How to Hide a User Account from the Welcome Screen
The main idea of this tip is to prevent a user account appearing
on an XP, Vista or Window 7's Welcome screen, thus making the
computer a little more secure and private. My sub-plot is
to brush-up our registry editing skills, in general and check
out the Winlogon section of the registry in particular.
Incidentally, it's a shame it's not possible to physically hide certain
users as easily as you can with regedit!
Topics for Hide User Accounts on the Welcome Screen
Be sure to logon as an Administrator, then create a local account
in the Control Panel, User Accounts. For example, I will
call my user 'Eddie'.
While not essential it's a good idea to test this account, or
at least logoff and make sure that it appears on the Welcome
Screen.
Launch Regedit, while this registry editor does not appear on
any menu, just type the word 'regedit' in the Start. right-click on regedit and 'Run as administrator'.
Navigate to the Winlogon section of the registry, to be precise:
*HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\
*HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
Create a Key called SpecialAccounts (note plural) Then
create a sub-key called UserList (note singular no spaces)
You should have: Winlogon\SpecialAccounts\UserList
(See screenshot below) Now create a DWORD (32-bit) Value
with the same name as the user that you wish to hide, if you
remember I called my account 'Eddie'.
I now have Winlogon\SpecialAccounts\UserList\Eddie With a
RegDword Value (0) Zero means hide, one would mean show.
The crucial question for any registry hack is, 'Do you logoff,
or restart the computer to see the effect?' I am
afraid to hide the user account requires a restart, but it will
be worth it!
Do you find Winlogon key in HKCU** or
HKLM? Answer: HKLM
Do you have to add a value, or modify an existing setting? Answer:
Add new key then value.
Is it a String Value or a DWORD? Answer: DWORD
(32-bit).
Do you need to Restart, or merely
Logoff / Logon? Answer: Restart
** HKLM is an abbreviation of HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, and HKCU is shorthand for
HKEY_CURRENT_USER. These acronyms are so well-known that you can even use them in .reg files, Vista will understand and obey the registry instruction.
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I like the
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Think of all the frustration that this free SolarWinds utility saves when you are
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Give this permissions monitor a try - it's free!
One use of this technique is to hide administrator from welcome screen.
The benefit is that if the account does not appear, then people won't think
of trying to impersonate the administrator, it will also make people focus
on their own account.
Another scenario is that you are testing. Perhaps you are just
learning about the registry, or perhaps you are creating a template user /
machine and want hide administrator from welcome screen.
»
Summary of Hide User Accounts From Welcome Screen
Perhaps you want to hide administrator from the Welcome Screen.
This registry technique works on an XP, Vista or Window 7 computer, and as a result
the computer is a little more private. My sub-plot is to brush-up our registry
editing skills, in general and check out the Winlogon section of the
registry in particular. Incidentally, it's a shame it's not possible to hide
certain users physically as easily as you can with regedit!
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