FIX Missing ‘Users Must Enter a User Name and Password to Use This Computer’ Checkbox

If you cannot see the “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer” checkbox in netplwiz, follow these steps to enable it back.

A while back, I wrote a simple guide on how to automatically log into Windows 10 without entering a password. To do that, we used a neat little option called “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer” in the netplwiz tool. Once the option is selected, the target user no longer needs to enter the password to log in. Windows does it automatically. This kind of automatic login is very useful for media centers, home PCs, etc.

However, some Windows 10 users report that the “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer” checkbox does not appear in the netplwiz window. i.e., they cannot see it. Older versions of Windows are not affected. After some research, I found out that the reason for this is Windows Hello. When the Windows Hello feature is enabled and required, Windows 10 requires some form of authentication to log in. As such, the “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer” checkbox is removed from netplwiz as it bypasses the login requirement. To fix it, you just need to configure Windows 10 to not require Windows Hello for authentication.

In this simple and straightforward Windows 10 guide, let me show you the steps to add the missing “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer” checkbox in netplwiz window.

Add missing “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer” checkbox

To show the missing ‘Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer’ checkbox, you have to turn off the ‘Require Windows Hello’ option in the Settings app. Here is how to do it.

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Click on “Accounts.”
3. Select “Sign-in options” on the sidebar.
4. Turn off the “Require Windows Hello sign-in for Microsoft accounts.”
5. Turn off the “Make your device passwordless” option.
6. Close the settings app.
7. Restart Windows 10.
8. This will fix the “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer” not appearing problem.

First thing, open the Windows 10 Settings application. You can do that by searching for it in the Start menu or by pressing the “Start + I” keyboard shortcut. In the Settings app, go to the “Accounts -> Sign-in options” page. This is where you will find some of the options related to configuring and managing various sign-in options and methods.

Turn off the “Require Windows Hello sign-in for Microsoft accounts” on the right page. If you see the “Make your device passwordless” option, turn it off too. The “Make your device passwordless” might not appear in some Windows 10 versions/builds. So, don’t worry if you cannot see it.

Once that is done, close the Settings app and restart Windows 10. This will make sure the changes are correctly applied.

From Registry

If you cannot find the PasswordLess option in the Settings app, you can modify the registry to get the same result. It is pretty easy to do.

1. Press the “Windows key + R” shortcut.
2. Type “regedit” and press Enter.
3. Paste the below path in the address and press Enter.
   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\PasswordLess\Device
4. Double-click on the “DevicePasswordLessBuildVersion” value.
5. Type “0” in the Value Data field.
6. Click the “Ok” button.
7. Close the Registry Editor.
8. Reboot Windows 10/11.

That is it. From now on, you will see the “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer” checkbox in the netplwiz window. You can now proceed with setting up the auto login in Windows 10. If you want to hide it again, turn on the “Require Windows Hello sign-in for Microsoft accounts” and “Make your device passwordless” options.

I hope that helps. If you are stuck or need some help, comment below, and I will try to help as much as possible.