It’s the end of yet another era, as Microsoft has removed the ability to create a local account when installing Windows 11. Admins will soon have to dig deeper into their toolbox if they want to install Windows 11 via offline methods, now that a new update is on its way. The latest Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26220.6772 (KB5065797) has casually rolled out several new features and security improvements in the Dev Channel, but has also closed the door on offline installs.
Per Windows Insider Blog:
- “Local-only commands removal: We are removing known mechanisms for creating a local account in the Windows Setup experience (OOBE). While these mechanisms were often used to bypass Microsoft account setup, they also inadvertently skip critical setup screens, potentially causing users to exit OOBE with a device that is not fully configured for use. Users will need to complete OOBE with internet and a Microsoft account, to ensure device is setup correctly.”
While the more tech-savvy, or admins with pre-established processes, might still have a means to push an image to a machine that will still allow the creation of a local account, those days could be numbered. However, the average user is unlikely to have the resources to execute any workaround to bypass this restriction. As Windows Central has reported, methods using commands to bypass such restrictions have been getting patched out. The “oobe/bypassnro” command was removed a while back, and “start ms-cxh:localonly” is being removed, and it’s probably only a matter of time until other methods are blocked from allowing “unapproved” versions of Windows 11 from being activated.
In essence, Microsoft is making it so that users must have an online connection when doing a first-time setup with Windows 11. For the time being, the latest update has only been seen in the Dev Channel, but it’s only a matter of time until it gets rolled out through the main channels. Meanwhile, Microsoft is set to cease support for Windows 10 in a matter of weeks, although EU users have been granted an extra year of support.