francis11
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OOBE Keeps going to Work or School account
- Thread starter rschneider82
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This post was from 2023 & presumably anyone interested back then isn't so much now.
However, it came up in search for me in 2026, when I had exactly the same problem - kept getting only "Work or School account" to log into in OOBE, despite everything in NT Lite GUI & resulting XML appearing "correct" (largely left default, though tried other things like actively specifying MS account enabled etc)
I tried many of the suggestions here, without success.
The initial workaround I used, which seems "obvious", but has downsides, was just to add the NT Lite option to create a local account, to get me through OOBE & then once running in installed Windows, merged that local account with my online account (for me chief downside was that that process doesn't then bring back things saved via new Windows Backup app/storage).
Later, after seeing it mentioned elsewhere, I found a complete "cure", one so simple I can't believe I missed it initially, or that the OG poster & commenters didn't know of or come across this, however, there is (IMO) very misleading wording from MS involved.
Alongside the "enter your work or school account" box in OOBE is something like "join via domain instead". I never tried this in my first run of frustration over this issue, as it seemed to be specifically saying that the alternative to adding the an individual "Work or School account" it took you to was to join the PC to an organisational domain (& then presumably log in to "finished machine" with Work or School account). Yet, when you click this, you get a "What do you want to do?" set of alternatives, that includes using your MS personal account in OOBE, along with other alternatives (that probably included domain join, but I was so happy pressing "log into your MS account" I disregarded everything else at that point!)
Posting this in case this post/thread comes up in anyone else's search results.
However, it came up in search for me in 2026, when I had exactly the same problem - kept getting only "Work or School account" to log into in OOBE, despite everything in NT Lite GUI & resulting XML appearing "correct" (largely left default, though tried other things like actively specifying MS account enabled etc)
I tried many of the suggestions here, without success.
The initial workaround I used, which seems "obvious", but has downsides, was just to add the NT Lite option to create a local account, to get me through OOBE & then once running in installed Windows, merged that local account with my online account (for me chief downside was that that process doesn't then bring back things saved via new Windows Backup app/storage).
Later, after seeing it mentioned elsewhere, I found a complete "cure", one so simple I can't believe I missed it initially, or that the OG poster & commenters didn't know of or come across this, however, there is (IMO) very misleading wording from MS involved.
Alongside the "enter your work or school account" box in OOBE is something like "join via domain instead". I never tried this in my first run of frustration over this issue, as it seemed to be specifically saying that the alternative to adding the an individual "Work or School account" it took you to was to join the PC to an organisational domain (& then presumably log in to "finished machine" with Work or School account). Yet, when you click this, you get a "What do you want to do?" set of alternatives, that includes using your MS personal account in OOBE, along with other alternatives (that probably included domain join, but I was so happy pressing "log into your MS account" I disregarded everything else at that point!)
Posting this in case this post/thread comes up in anyone else's search results.
I don't think you're doing it right. Using the BypassNRO setting (or the reg equivalent on NTLite free edition), you shouldn't get the "Work or School" option. Unless you've disabled User OOBE, and failed to create a local user account in the unattended file at the same time.
Correct way NTLite way:
1. Use BypassNRO, or add the same reg key using a reg file from the Registry screen.
2. Don't disable User OOBE, because we want OOBE to create an user account of your choice.
Correct way NTLite way:
1. Use BypassNRO, or add the same reg key using a reg file from the Registry screen.
2. Don't disable User OOBE, because we want OOBE to create an user account of your choice.