Windows logon problem

[JDPower]

I hope someone can help with this as its really peeing me off. My Windows (XP Home) has started prompting me for a Username and password instead of the normal Welcome screen and automatic logon I've always used. I went to Control Panel>User Accounts>Change way users log on or off, and the 'Use the Welcome Screen' box IS ticked but it still gives the log on prompt at startup. I even tried unticking the Welcome Screen tickbox, restarting then reticking the box to see if that would encourage it to work but it didn't. I used to be able to start Windows without any prompt of any sort, just turned the computer on and Windows would startup so this is a nuisance.

 

Tried system restore but this issue still persists. Also tried restoring an ERUNT reg backup but that also didn't work.

 

Any ideas anyone? (please)

[Tarun]

For Windows to automatically log on a user account during the startup process, the following must be met:

• The Welcome screen must be available
  
• Guest account access must be turned off
  
• There must be only one user account on the computer
  
• The user account must not have a password
  

To make the Welcome screen available:

1. Click Start, click Control Panel, and then double-click User Accounts.
   
2. Click "Change the way users log on or off".
   
3. Click to select the "Use the Welcome screen for fast and easy logon" check box.
   
4. Click OK.
   

To turn off Guest account access:

1. Click Start, click Control Panel, and then double-click User Accounts.
   
2. Click the Guest account.
   
3. Click "Turn off Guest access".
   

To remove the password from the user account:

1. Click Start, click Control Panel, and then double-click User Accounts.
   
2. Click the user account.
   
3. Click "Remove my password".
   
4. Type the password in the "Type your current password" box, and then click Remove Password.
   

 

[Normandie]

I hope someone can help with this as its really peeing me off. My Windows (XP Home) has started prompting me for a Username and password instead of the normal Welcome screen and automatic logon I've always used. I went to Control Panel>User Accounts>Change way users log on or off, and the 'Use the Welcome Screen' box IS ticked but it still gives the log on prompt at startup. I even tried unticking the Welcome Screen tickbox, restarting then reticking the box to see if that would encourage it to work but it didn't. I used to be able to start Windows without any prompt of any sort, just turned the computer on and Windows would startup so this is a nuisance.

 

Tried system restore but this issue still persists. Also tried restoring an ERUNT reg backup but that also didn't work.

 

Any ideas anyone? (please)

 

 

JDPower,

 

Did you happen to install the Microsoft.NET Framework version 2 when you updated Windows? If so it created another account and that will obligate you to use the login screen as Tarun said, since now there is more than one account. I had this problem on a laptop and deleted Microsoft.NET Framework version 2, then the account it created and all worked fine.

 

Hope you get this worked out,

Normandie

[agumon]

try this

 

go to start menu -> Run...

 

in the dialog box, type "control userpasswords2" without the quotes (just copy and paste)...

uncheck the checkbox "Users must enter a username and password to use this computer"... and click "Apply"...

once you have done that, a dialog box will prompt you to enter the username and password (the account you want to login automatically)... if you dont have a password, just leave it blank... then click "Ok"...

 

see if it work...

[JDPower]

Thanks for the replies. I had already tried what Tarun suggested (from the MS website) and all those settings were already as described.

 

Agumon, your suggestion seems to have sorted it, thanks alot. Don't know why it changed, the only thing I had done was a safe mode defrag then it started asking for password at startup. Very strange