These days when I set up a computer and want to create a local user account, I just invoke that screen from the command prompt. You can do this with an internet connection, but it needs to be one of the first things you do.
1. In the Windows first-run setup (after it has been installed), press shift f10 to open command prompt.
2. Type this: start ms-cxh:localonly
This should pull up the old "Who's going to use this PC?" screen. Seems to work in Windows 11 24H2. When you get done answering security questions, the computer (or at least the out-of-box experience) will restart.
I also use this cmd trick to launch a portable copy of NVDA sometimes.
A lesser-known shortcut in Windows setup is ctrl-shift-f3. This puts you into audit mode, where you're logged into the desktop of the administrator account even though you haven't completed Windows setup yet. A dialog will automatically start, giving options to restart into the out-of-box experience or restart normally. In this mode, you can install drivers and make any other changes that need to be made before the setup process completes.
Example: When giving someone a Surface tablet with an attached Bluetooth keyboard cover, you might want to go into audit mode so you can pair the keyboard, but still retain the setup process for the recipient.
You can, of course, also use this trick to completely bypass Windows setup in order to reinstall Windows on a brand new system.
Simon Jaeger
npub1ez…qwagq
2025-05-10 20:29:25 UTC
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2025-05-10 20:29:25 UTCEvent JSON
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