Quick fix: Stuck on login screen with no user accounts visible? Press Ctrl + Alt + Del. If the “Switch user” / sign-in options appear, you can recover. If not, hold Power button 10 seconds to force shutdown, then boot to Safe Mode (Shift+Restart from sign-in screen). In Safe Mode, run sfc /scannow and DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth.

The PC boots, shows the Windows logo, reaches the sign-in screen — but no user accounts appear. Just the time and date, maybe the network icon. You can’t sign in without clicking a user. The cause is usually a damaged user profile registry hive or a stuck logon service.

Symptom: Windows 11 sign-in screen shows but no user accounts are visible; can’t sign in.
Affects: Windows 11 (and Windows 10) after damaged user profile, Group Policy issue, or service failure.
Fix time: ~30 minutes.

What causes this

The sign-in screen displays available user accounts from the SAM database. When it shows no accounts, possible causes: Damaged user profile (registry hive corruption), Logon UI service not running properly, Welcome screen Group Policy set to hide user list, or Family/AAD account sync failure.

Method 1: Try Ctrl+Alt+Del to access sign-in fallback

The first-line recovery.

At the sign-in screen, press Ctrl + Alt + Del.
If a fallback sign-in screen appears, click Switch user or Sign in to a different user.
Click Other user or similar option.
Type a username manually. If you don’t know:
- Try the username used during PC setup.
- For Microsoft Account: enter the email.
- For domain: enter DOMAIN\username.
Enter password. Sign in.
Once signed in, investigate the cause. Check Settings → Accounts to verify user account state.

This often works when the GUI just isn’t displaying the user list.

Method 2: Boot to Safe Mode and repair user profile

For when Ctrl+Alt+Del doesn’t help.

Force shutdown: hold power button 10 seconds.
Power on. When Windows logo appears, force shutdown again. Repeat 2–3 times.
On the 3rd force shutdown, Windows enters automatic recovery. Choose Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup Settings → Restart → press 4 (Safe Mode) or 5 (Safe Mode with Networking).
In Safe Mode, sign in with any working account.
Open Terminal (Admin). Run:
```
sfc /scannow
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth
```
Both repair system files. Takes 10–30 minutes.
Check user profile health: Settings → Accounts → Family & other users. Verify accounts are listed.
For a specific corrupted user profile: rename the user folder via C:\Users\<name>_OLD, sign out, sign back in. Windows creates a fresh profile, then you can copy files from _OLD.
Reboot normally. The sign-in screen should now show user accounts.

This is the right path for system file or profile corruption.

Method 3: Check Group Policy for hidden user list

For when Group Policy is hiding accounts.

From Safe Mode, open gpedit.msc (Pro only; Home needs registry).
Navigate to Computer Configuration → Administrative Templates → System → Logon.
Find Hide entry points for Fast User Switching. Set to Not Configured or Disabled.
Navigate to Computer Configuration → Windows Settings → Security Settings → Local Policies → Security Options.
Find Interactive logon: Do not display last user name. Set to Disabled (so last user shows).
Find Interactive logon: Don’t display username at sign-in. Set to Disabled.
Run gpupdate /force.

For Windows 11 Home (no gpedit): registry edits.

reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Authentication\LogonUI" /v LastLoggedOnUserSID /t REG_SZ /d "" /f
reg delete "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System" /v DontDisplayLastUserName /f

Reboot. User accounts should display on sign-in screen.

This is the right path for managed PCs or those where account hiding was deliberately set.

How to verify the fix worked

Reboot. Sign-in screen shows all user accounts with profile pictures.
Click an account. Password/PIN prompt appears. Sign in.
After sign-in, Settings → Accounts shows your account with correct details.

If none of these work

If sign-in screen still shows no accounts after repair attempts, deeper corruption is present. Reset the user account database: from WinRE Command Prompt, navigate to C:\Windows\System32\config. The SAM file is the user account database. If corrupted, registry repair is needed (advanced). For Microsoft Account-only sign-in: if your only account is MSA and it’s not syncing, reset the MSA password at account.microsoft.com. Then try again. For domain-joined PCs: domain controller connectivity issues hide domain users. Connect via Ethernet (faster than Wi-Fi at sign-in). If domain isn’t reachable, sign in with cached credentials — the local profile from last successful domain sign-in. Reset This PC: Settings → System → Recovery → Reset this PC → Keep my files. Refreshes Windows including user account database. Last resort — create a new user account from WinRE: net user newadmin password /add then net localgroup administrators newadmin /add. Reboot, sign in as newadmin, troubleshoot the original account.

Bottom line: Ctrl+Alt+Del at sign-in screen often reveals an “Other user” option. If not, boot Safe Mode, run sfc/DISM to repair, check Group Policy for hidden user list policies.