Reactivating the pin at start up

Question

Reactivating the pin at start up

Carolyn L 20

I'm trying to add my previous pin at start up. I had initially removed it because my computer was in a private area, so I didn't have to log in every time at start up.

Now this computer is being moved to a public area, so I want to add the start up pin back.

I have tried everything. Dell says it the operating system, which I don't believe.

I've gone to Sign in Options and pin. There is no option to put it back up on start up. I've tried changing my pin and clicking a couple other buttons, but still not working.

Thank you!

2 answers

Your answer

Answer 1

Jason Nguyen Tran 4,870 Independent Advisor

Hi there,

The first thing I recommend is going to Settings > Accounts > Sign-in options, scroll down, and ensure “For improved security, only allow Windows Hello sign-in for Microsoft accounts” is turned off, then reboot. This alone often brings the “Set up PIN” option back.

If it still doesn’t appear, open Local Group Policy Editor and check this path: Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Logon Ensure “Turn on convenience PIN sign-in” is set to Enabled or Not configured. If it’s set to Disabled, Windows will hide the PIN option entirely.

You can also reset the Hello container by deleting the contents of: C:\Windows\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Local\Microsoft\NGC (then reboot), which forces Windows to recreate the PIN setup component. After this, the “Set up PIN” button usually reappears instantly.

Try these steps and let me know what changes. I’m happy to guide you further until the PIN is restored. If this helps resolve the issue, please consider clicking “Accept Answer” so others can benefit too 😊.

Jason.

Carolyn L 20 Reputation points

2025-11-25T17:01:47.36+00:00

Thank you, Jen.

For Improved Security....is turned off

and

I set Not Configured to Enabled

and

The link above say....Your file couldn’t be accessed

It may have been moved, edited, or deleted.

ERR_FILE_NOT_FOUND

Do you have any other thoughts? I appreciate your response
Jason Nguyen Tran 4,870 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2025-11-28T08:53:27.11+00:00
Hi Carolyn,

Since the NGC folder returned “file couldn’t be accessed,” it indicates that the PIN container may already be missing or partially removed, which can sometimes happen after policy changes or a system cleanup. When that folder is missing, Windows will not show the “Set up PIN” option until it rebuilds the Hello components from scratch. To force this, please try restarting the device into Safe Mode, go to Settings > Accounts > Sign-in options, and attempt to add a PIN from there. Safe Mode often bypasses file-locking issues and recreates the necessary structure automatically.

If it still doesn’t appear, the next step is to re-register your local account credentials by running the following in an elevated command prompt:

dsregcmd /forcerecovery

After rebooting and signing in again, check Sign-in options once more.

Additionally, please confirm that no third-party security software (antivirus, credential protection tools, endpoint hardening agents, etc.) is blocking the Windows Hello credential provider, these tools frequently prevent PIN creation without showing an obvious error.

Try the steps above and let me know what changes. I’m happy to continue working with you until your PIN setup is fully restored. And if this helps resolve the issue, please consider clicking “Accept Answer” so others can benefit too 😊.
Carolyn L 20 Reputation points

2025-11-29T09:59:38.49+00:00

Thank you!
Jason Nguyen Tran 4,870 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2025-11-29T15:10:49.38+00:00

Hi Carolyn,

You can try that and share the results with me. If it’s helpful, please mark the answer as "Accepted" so the community can benefit as well. Thank you!

Answer 2

Carolyn L 20

"Accepted"

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Reactivating the pin at start up

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