46

The "You need to fix your Microsoft account" notification pops up every 10 minutes with the new Anniversary Update. This notification appears because I am not signed into my Microsoft account. I do not wish to sign into my Microsoft account. Ever. Does anyone know how I disable this notification in REGEDIT?

the notification

Note: I know people are having problems with this notification even after they have signed into their Microsoft account. This could be a solution for them as well.

hippietrail
  • 4,505
  • 15
  • 53
  • 86
LinaleeEshna
  • 461
  • 1
  • 4
  • 4
  • Have you verfiied your local account currently is not connected to a MS account, connecting your account to a MS IS NOT REQUIRED, this error only happens in specific cases. In other words, this is a real error, and it is not a bug. – Ramhound Sep 12 '16 at 16:38
  • @Don'tRoothereplz... - Its only required if you use those features. Can we not spread around, incorrect information, or at the very least not use words like "necessary". It's only required for OneDrive and Cortana. – Ramhound Sep 12 '16 at 16:44
  • `I know people are having problems with this notification even after they have signed into their Microsoft account.` I doubt that they still have this problem after upgrading to the latest version. I run Windows 10 Version 1607 and do not experience this error as I have connected my account to my Microsoft account. I suggest that you connect yours also, as it is an integral part of Windows 10 if you want to experience all features completely. Okay @Ramhound? From my personal point of view, Microsoft will keep pushing you to sign in even if you manage to escape it right now. – Don't Root here plz... Sep 12 '16 at 16:56
  • 3
    @Don'tRoothereplz... - Nope. Cortana might request it. OneDrive might request it. The reason for that request is understandable, if you want to use either feature, a Microsoft Account is required. I used a local account, on Windows 10 for an entire year and half, which means I did so on every released version of Windows 10 (RTM, Version 1511, and Version 1607). – Ramhound Sep 12 '16 at 17:03
  • 2
    @Don'tRoothereplz... I'm not trying to experience all features completely. I wish to customize Windows as much as I can to do what I need. I do not need my Microsoft account attached to my workstation. What I am looking for is how to use REGEDIT to disable this notification. – LinaleeEshna Sep 12 '16 at 17:46
  • 1
    @Ramhound I'm pretty sure it isn't a bug, but that's not what I'm implying. I'm implying that it is an annoying notification that Microsoft pushes, so that I'm inclined to connect my Microsoft account to my account. I do not with to connect it, ever, so I wish to disable the notification through REGEDIT. – LinaleeEshna Sep 12 '16 at 17:49
  • "You need to fix your Microsoft account" - Indicates an error and is an indication an actual problem does exist.. Cortana and OneDrive will indeed, prompt you to log into your Microsoft Account when you attempt to use them, which if you log into your account result in connecting the local account to the Microsoft Account that was used. – Ramhound Sep 12 '16 at 17:57
  • @LinaleeEshna - This cannot be solved by using RegEdit. – Ramhound Sep 12 '16 at 17:58
  • @Ramhound I can't say that I'm an expert when it comes to playing in REGEDIT, but why is it that I could disable the "Upgrade to Windows 10" notification in REGEDIT (this was before the Windows 10 Upgrades stopped being forced-applied in July), but I can't disable this notification through REGEDIT? It seems like it would be a similar process. – LinaleeEshna Sep 12 '16 at 18:02
  • If you installed windows 10 using the free upgrade program your license is tied to your MS account. This type of activation is called a 'digital license'; the other type is the traditional 'product key'. The former requires that the linked MS account be on the system - although additional local accounts are fully supported, the latter has no requirement to have an MS account. You can check your activation type by going into: Settings > Update & Security > Activation – Argonauts Sep 12 '16 at 18:22
  • 1
    @Argonauts I have a traditional product key. I understand that I do not need to have MS account attached my local account. I do not have a MS account attached to my local account. I would like to know how to disable the notification that is pushing me to connect my local account to my MS account. – LinaleeEshna Sep 12 '16 at 18:44
  • @LinaleeEshna - One is controlled by a registry key, the other, is a caused by a stateful error? – Ramhound Sep 12 '16 at 21:26
  • 2
    @Argonauts - "If you installed windows 10 using the free upgrade program your license is tied to your MS account." - This is false. This is only true if you, choose to allow this to happen, and only if your using Version 1607. "The former requires that the linked MS account be on the system" - False; I ran my numerous Windows 10 machines without attaching my local profile to a Microsoft Account, and all those installations, were upgraded from the offer. My parents, have machines, both use local accounts. Where are people getting this bad information from exactly? – Ramhound Sep 12 '16 at 21:27
  • @AkiraYamamoto: (1) Which is your version of Windows 10? (2) Have you activated Windows using your Microsoft account, or by other means? (3) Try to toggle "Share across devices" On and finally Off. – harrymc Nov 26 '21 at 19:53
  • Win 10 20H2 build 19042.1348. Windows was already activated from factory, I bough the laptop new. "Share across devices" was off, I just toggle it on and off, lets see how it goes. I use a local account to login, however I do have my MS account in the "Email & accounts" tab to buy apps from MS Store. – Akira Yamamoto Nov 29 '21 at 06:05

5 Answers5

20

First, you'll need a local account. If you already have one, you can go straight to the "Email & app accounts" screen (see further down).

If you don't have a local account, you'll need to create one first (don't worry, this won't reset your settings). Only then can you remove your Microsoft account from your computer, which will get rid of the annoying notification.

Go to Settings -> Accounts.

Accounts

On the "Your info" page, click "Sign in with a local account instead".

Your info

Confirm your current Microsoft account password to continue.

Microsoft sign-in

Choose a username for your local account. You can also specify a password if you want to.

Create local account

You will be signed out of your Microsoft account and can now sign in with the local account you just created. Once you have done this, go back to Settings -> Accounts and go to the "Email & app accounts" page.

Email and app accounts

You should see your Microsoft account listed under "Accounts used by other apps". Click on it, and select the "Remove" option.

Remove Microsoft account

This disassociates your Microsoft account with your PC. You no longer need to enter your Microsoft password to log in and you should also be rid of the annoying notification.

Note: If you need your Microsoft account for any of your apps to work, this solution unfortunately will not work for you.

Stephan B
  • 341
  • 2
  • 6
  • 1
    This fixed my similar problem, but I had to click on something like, "Stop signing in to all apps using your Microsoft account," in the "Your info" part of Settings -> Accounts. Windows (20H2) was already set to sign in with a local account. – Bob Sammers Mar 25 '21 at 09:53
3

Go to "Settings", then choose "Email & App Accounts" and remove the shown Microsoft account. I already were logging in with a local account, but was still getting notifications with nagging about Microsoft account. Removing the Microsoft account as described above, made the notifications disappear.

  • Do apps like office still work that way? I want to use a microsoft account for syncing oneNote, but not for windows itself – lucidbrot Mar 26 '20 at 12:15
0

To get rid of this notification go to PC Settings, Accounts.
Below Manage my Microsoft account you will see Verify your Identity.
Select it and enter your windows account password and press enter.
The notification will no longer display.
The other method above will turn off all notifications.

mic84
  • 2,363
  • 2
  • 21
  • 17
Rich
  • 1
  • i'm having this problem and have already verified my identity. The item you describe does not appear on my Account page. – cautionbug Jan 07 '17 at 20:33
-1

Another option if you have notification with work or school account: settings > System > Shared experiences > off

Ghost
  • 11
  • Although downvoted, this *used* to be a working fix to the problem. Although it doesn't mention it verbatim, the notification is actually triggered by the Shared Experiences feature. Disabling it stopped the notifications. Of course, removing any linked Microsoft accounts, as the top-voted answer suggests, will also disable the feature, but might be overkill considering the scope of the question. I'm saying "used to" because Microsoft seem to have recently introduced a bug that makes the notification be triggered even with the feature turned off. – Daniel Saner Mar 06 '20 at 10:08
-5

run gpedit.msc (as administrator)

Under 

user configuration
|_  start menu and toolbar
  |_  notifications

Find "turn off toast notifications" and set it to enabled.

Marc Wilson
  • 170
  • 1
  • 9
  • 4
    Will this turn off all notifications, or just the one related to your Microsoft account? – LinaleeEshna Sep 16 '16 at 19:53
  • And thanks for the answer! I didn't think to use group policy over the registry, but that only makes sense. – LinaleeEshna Sep 16 '16 at 20:08
  • I think it's pretty all-or-nothing. – Marc Wilson Sep 18 '16 at 18:53
  • 5
    This is not a solution. It's a silencer. Disabling an OS feature to avoid seeing an ongoing problem isn't solving the problem. – cautionbug Jan 07 '17 at 20:32
  • 2
    It's only a "problem" if you're interested in having a Microsoft account. I use a local user account to log in, I have no interest in having a live account. – Marc Wilson Jan 10 '17 at 02:17
  • 4
    It's a "problem" because it doesn't *just* disable notifications for a Microsoft account. It disables all notifications for EVERYTHING. – zaTricky Mar 05 '18 at 16:47
  • It certainly doesn't disable all notifications. I still get the various pings about updates, virus scan, battery plans, yada yada. – Marc Wilson May 24 '18 at 13:26
  • 1
    I have to agree with zaTricky. Even if there are types of notifications that aren't affected by this, this configuration flag isn't *specific* to notifications regarding Microsoft account problems. It is unclear what other notifications might get suppressed, either now, or in future updates. – ToolmakerSteve Aug 14 '19 at 17:42