Why is Win 11 going to default?

cloa513 · Jan 6, 2024

Windows 11 just failed on login a couple of times- it just said logging out. Later it is said it was going ready and it has gone to default background with all desktop setup gone. Programs such as KeePass and Chrome also have no set data such as the default database- but I found it to log in here- and saved passwords.

The only thing we have been doing particularly with this computer is running my son's login and get the nonsensical another user is using this computer whine when shutdown.

What is going on here? We had a minor tremor ( in this location - from the powerful one in the north side of Japan's main island ) and it is quite cold but not extremely.

cloa513 · Jan 6, 2024

It just suddenly switched to a train site background.

Anak · Jan 6, 2024

This is a wild guess but have you noticed any other brown-outs in your home, in the area, lights don't look as bright?

I'm thinking that if there are power fluctuations to affect your PC it might give pause to the OS and windows reboots.
The local power co. may be rerouting/lowering your power to help the less fortunate b/c of the earthquake.

Do you have a way to measure the power coming into your home?

cloa513 · Jan 6, 2024

That is long way away- We live near Tokyo. It might as well be a couple of state away. It is certainly a full prefecture away. No effect on electricity supply. The main island is 230 kilometres wide and we are maybe 31 kilometres from Tokyo.

Anak · Jan 6, 2024

No worries, just a thought I had.

trumpy81 · Jan 7, 2024

@cloa513
The apparent reset to defaults is usually caused by the registry becoming corrupt or being overwritten in some way. There are a few possibilities that may explain this issue.

The first is flaky RAM. Run a RAM test to rule out any issues there.

Run Windows Memory Diagnostics Tool in Windows 11 Tutorial

This tutorial will show you how to manually run the Windows Memory Diagnostics Tool to check for memory problems in Windows 10 and Windows 11. The Windows Memory Diagnostics Tool can help you identify and diagnose problems with system memory (RAM) when you suspect your PC has a memory problem...

www.elevenforum.com

Keep in mind that flaky RAM issues can be caused by wayward programs as well, so keep an eye on any third party apps, especially those that you recently installed.

Next are the hard drive/s. Open a CMD window and type in: chkdsk C: /F and press enter.
Then do the same for your D: drive, chkdsk D: /F

chkdsk will ask if you want to check the C: drive at startup, select Yes and then reboot.
chkdsk may also ask if you want to dismount the D: drive, select yes.

Another possibility, but far less likely in this case, are flaky connections to your internal devices. The remedy is to open the computer and with the power completely disconnected, simply unplug any connections and plug them back in. This should ensure that all connections are making a good electrical connection.

Concentrate on the power connections to the motherboard, the hard drives, reseat the RAM and any M.2 drives.

HTH

Anak · Jan 7, 2024

trumpy81 said:
@Anak
The apparent reset to defaults is usually caused by the registry becoming corrupt or being overwritten in some way. There are a few possibilities that may explain this issue.

Thanks trumpy81, All good areas to look into. I've been out of the 'game' for a few years b/c of health problems with me and the family and I've forgotten a lot of 'tips' since my BSOD days on 7F. Flaky ram. . . Duh!

When cloa513 mentioned the earthquake I thought maybe his family was close but hoping not directly in the fray and based my answer on that.

@cloa513 Listen to trumpy81 there's good tips there, all easy to do, don't cost anything and maybe a few hours of time, if you do get inside the box to check connections think about cleaning out all the dust bunnies as they also have a detrimental affect on performance.

trumpy81 · Jan 7, 2024

lol ... I called out the wrong person, sorry about that.

Hopefully, the OP gets pinged now and I am able to help them.

Anak · Jan 7, 2024

trumpy81 said:
lol ... I called out the wrong person, sorry about that.

I was wondering about that, no worries.

cereberus · Jan 7, 2024

Try disabling hibernation/fast startup. They often give weird behaviour with multi users. If that does not work, you can reverse changes.

abactuon · Jan 7, 2024

Maybe this will help:

Troubleshoot problems signing in to Windows - Microsoft Support

Learn how to troubleshoot Windows sign in issues, including problems signing in to your Windows device after upgrading.

support.microsoft.com

Accounts can be checked
Get-CimInstance win32_UserAccount | Select Status, SIDType, Name, FullName, Caption, Domain, SID | ft -AutoSize
net user <Name>

cloa513 · Jan 10, 2024

trumpy81 said:
@cloa513
The apparent reset to defaults is usually caused by the registry becoming corrupt or being overwritten in some way. There are a few possibilities that may explain this issue.

The first is flaky RAM. Run a RAM test to rule out any issues there.

Run Windows Memory Diagnostics Tool in Windows 11 Tutorial

This tutorial will show you how to manually run the Windows Memory Diagnostics Tool to check for memory problems in Windows 10 and Windows 11. The Windows Memory Diagnostics Tool can help you identify and diagnose problems with system memory (RAM) when you suspect your PC has a memory problem...

www.elevenforum.com

Keep in mind that flaky RAM issues can be caused by wayward programs as well, so keep an eye on any third party apps, especially those that you recently installed.

Next are the hard drive/s. Open a CMD window and type in: chkdsk C: /F and press enter.
Then do the same for your D: drive, chkdsk D: /F

chkdsk will ask if you want to check the C: drive at startup, select Yes and then reboot.
chkdsk may also ask if you want to dismount the D: drive, select yes.

Another possibility, but far less likely in this case, are flaky connections to your internal devices. The remedy is to open the computer and with the power completely disconnected, simply unplug any connections and plug them back in. This should ensure that all connections are making a good electrical connection.

Concentrate on the power connections to the motherboard, the hard drives, reseat the RAM and any M.2 drives.

HTH

I did Checkdisk on C: and restarted. Only one local hard disk.
It doesn't go to the default every time but it has happened two days in a row and it happened a long time before. I posted a thread before but didn't have a picture to include. Currently it is in regular setup. Is cold a factor since we don't have airconditioning and it is 0 C mornings?

trumpy81 · Jan 10, 2024

@cloa513
It could be that the PC is not able to read the registry properly due to the coldness and the drives etc. not functioning properly.

When you first start the PC on a cold morning, enter the BIOS setup and just let it sit there for about 10 minutes or so, allowing the PC to warm up a little, then exit the BIOS and let it boot up.

You could also try pointing a fan heater at the PC for a little while.

I wonder if that will help or not?

I would be surprised if it did, but stranger things have happened ... lol

cloa513 · Jan 10, 2024

trumpy81 said:
@cloa513
It could be that the PC is not able to read the registry properly due to the coldness and the drives etc. not functioning properly.

When you first start the PC on a cold morning, enter the BIOS setup and just let it sit there for about 10 minutes or so, allowing the PC to warm up a little, then exit the BIOS and let it boot up.

You could also try pointing a fan heater at the PC for a little while.

I wonder if that will help or not?

I would be surprised if it did, but stranger things have happened ... lol

Press Esc to enter to the menu for bios selection is that right? I just searched and it said press the assigned key.

trumpy81 · Jan 10, 2024

I really can't say. Different manufacturers use different keys to enter the BIOS.

For me, I need to press either F2 or the Delete key to enter the BIOS.

Check the user manual for your PC. It should tell you what key/s to press in order to enter the BIOS.