!

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If you use the pro sku you choose the “domain join” and you set up a local account period.  You don’t have to use any trick, it just lets you set up a local account,

Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

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opti1, klang, Cybertooth

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This is worth highlighting, perhaps as a separate stand-alone article.

If you’re installing a Pro version, select Work or School and then Join Domain.  I did this recently with a Win 10 installation, and just did with Win 11, as well.  For what it’s worth, it looks like the option of no@thankyou.com is now being rejected, where the installer is complaining that that’s not a valid address.

I have not tried what happens if I submit a throw-away address, such as a random ID at https://mailinator.com/ .

(For any who haven’t seen it, mailinator specializes in throw-away addresses.  Any address there is valid, and anybody can see anything sent there, although received mail expires after about 48 hours.  I don’t use it often, but on occasions where I need a deliverable address for one-time use, it’s useful.  If somebody decides to put that address on a distribution list, it’s of no matter to me, as I’ll never see any future mail.

Unfortunately, the domain option isn’t available for installations of Home versions.

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If you upgrade from Win10 to Win11, keep your programs and data, and the existing account is not changed. It may invite you to create a Microsoft account, it may say you get a “limited” version (NOT) if you don’t, but it will not force you to change accounts.

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Save_Us_from_MS, opti1

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Thanks PK.

I guess based on what I have been reading about Windows 11 I assumed the move from Windows 10 to Windows 11 was more of an update than an upgrade. More like a bigger feature\quality update to Windows 10 than an OS replacement like the move from Windows 7 to Windows 10.

At any rate, I’ll be staying on Win10 for a while so I’ll have plenty of time to come up to speed.

Thanks again!

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klang wrote:

It does not.  No need to be logged in to update your apps from Microsoft Store.

It does accessing and downloading apps from Microsoft store.

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So you can update existing apps without MS account but it requires account to install new apps?

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Yes.

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This is not so.  You do not need a Microsoft account to install new apps from the Microsoft Store.

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Perhaps I do not understand your answer, but you absolutely do not need a Microsoft account to update your apps from the Microsoft Store.

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Is anybody familiar with these two possible methods for installing Windows 11 with a local account? (See the post by “justme” and then the single reply to it, by the same person.) If so, have you tried these methods, and do they work?

Keep Running Windows 7 Safely for Years to Come  
Make Windows 10 look and work like Windows 7

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How many methods do you need?

(None really, since it’s very easy to change a Microsoft account to a local account.

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b wrote:

How many methods do you need?

I simply wish to know what the available options are. If  Microsoft closes one or more of those doors, I want to know what doors are still open.

 

Keep Running Windows 7 Safely for Years to Come  
Make Windows 10 look and work like Windows 7

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I have used the OOBE bypass successfully with Win11 21H2, but do not know if it works with 22H2.

If you use a Microsoft account initially, then change to a Local account, you are still saddled with the Microsoft baggage in the background even if you remove the MS one from the computer.

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opti1, Cybertooth

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What baggage?

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The license is registered to the MS account (for one).

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Easier reactivation if/when necessary is background baggage?

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If you buy a Win10 online, then yet that purchase and key is tied, but I’ve not seen oem  computers tied to the store.

In the case of using bitlocker, having a microsoft account is actually a good thing.  It’s safer up there than it is on a flash drive or piece of paper I know I’m going to lose.

Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

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My Win 10 Home machine is configured to a local account. When I first opened store it requested log on. Each subsequent time the store is opened it does not request logon. A check via Settings, Privacy & Security, Device encryption reveals a prompt to sign into Microsoft account to finish encrypting the device. I take this to mean the device is not linked to Microsoft but my store app is linked (we live in hope).

 

Group A (but Telemetry disabled Tasks and Registry)
1) Dell Inspiron with Win 11 64 Home permanently in dock due to "sorry spares no longer made".
2) Dell Inspiron with Win 11 64 Home (substantial discount with Pro version available only at full price)

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I only use a local account. All my systems are running OEM Windows Pro SKUs. Their license is recorded in the Microsoft Store app. I can see it when I click on library button. It shows up as Windows 10/11 Pro Microsoft. Also shown are any apps that have ever been installed. There is no way to “un-buy” those apps even when they have ceased to be available in the Microsoft Store. They are all tied to the same machine ID that the license is tied to.

HP Compaq 6000 Pro SFF PC / Windows 10 Pro / 22H2
Intel®Core™2 “Wolfdale” E8400 3.0 GHz / 8.00 GB
HP ProDesk 400 G5 SFF PC / Windows 11 Pro / 23H2
Intel®Core™ “Coffee Lake” i3-8100 3.6 GHz / 16.00 GB

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That’s the store app, which doesn’t have a Microsoft account linked to it.  I’m thinking of the place online where if you purchase a Windows license, the product key is linked up there.  Sorry using a term that can have multiple meanings.

Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

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I think EyesOnWindows is talking about the item at the bottom of the app list which says Windows 10/11 Pro and includes the license purchase date.

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I’m looking at my OEM Lenovo laptop and don’t have anything like that.

Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

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That’s strange.  It shows up on my OEM Lenovo laptop.  When you click on “Library” in the Store, is the “All” filter selected at the top of the list?  It should show up when you scroll to the bottom of the list.  If the “Apps” filter is selected at the top of the list, it won’t show up.

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I tried the command OOBE\BYPASSNRO in the 22H2 Windows 11 and it came back that it didn’t have a command that matched that.  While that command worked in 22H1, it appears not to work in 22H2.

Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

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Cybertooth

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Clever, but are you sure that using Citibank’s ThankYou(R) Points program domain name for this next iteration of Microsoft account bypass trick is okay?

Does Citibank log these requests from Microsoft to setup computers with accounts?

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I would hope so, so they can give Microsoft feedback.

If they close it down, I can set one up via an askwoody.com email address.

Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

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I’m running Windows 11 Pro, 22H2, 22621.521, using a local account.  You can add new apps and update existing apps from the Microsoft Store without needing a Microsoft account.  I’m not sure why some people are confused on this.

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This install was done using the official Microsoft iso, obtained using Microsoft Media Creation Tool, doing a “clean install”, not an upgrade, using the “no@thankyou.com with ANY password” tip by Susan, to create the local account.

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klang wrote:

You can add new apps and update existing apps from the Microsoft Store without needing a Microsoft account.  I’m not sure why some people are confused on this.

Because it’s still not that simple without a Microsoft account:

However, there are two caveats about using the Microsoft Store with a local account:

You can only download and install some free apps and games and none of the paid ones.

If you’re going to reinstall Windows, any apps or games that you also reinstall are going to be reset, as they do not sync content, settings, or achievements.
…
If that app is free, on its page, you should see a button named Get. Now comes the kicker: some free apps require a Microsoft account, while some don’t. For example, WhatsApp Desktop can be downloaded without issues, while the Netflix app requires a Microsoft account. The only way to check if you can download it is by pressing the Get button. So cross your fingers and click or tap on the blue button.

How to use the Microsoft Store in Windows without a Microsoft account

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b wrote:

WhatsApp Desktop can be downloaded without issues, while the Netflix app requires a Microsoft account.

I much prefer to access anything web-related through Firefox, never through an App.  I use the same strategy on my Samsung Galaxy S21 5G.

Always create a fresh drive image before making system changes/Windows updates; you may need to start over!

We all have our own reasons for doing the things that we do with our systems; we don't need anyone's approval, and we don't all have to do the same things.

We were all once "Average Users".

Computer Specs

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Why?

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b wrote:

Why?

One example is the Facebook app.  It requires the latest version of Edge.

I have completely uninstalled Edge using Revo Uninstaller, and have no intention of installing it.

By running online apps from Firefox, I can completely avoid Google.

All my extensions for Firefox work on my phone, and all my bookmarks are synced.

I don’t have to go through the Google Play Store to download apps.

Samsung has the Galaxy Store, if I want to look for an app.

We all have our own reasons for doing the things that we do. We don’t all have to do the same things.

Always create a fresh drive image before making system changes/Windows updates; you may need to start over!

We all have our own reasons for doing the things that we do with our systems; we don't need anyone's approval, and we don't all have to do the same things.

We were all once "Average Users".

Computer Specs

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Cybertooth, opti1

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If I know Microsoft, which seems to be doubling down on insisting users who fresh install Windows 11 Home/Pro to setup a Microsoft account, it will close this loophole soon enough.

“Yeah, you can’t use this as your Microsoft account. Please setup another one.” or something like that, and the install won’t proceed until you give in.

Hope for the best. Prepare for the worst.

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Cybertooth

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James Bond 007 wrote:

If I know Microsoft, which seems to be doubling down on insisting users who fresh install Windows 11 Home/Pro to setup a Microsoft account, it will close this loophole soon enough.

“Yeah, you can’t use this as your Microsoft account. Please setup another one.” or something like that, and the install won’t proceed until you give in.

That’s the point at which I would wipe Windows off the new PC and put Linux on it.

Keep Running Windows 7 Safely for Years to Come  
Make Windows 10 look and work like Windows 7

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PKCano

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James Bond 007 wrote:

“Yeah, you can’t use this as your Microsoft account. Please setup another one.” or something like that, and the install won’t proceed until you give in.

That would only become an issue for me if Microsoft eliminated the Windows Registry, and I seriously doubt that Microsoft will eliminate the Windows Registry.

On the other hand, I don’t do clean installations, I only upgrade.  A few months ago I did an almost complete hardware upgrade, but I didn’t clean install.  I restored drive images, and got the same Windows I had before I shut down and gutted my case.  This is legal because all my Windows licenses are retail, which makes them portable.

So far, when one upgrades to the newer iteration of Windows, there is little reference of user account brought into the experience.  There is the hint of improved user experience with a Microsoft account, and a “No thanks” button.  After that, Windows just upgrades; that’s it.

And yes, I’ve been exposed to all the techie advice that a “Clean install” is best, but it has been my experience that if one establishes and maintains a regimen of regular maintenance of Windows, upgrading is a non-issue, as well as much, much quicker than a clean install.

Always create a fresh drive image before making system changes/Windows updates; you may need to start over!

We all have our own reasons for doing the things that we do with our systems; we don't need anyone's approval, and we don't all have to do the same things.

We were all once "Average Users".

Computer Specs

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opti1 wrote:

if I’m updating from Windows 10 to Windows 11 22H2 does the update respect an existing Windows 10 local account or does it try again to get me onto a Microsoft account?

No. Upgrading won’t change to/require Microsoft account.

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