How To Change Account Lockout Threshold in Windows 10 & 11

Bashkarla

2 years ago

Windows locks out for 30 minutes after multiple failed login attempts. Here is how to change the account lockout threshold in 10 & 11.

In Windows 10 and 11, logging into the user account is easy. Just type in the password or pin, and you will have access to your user account and its contents. If you fail to enter the correct password quite a few times, it triggers the account lockout security mechanism in Windows. By default, the account lockout threshold is around ten attempts, and the duration is 30 minutes. You cannot log in, even with a correct user account password, as long as the lockout session is active.

Table of contents:

Purpose of account lockout threshold
Difference between lockout threshold and duration
Steps to change account lockout threshold

Purpose of account lockout threshold

One of the primary purposes of this security feature is to stop brute force attacks and too many password guesses. As most of you know, if you already know part of the password or pin, you can guess the remaining given enough attempts. With account lockout, you are in a time-out and forced to restart the system and wait before trying again.

Generally, the ten attempts account lockout threshold is good enough for most Windows users. However, if you think the lockout threshold is too short or long, you can modify it.

For example, having a low lockout threshold is inconvenient if you have a home computer used by the elderly or kids. After all, the elderly and kids are prone to type the wrong password or pin. Changing the account lockout threshold or outright disabling it is better in those situations. That way, they get more chances to enter the correct password.

Without delay, this easy Windows how-to guide shows how to change the account lockout threshold in Windows 10 and 11.

Important note: In Windows 11, the account lockout threshold is disabled by default. You can enable it back if you want.

Difference between Lockout Threshold and Duration

Windows has two mechanisms called Lockout Threshold and Lockout Duration that work hand in hand to protect your user account. The difference between both of them is simple.

Lockout Threshold: The number of login attempts you get before the lockout is activated. In older versions, the number of attempts is set to ten. In Windows 11, the lockout threshold is disabled.

Lockout Duration: This feature controls how long you should wait for the lockout to end. You can only log in after the lockout is ended. The default lockout duration is 30-minutes.

The steps below work the same in Windows 10 and 11.

Change account lockout threshold

You can change the lockout threshold in Windows 10 and 11 using the Local Security Policy tool. All it takes is a couple of clicks, and the job will be done. Here is how.

Press the Start key on the keyboard.
Search and open “Local Security policy.”
Go to the “Account Policies > Account Lockout Policy” folder.
Double-click “Account lockout threshold.”
Type the number of attempts you’d like to allow in the blank field.
Press the “Ok” button.
Close the Local Security Policy window.
Reboot the computer.
With that, you have changed the lockout threshold.

Steps with more details:

The first thing to do is open the Local Security Policy tool. For that, search for it in the Start menu.

After opening the Local Security Policy tool, go to the “Account Policies > Account Lockout Policy” folder on the sidebar. As the folder name suggests, it hosts the lockout threshold and duration policies. Once you are here, double-click on the “Account lockout threshold” policy.

Type the number of attempts you’d like to allow in the “Invalid Login Attempts” field. For example, I’m changing the threshold from 10 to 20. Click the “Ok” button to save changes.

If this is the first time setting the lockout threshold, Windows prompts that it also enabled and set lockout duration to 30-minutes. Press the “Ok” button to continue.