How to temporarily lock the computer when entering the wrong password many times

If you're worried that someone might try to guess your computer password, you can set Windows to temporarily lock your computer when entering the wrong password multiple times.

When Windows is not set to automatically log in, it will allow you to enter the wrong password with an unlimited number of times for the local user account. Although this is convenient when you do not remember the password, it also allows others to have access to your computer with an unlimited number of passwords.

1. Distinguish local accounts and Microsoft accounts on Windows 8

Although there are many ways to bypass or reset the password, setting up the computer temporarily after entering the wrong password for the specified number of times can at least prevent normal intrusion actions if you are using the account. local user. This article will guide you how to temporarily lock the computer when entering the wrong password many times.

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Before starting, you need to note some things like the following. Some people take advantage of this setting to tease you by entering the wrong password multiple times so that you cannot use the computer for a while. Therefore you should use another admin account to be able to unlock the normal account.

In addition, this setting only applies to local user accounts, and does not work if you sign in to Windows 8 or Windows 10 with a Microsoft account. If you want to continue using the computer lock settings, you first need to convert your Microsoft account to a local account. If you still want to continue using your Microsoft account, you can access the security settings page and log in. Here you can change two-step authentication, trustworthy device setup, etc. However, you cannot set up computer lock for a Microsoft account like a local account.

For users of the Home version: Set logon limit with Command Prompt

If you are using a Home version of Windows, you need to use the Command Prompt to set the limit of logon times. In addition, you can use this method with Windows Pro or Enterprise versions, but with these two versions, it is easier to use the Local Group Policy Editor (we will look at how to do it at the end). posts).

Note, carefully follow all instructions below if you do not want your computer to be permanently locked.

To start, open Command Prompt with admin rights by right-clicking on the Start menu (or pressing Windows + X on the keyboard) to open the Power Users menu, then click Command Prompt (Admin) .

Note : If you see PowerShell on the Power Users menu, you can easily switch to display the Command Prompt on the Power Users menu if you want or you can use PowerShell. It provides the same features as the Command Prompt and also has many other useful features.

1. How are Command Prompt (cmd) and PowerShell different?

At the prompt, type the following command and then press Enter :

 net accounts 

This command lists the policies related to your current password, by default it will be ' Lockout threshold: Neve r', which means you can enter as many times as you want without having your device locked.

You will begin by setting a threshold to lock in the number of incorrect password attempts before temporarily locking the device. You can set it as you like, but it's best to put at least three wrong entries in case you accidentally type in the wrong password. To set up the number of failed password attempts, type the following command and replace the last number with the number of times you entered the wrong password.

 net accounts / lockoutthreshold: 3 

Now, you will set the lock time in minutes. This number indicates the time the account was locked after the number of failed password attempts. You can set the time option, but it should be 30 minutes.

 net accounts / lockoutduration: 30 

And finally, you will set up a lock window. This number refers to the time period (in minutes) before the incorrect password entry counter is reset in case the actual lock threshold has not yet been reached. So, for example, you set the lock time to 30 minutes and the allowed number of incorrect entries is 3. You have entered the wrong password twice and waited for 30 minutes to pass, you will have three more password entries. Therefore, in case this happens, you should set the time of the lock window to appear using the following command, replacing the end of the command with the number of minutes you want.

 net accounts / lockoutwindow: 30 

Once completed, you can re-use the net accounts command to review your settings. Your installation will be similar to the image below.

Now, your account will automatically prevent others from accessing if you enter the wrong password three times. If you want to change or delete this setting, simply repeat the steps above with the new option.

If you want to turn off the installation, open Command Prompt with admin rights and set the account threshold to 0 using the command below:

 net accounts / lockoutthreshold: 0 

You do not need to worry about two other settings because when the lock threshold is set to 0, setting the lock time and lock window will not work.

Pro and Enterprise users: Set logon limits with Local Group Policy Editor

If you are using the Pro or Enterprise version, the easiest way to set your login limit is to use Local Group Policy Editor. However, an important note: if your computer is part of a corporate network, you can set up a group policy that has been set to logon at the domain level and will replace any settings you make. in Local Group Policy. In this case, you should check with the administrator before making changes like this.

Group policy is a powerful tool. If you haven't used this tool before, you can consult it before starting. Also, if you want to use a policy for a specific user on your computer, you need to take a few more steps to set up everything.

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To open the Local Group Policy Editor, click Start , type " gpedit.msc " and then click on the result. Also, if you want to apply the policy to a specific user or group, open the MSC file you created for those users.

In Local Group Policy Editor, on the left hand side, access Computer Configuration> Windows Settings> Security Settings> Account Policies> Account Lockout Policy . On the right hand side, double-click the Account lockout threshold setting .

In the settings properties window, note that by default, it is set to ' 0 invalid logon attempts ', which means that this setting is disabled. To change this, simply select a new number greater than one. You should select at least three times to ensure that you are not locked out of your own system when accidentally entering the wrong password, then click OK when done.

Now, Windows will automatically configure two relevant thirty-minute settings.Account lockout duration controls the time the computer locks when it reaches the wrong password entry threshold. Reset account lockout counter after controlling the time after the password attempt failed before the threshold counter was reset. For example, when you have entered twice an unsuccessful password, do not enter the third time. Thirty minutes after the second entry, the counter will be reset and you will have three more passwords. So we will need two settings.

You cannot change these values ​​here, so continue and click the ' OK ' button.

Back in the main Local Group Policy Editor window, you will see that all three settings in the ' Account Lockout Polic y' folder have changed according to the new configuration. You can change this setting by double-clicking on them to open the properties window but thirty minutes is enough time for locking time and reset the lock counter.

Then close Local Group Policy Editor. This setting is effective immediately, but because of the login, you will need to log out and log back in to see if it is valid. And if you want to turn off this setting, just change the settings of Account lockout threshold to 0 .

I wish you all success!

See more:

1. 4 ways to lock Windows 10 computers super fast
2. How to enable the auto-lock feature when users leave - Dynamic Lock on Windows 10
3. 3 software to turn USB into computer unlock tool