Preliminary information
Before getting to the heart of this guide and explaining yourself how to delete the login PIN in Windows 10, let me give you some more information on the usefulness of this login option.
To begin with, the Windows Hello PIN it is a protection mode that is added to the "classic" Microsoft account password, but does not replace it. The code in question, consisting of basic 4 digits (e which can also be expeed with letters and special characters), is useful for simplifying access to the computer or even to the applications and services connected to it, eliminating the need to specify each time the access key of your personal profile.
The Windows 10 PIN is not stored in the cloud but only in the memory of the device on which it is set, obviously in an encrypted manner; a code of this type can only be used on the computer / tablet on which it was stored and is not valid for other devices associated with the same Microsoft account, unless the same code is set using a specific procedure.
In the following lines of this guide, I will explain both how to bypass the PIN request when logging on to Windows 10 (thus passing to the password entry screen), and how to disable it completely.
How to delete the login PIN in Windows 10
Having made the necessary initial clarifications, it is time to take action and to explain to you, in practice, how to delete the login PIN in Windows 10, both provisionally and definitively. I would like to specify that, for the changes to be successful, it is essential to know the password of the Microsoft account configured in the system (the one to which the PIN is associated). If you don't remember it, you can reset it by following the steps I gave you in my guide on how to recover your Microsoft account password.
Use alternative login options
If you no longer remember your Windows 10 PIN, you can try to log into the system using an alternative method, such as password dell’account Microsoft, face recognition, fingerprint recognition, a physical security key or a graphic password.
Keep in mind that, in order for everything to be successful, it is essential that the login system you have chosen has been previously configured in the system; however, this does not apply to the Microsoft account password, which can be used as a "backup" access method at any time.
However, to proceed, turn on your computer and wait for the login screen to appear. When this happens, press anywhere on the screen to activate the PIN entry request, click on the item Access options and that's it: at this point, you just have to click on tile showing the login system most congenial to you (e.g. entering the password dell’account Microsoft) and finalize the login following the necessary procedure.
After logging into the system, you can deactivate or replace the Windows Hello PIN with a new code by following the steps in the next section of this chapter.
Deactivate or change the PIN
Were you able to unlock Windows e, now, would you like to replace the PIN you no longer remember with a new code? Or, again, would you like to completely eliminate the PIN request and use an alternative login system? Then carefully follow the steps that I am going to show you.
To get started, right click on the button Home of Windows 10 (the icon in the shape of pennant which resides in the lower left corner of the screen) and select the item Settings located in the context menu that appears on the screen. In the window that opens, click on the icon Account and then on the voice Access options, to the left.
Once on the next screen, click on the item Windows Hello PIN e, if you want to change the code, press the button Modify PIN and specify the old and new PIN in the appropriate fields. Finally, press the button OKI inserted the Password Microsoft account, press again OK And that's it.
If, on the other he, you prefer turn off completely the request of the same, press the button first Remove twice in a row e, when prompted, enter the password dell’account Microsoft or the 'account locale configured on your computer and click on the button OK per I will proceed.
Where the button Remove was obscured, you must first deactivate the option that allows Windows Hello to "replace" the entry of the password for Microsoft accounts: locate, therefore, the entry Request Windows Hello to sign in for Microsoft accounts, resident a little further down, and move the corresponding lever from On a Disabled.
Now, to ensure that the change is recognized and that the button to remove the PIN works again, close the Windows settings panel, then reopen it, go back to the sections Settings> Accounts> Login options e follow the procedure I indicated a little while ago, to eliminate the PIN request.
Done! From now on, you can log in using one of the other configured systems: the Password local / Microsoft account, Windows Hello face / fingerprint recognition, a physical security key or a graphic password.
If you change your mind, you can activate the code request again as follows: go to the sections Settings> Accounts> Login options Windows, click on the box again Windows Hello PIN, by pressing the button Add that appears inside the latter and follow the procedure displayed on the screen to set a new code: enter the password dell’account Microsoft in use, click on the button OK, type il new PIN in the appropriate text fields (avoiding known sequences such as "0000", "1234" and the like) e, when you are done, click on the button OK, to confirm.
Note: Following the steps described above, you will eliminate the PIN request only, but you will not disable the protection for access to Windows. If you are interested in proceeding in this way (which is strongly not recommended, as it can jeopardize the confidentiality of the data stored on your computer), instead follow the instructions I gave you in my guide on how to remove the password when starting Windows.
Reset forgotten PIN
Alternatively, if you deem it appropriate, you can carry out the PIN reset procedure directly from the Windows 10 login screen. You ask me how to do it? It's that easy.
First, click on an empty spot on the login screen, to display the box dedicated to entering the PIN, click on the item I forgot my PIN e, when prompted, enter the password dell’account Microsoft in the appropriate text box and press the button OK. If necessary, complete thetwo-factor authentication indicating the method of receiving the one-time code you prefer.
Once the identity verification is complete, click on the button Continue and enter the new PIN, twice, in the appropriate text boxes; if you deem it appropriate to include within it too letters and symbols, put the check mark in the appropriate box. Finally, press the button OK and that's it: if everything went smoothly, the PIN will be changed and can be used starting from the next request.
