[Solved] No Welcome Screen

[SimonF]

We had a clean install of XP and we seem to have lost our welcome screen. We have two users - both administrators. Whereas before the install it would go to the welcome screen, now it logs into my account first and you have to "switch" to go to my wife's account. Welcome screen and faster switching options are enabled. Whilst this doesn't matter is really irritating me. I have tried adding passwords but this provokes an error message (we couldn't log you on) before then taking you to the welcome screen so this is even more annoying. I have also tried other permutations (one administrator, extra accounts etc) but nothing works. I have Googled til the cows come home - all I can find are references to altering items in the registry that are not even appearing in ours. I am cautious anyway about altering this so any thought please?

[KenB]

Hi and welcome to ExTS

 

Click on Start > Control Panel > User Accounts

Click on "Change the way users log on or off"

Put a check against "Use the Welcome Screen"

Click on "Apply Options"

 

Does this help ?

[Plastic Nev]

Hi Simon, I had a look into this myself on my own laptop (XP) and working with Ken here, wonder if you see this when you first boot up, or does it just go straight to your normal screen.

 

http://i48.servimg.com/u/f48/14/68/69/96/sam_0910.jpg

 

Nev.

[SimonF]

Hello KenB / Nev

 

Thanks for the welcome and posts.

 

I have ticked and unticked "use welcome screen" til blue in the face it makes no difference, it always logs into my account regardless. However, if I apply a password the "log-on to windows" box as above appears (with no details) - this is overlaid with an error message saying:

 

"The system could not log you on. Make sure your user name and domain are correct then type password again".

 

If I click though this it then takes me to the welcome screen where of course I have to type the password. This is the only way that I can get the welcome screen to appear but as you can imagine, it is a tad frustrating. Before XP was re-installed the welcome screen (without passwords) used to appear every time the pc was turned on.

 

Hope this makes sense

 

SimonF

[Plastic Nev]

Hi, yes it must be a bit frustrating. I have since tried all ways to recreate your problem in order to see if there is a fix, but cannot. I either get the screen as the screen shot, or the correct welcome screen if I re tick the box for it.

I think perhaps we could do with some more information regarding the re-install of Windows XP. First is why was that done?

Secondly, was the hard drive fully reformatted before the install, or did you just let the system look after itself as it went through the re-install?

Thirdly, has your wife put in a password for her account, and was that account created after you had created your own account or before it?

My feeling now is the not uncommon missed, or very slightly corrupted file during the re-install. Sometimes the only answer is another re-install.

 

Nev.

[SimonF]

Hi Nev

 

The re-install was because the mother board packed up and once a new one was installed (plus new processor so we are looking at a nearly new computer!) the sound card from the motherboard would not work. The chap working on it (who seems to know his stuff) said he felt an install of XP was the best way to go and we agreed this. This got everything working but then we had this problem. The honest answer is that I don't know whether he reformatted the hard disk or not and because he ended up doing a lot of work beyond what he charged us for I am slightly loathe to pose further queries (already asked a heap trying to resolve a few issues when it came back).

 

The accounts were created originally (i.e. before re-install) and they were there when we got the pc back - it was the welcome screen we were missing. We have never used passwords in the past so it is only in my messing around trying to resolve this problem that I added them. It doesn't seem to matter whether we have one account or both passworded - if they are present it provokes the error message then you get the welcome screen.

 

I hope this helps and appreciate your comments.

 

SimonF

[Plastic Nev]

Hi Simon, Thanks for the further information, if the accounts were still intact, it must have been a repair install the tech did for you. Sometimes called a Windows repair, but it actually does re-install the full operating system, but leaves all data intact, including separate accounts.

 

That does explain a little, and of course a full reformat couldn't have been done without losing all that data.

 

Unless you can live with the problem, I would be asking the guy if it would be possible to do it again in the hope that it will sort it out for you.

 

The second account, your wife's, could be deleted and then recreated, which may or may not solve it, but all her stuff would need to be backed up. Windows will ask you if the second accounts data needs to be kept and should put a folder on your desktop containing it, but under the circumstances I wouldn't be trusting it to do so correctly. Hence back it all up, preferably onto an external hard drive perhaps.

 

Otherwise, I don't know if there is another way, hopefully Ken may have a trick up his sleeve as he knows a good bit more than I do.

 

Nev.

[SimonF]

Thanks for all your trouble Nev. Unless Ken has any other thoughts we may have to live with this as I don't feel I can face another install right now!

 

Appreciate your help

 

SimonF

[KenB]

Hi Simon

 

Make sure your user name and domain are correct then type password again"

The key word here is "domain"

Home computers are not part of a domain - was this a company machine at one point?

 

Did the technician take your machine away to work on it ?

Does this fit your circumstances?

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/317049

 

===================

I found this to explain your error message:

The account for which the AutoAdminLogon feature is set, is either deleted or does not exist, but the registry settings for the Autologon feature for that account are still in the registry

 

Do the following and check for me please.....

 

Start > Run ....type in ....regedit ......ENTER

Click the + next to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE then click the + next to Software

 

This is the path > continue clicking the +

 

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon

 

When you get to Winlogon do not click the + but highlight Winlogon by clicking on itYou will see a list on the right of the screen.

 

Are any of the items below listed ?

 

DefaultPassword (REG_SZ): <Password>

AutoAdminLogon (REG_SZ): 1

AutoLogonCount (REG_DWORD) : any value greater than one (1)

[SimonF]

Hi Ken

 

The computer has never been a company computer - we bought it and have used it for 3 years without problem. As far as I know it has therefore never been part of a domain. We took it to the shop to be fixed.

 

The symptoms as shown on the MS page are what we are experiencing: if we have a password added to my account this error message appears but it does then let us click through and accepts the password. Otherwise (i.e. no passwords) then it logs straight into my account.

 

As for the registry:

 

DefaultPassword (REG_SZ): <Password>

 

Shows - DefaultPassword (REG_SZ) i.e. nothing more

 

AutoAdminLogon (REG_SZ): 1

 

As above but no colon

 

AutoLogonCount (REG_DWORD) : any value greater than one (1)

Not listed

 

Thanks in advance

 

SimonF

[KenB]

AutoAdminLogon (REG_SZ): 1

 

I think your system is set to logon to your username automatically - bypassing any other user.

 

Set this value to 0 ( zero )

 

Highlight AutoAdminLogon > EDIT ( on the toolbar ) > Modify

It will show a 1 > change this to 0 ( zero ) and OK

 

Try re-booting now.

[SimonF]

Sorry I am probably being a tad slow here - do I repeat the previous process i.e. run regedit and then highlight Winlogon by clicking on it and alter the value on the right of the screen?

[KenB]

Hi

 

Just to confirm ....follow this path again.

 

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon

Click on Winlogon to highlight it

 

Click on AutoAdminLogon to highlight this > EDIT ( on the toolbar ) > Modify

It will show a 1 > change this to 0 ( zero ) and OK

 

Re-boot the machine

 

=========================

 

Does it also show:

DefaultUserName (REG_SZ): <User name (admin)> where the User name is actually yours ?

[SimonF]

Does it also show:

DefaultUserName (REG_SZ): <User name (admin)> where the User name is actually yours ?

 

It says "owner"

[KenB]

OK

Try setting the value to "0" and re-booting.

[SimonF]

:D What can I say? You have solved a petty but really irritating problem. I am extremely grateful (to say the least) Ken.

[KenB]

You are very welcome

 

I don't know why the Registry Value had been changed - but we found it in the end :)