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trparky
Premium Member
join:2000-05-24
Cleveland, OH
·AT&T U-Verse

trparky

Premium Member

How to disable the Windows 8 lock screen

said by ExtremeTech :
Did you know that, back in the Windows 3, 95, and 98 days, you could simply type in your password to log into your computer? It sounds crazy, I know, but it’s true. Since Windows XP, the process has become steadily more convoluted — picking your avatar from a list, or hitting Ctrl+Alt+Del before being allowed to log in (this was actually a security feature, believe it or not). Windows 8 is the worst offender yet, positively spitting in the face of keyboard users — but fortunately, it’s quite easy to disable the new Windows 8 lock screen.
»www.extremetech.com/comp ··· k-screen
Moffetts
join:2005-05-09
San Mateo, CA

Moffetts

Member

Is gpedit available for non-Pro users? I know it wasn't in 7 or XP.

trparky
Premium Member
join:2000-05-24
Cleveland, OH

trparky

Premium Member

That I'm not sure of. I have the Pro version I got for $39.99.
SipSizzurp
Fo' Shizzle
Premium Member
join:2005-12-28
Houston, TX

SipSizzurp to trparky

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to trparky
Thanks for saving me the trouble of digging this up. I was about to.

Kramer
Mod
join:2000-08-03
Richmond, VA

1 edit

Kramer to trparky

Mod

to trparky
Very cool tip. Thanks

I checked the registry to see what changes occur when the nolockscreen policy is enabled. People without Pro might need to do it manually. No guarantees but here is what I observed. The following key seems to be modified
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Group Policy Objects\{0C35401C-C77E-4E3C-B07F-D781548F8BA6}Machine\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Personalization.

The above three images show the GP editor's three possibilities within the registry as I have determined. Use this info at your own risk, because I accept no responsibility if this information totally destroys your machine. Backup the registry first. The top image is the default, enabling the lock screen. The middle image is the disabled (no lock screen at all) setting. The bottom would act just like the default settings and I can't imagine why it would be needed if you didn't have GPEDIT, but I included it anyway.

Vchat20
Landing is the REAL challenge
Premium Member
join:2003-09-16
Columbus, OH

Vchat20 to trparky

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to trparky
quote:
Windows 8 is the worst offender yet, positively spitting in the face of keyboard users — but fortunately, it’s quite easy to disable the new Windows 8 lock screen.
It's not difficult at all actually for keyboard use. Hit your enter key on the lockscreen to bring up the password dialog and go from there. One extra but quick keystroke.

*shrug* I actually like the new lock screen personally. Hearkens back to XP's with the mail notification feature but it actually works this time around.

JohnInSJ
Premium Member
join:2003-09-22
Aptos, CA

JohnInSJ to trparky

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to trparky
The lock screen goes away as soon as you touch any key (or you press ctrl-alt-del, for you folks on a domain )

How hard is it to press the spacebar before you type your password? Not very.
dave
Premium Member
join:2000-05-04
not in ohio

1 edit

dave to trparky

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to trparky
said by article :

(this was actually a security feature, believe it or not).

Those who are ignorant of history are doomed to repeat it.

»en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tr ··· ted_path

(This is wrong on the Wikipedia page: "The famous Ctrl-Alt-Del sequence is not purely implemented in software". Ignore it. The choice of Ctrl-Alt-Del in NT is not magic, it's simply that it was a key sequence that was obviously not part of the command set for any existing DOS-Windows application).

trparky
Premium Member
join:2000-05-24
Cleveland, OH

trparky

Premium Member

Hey, I only quoted a part of the article. I didn't write it.
dave
Premium Member
join:2000-05-04
not in ohio

dave

Premium Member

Sorry, unintentional attribution. Fixed.
Mele20
Premium Member
join:2001-06-05
Hilo, HI

Mele20 to trparky

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to trparky
Why type a password? Just boot directly to Metro and one click on desktop there to the desktop. It is one more click than in XP but not bad because you might want something on Metro rather than the desktop. I have never understood why people do all the password crap...I did it on Vista Ultimate to see what it was like.....horrible and delays booting for no reason (assuming your computer is yours and not several people's and assuming a desktop that is in a private place...then you don't need a login screen).

That article you linked to mentions another article there on how to easily shut down...doesn't work ....using Alt + F4 simply results in abruptly shutting down Fx. It does nothing to shut down Windows 8. Besides, who shuts down a desktop? You would want a faster way to REBOOT not shut down.

JohnInSJ
Premium Member
join:2003-09-22
Aptos, CA

JohnInSJ

Premium Member

said by Mele20:

Why type a password?

For someone who is worried about security I find that statement puzzling.
Mele20
Premium Member
join:2001-06-05
Hilo, HI

Mele20

Premium Member

Why puzzling? I'm not expecting someone to break into my home and care what is on my computer.
Shootist
Premium Member
join:2003-02-10
Decatur, GA

1 edit

Shootist

Premium Member

said by Mele20:

Why puzzling? I'm not expecting someone to break into my home and care what is on my computer.

For one thing it makes sharing files harder when there is no password on accounts. Let alone the lack of security of running a system with no password. I really don't see why anyone would run any computer without a password on it.

You might as well turn off any password on your WiFi system to. Why have a password on it if you have nothing you want to protect.
Mele20
Premium Member
join:2001-06-05
Hilo, HI

Mele20

Premium Member

I don't have a WiFi system. Never put anything on a computer that matters.
dave
Premium Member
join:2000-05-04
not in ohio

dave

Premium Member

Some people use computers as tools. If nothing on your computer 'matters', it seems like it is merely entertainment.
Mele20
Premium Member
join:2001-06-05
Hilo, HI

Mele20

Premium Member

No, I use it as a tool. But I keep everything important on paper. I pay no attention to the crap false sell that I should stop using paper and get credit card statements, etc on the computer. BS. Paper will outlast my lifetime and is far superior for anything important. But what does that have to do with using a computer as a tool? For instance, I am losing ALL Word documents because I have Word 2002 and cannot install that on Win 8. Word now costs, Word ALONE, $150 ....I paid $60 for Works Suite 2006 that included Word and a bunch of other very useful utilities. (Works Suite over the years has been outstanding from 98 on until Microsoft killed it for no good reason). But I can't use that Word version, or even buy Works Suite again, for Win 8. So, I would be crazy to have ONLY saved important Word documents in Word. There is NO reason, whatsoever, for not allowing Word 2002 (without the garbage ribbon) and of which I OWN THREE COPIES to be used on Windows 8. (Those with impairments that somehow make "useful" all the extra clicking and going back and forth and extreme ugliness of the GUI with the ribbon versions could use those...why not allow both non ribbon and ribbon)?

Then there is Outlook Express...NO email client is nearly as good as OE as long as you know how to use it and you have ADDITIONS to it that make it great. I can't use it on Win 8 ...so I lose all my mail going back many years.

There is NO reason other than UTTER GREED for Microsoft to disallow the use of legacy programs on Win 8. I am willing to pay Microsoft a "royalty fee" or something to use these programs. It should be allowed. There is no reason either for Microsoft to disrupt for months my use of a computer while I learn difficult Windows 8. I should be able use XP on a new computer and have it supported. It is the best OS Microsoft has issued and Microsoft could have simply required a fee for people who want to continue using it.

I don't believe that computers are going to be "tool friendly" ever because Microsoft does NOT consider the needs of its users...it is a monopoly and the USA is afraid to rein it in. With Windows 8, Microsoft has sent a clear message that desktop users be they corporate, small business or home, have been thrown under the bus and sacrificed on the altar of tiny devices for those who like mobile computing and don't care about powerful, fast desktops with good sized screens and nice keyboards.

I have downgrade rights to Win 7 Pro and I have the Dell USB Key to use to downgrade without any cost to me. I am still deciding if I want to do that. If I do it, it will be SOLELY to get XP Pro inside Windows 7 Pro. I didn't like Windows 7 public beta. I thought Vista Ultimate that I own was far better (except for the garbage search on both Vista and Win 7 that has improved tremendously on Win 8) so I have not decided what I will do as getting Windows 7 does not appeal...only having XP Pro inside appeals.

So, I really have no idea what you mean. It is extremely difficult to use a computer as an exclusive tool given the restrictive environment that Microsoft forces on us. I don't notice that paper forces a restrictive, punishing environment on one other than that it does require file cabinets to hold it.
67845017 (banned)
join:2000-12-17
Naperville, IL

67845017 (banned)

Member

I believe you're going to be unhappy with MS for a really long time. I don't think they're going to change their business model for one consumer.

trparky
Premium Member
join:2000-05-24
Cleveland, OH
·AT&T U-Verse

1 recommendation

trparky

Premium Member

*sigh* Can we please get back on topic before this thread gets locked? I did not at all intend for this thread to become a Windows 8 (or for that matter a Windows anything) dumping ground.

I only meant it to be a tip thread for those who want to turn something off in Windows 8.
67845017 (banned)
join:2000-12-17
Naperville, IL

67845017 (banned) to trparky

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to trparky
On one of my Windows 7 machines (it was an HTPC) I used to have it automatically enter the password and boot directly into Media Center. I needed to have the password for Remote Desktop access, but not for security reasons. It worked perfectly. Maybe one of those hacks will help achieve that functionality. It used to save me a couple of remote clicks.

JohnInSJ
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join:2003-09-22
Aptos, CA

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to trparky
said by trparky:

Windows 8 is the worst offender yet, positively spitting in the face of keyboard users

This makes no sense. You press ANY key, and the lockscreen vanishes, and the cursor is in the password entry box for the last user that logged in.

How is this "spitting in the face of keyboard users"? Because Tom doesn't know this? Because Tom is basing this off the CP? Because this is better clickbait?

trparky
Premium Member
join:2000-05-24
Cleveland, OH

trparky

Premium Member

Again, I didn't write the article. I only quoted the first paragraph of the article.

JohnInSJ
Premium Member
join:2003-09-22
Aptos, CA

JohnInSJ

Premium Member

said by trparky:

Again, I didn't write the article. I only quoted the first paragraph of the article.

I know - the premise of the article is flawed, as is obvious by the first paragraph. The lockscreen is only cumbersome if you try to drag up with your mouse to dismiss it. Which you should not do on a non-touchscreen. Because that, as they say, would be stupid.
SipSizzurp
Fo' Shizzle
Premium Member
join:2005-12-28
Houston, TX

SipSizzurp to trparky

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to trparky
said by trparky:

*sigh* Can we please get back on topic before this thread gets locked?....

Yes, please !!

The homlier versions of Windows 8 do not seem to have gpedit.msc, so I couldn't disable the stupid snag-on screen. Might I be able to copy gpedit.msc from a pro version and have it work in the home version ( like copying msconfig into Windows 2000 ) ?
If not, there must be a registry key that does the same thing. My quest has begun....
67845017 (banned)
join:2000-12-17
Naperville, IL

1 recommendation

67845017 (banned)

Member

My guess is that over the life of the OS, by not having a start screen, you will save about 7.5 minutes of time.

The above is based on a two year OS life, .125 seconds required to press any key on the keyboard and five presses a day.

If you spend more than 8 minutes on your quest, you've lost all your time savings for the next two years.
SipSizzurp
Fo' Shizzle
Premium Member
join:2005-12-28
Houston, TX

SipSizzurp

Premium Member

said by 67845017:

My guess is that over the life of the OS, by not having a start screen, you will save about 7.5 minutes of time.

You forgot about the service calls from guests trying to use the public computer in the kiosk. The screen is just sitting there with the time on it, and nowhere to log in. The familiar password dialog box is nowhere in sight. And yes, my phone has rang twice already.
67845017 (banned)
join:2000-12-17
Naperville, IL

1 edit

67845017 (banned)

Member

I can't help the clueless of the world. But that story reminds me of when I was in middle school. We'd go to the computer lab computers and write a simple BASIC loop that no matter what key the person would press, the screen would come back and say, "Go away, idiot." People would get actually get upset that the computer was supposedly calling them names.

In your case, I'm sure people will catch on. Although, given what I read sometimes, maybe not. Since you're doing computer support, I suppose the time calculations don't really apply.

What I don't get is that some people complain that Win8 is too dumbed down, yet others complain that pressing a key to get to the login screen is too difficult for some users.
SipSizzurp
Fo' Shizzle
Premium Member
join:2005-12-28
Houston, TX

SipSizzurp to trparky

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to trparky
This will add the missing gpedit back to the home versions.
»www.askvg.com/how-to-ena ··· ditions/

Unfortunately the entire Control Panel setting is missing from the Administrative Templates. I did find that you can replace the picture with something different. In "Personalization" and you can change the "Lock Screen" picture.

I wonder how many more lines of code would it have taken to permit "None" as an option for the picture ?

JohnInSJ
Premium Member
join:2003-09-22
Aptos, CA

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to SipSizzurp
said by SipSizzurp:

said by 67845017:

My guess is that over the life of the OS, by not having a start screen, you will save about 7.5 minutes of time.

You forgot about the service calls from guests trying to use the public computer in the kiosk. The screen is just sitting there with the time on it, and nowhere to log in. The familiar password dialog box is nowhere in sight. And yes, my phone has rang twice already.

How about you change the login background image to be a photo of a hand pressing the space bar, with the words PRESS THE SPACE BAR TO BEGIN writ large across it...

- yeah, that might work....

plencnerb
Premium Member
join:2000-09-25
53403-1242

plencnerb

Premium Member

said by JohnInSJ:

How about you change the login background image to be a photo of a hand pressing the space bar, with the words PRESS THE SPACE BAR TO BEGIN writ large across it...
- yeah, that might work....

This image would work just as well!