No account? No Windows 11, Microsoft says as another loophole snaps shut

The Register ^ | Oct 7, 2025 | Richard Speed

[dayglored]

So you MUST sign up for a Microsoft online account. And you MUST have an internet connection that's online pretty much constantly.

It's enough to make a person desire a penguin.

[dayglored]

Windows 11 ... PING!

You can find all the Windows Ping list threads with FR search: just search on keyword "windowspinglist".

[Secret Agent Man]

Is OOBE their replacement for BSOD? Because that occurred with or without an internet connection....

[dayglored]

And Microsoft wonders why the Win11 adoption rate is actually going DOWN, not up, as the Win10 EOL is imminent (one week from today).

[Jeff Chandler]

If you want to use the same OS for free forever, go Linux.

[dayglored]

> Is OOBE their replacement for BSOD? Because that occurred with or without an internet connection....

I believe "OOBE" is "Out Of Box Experience", in other words the initial unpacking, powering up, and configuration of the new machine.

Or perhaps it's "Out Of Body Experience" where your spirit floats above you and observes what your physical body is doing like a third person.

Or perhaps it's "Object Oriented Bullshit Extravaganza", the latest thing in "vibe coding".

And BTW, the venerable "BSOD" is still a "BSOD" but it's now black instead of blue. Really, no joke.

[dayglored]

> If you want to use the same OS for free forever, go Linux.

There are estimated to be around 400,000,000 fully functional, perfectly useful Windows 10 computers whose hardware is not "compatible with Win11" according to Microsoft, and so they're essentially dead-end, Windows-wise.

I have read that a considerable percentage of those machines will be wiped and loaded with Linux, rather than trashed. It may give the Linux Desktop a boost like it's never seen before.

[Songcraft]

Can you point to any quick and easy ways (your own advice, internet links, books, etc.) for a person completely unfamiliar with Linux, to get started with it, and learn how to get it, install it, and use it to access the web through one's internet service, etc.?

[Jeff Chandler]

No.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

The easiest thing to do to get started is to run Linux from a USB flash drive. Once you have it booted and running you should be able to figure out how to run a browser and you are off. If you have a wired internet connection it just works. If you don't, you will have to configure the wifi to your router. Just right-click on the network icon in the lower right corner of the desktop. You should be able to figure it out from there.

run linux from usb without installing

[ConservativeMind]

I have a Windows 11 that has only a local account.

It is very frustrating to pull the tricks needed, to do that.

[Jeff Chandler]

My main business comp does not have the proper hardware to upgrade to W11. Fortunately, a couple years ago I bought Mrs. Chandler an very nice Dell all-in-one comp with W11 installed. Unfortunately, Mrs. Chandler passed away a year ago.

Since then I purchased Microsoft 365, which includes OneDrive cloud storage synchronization. So I synced my old comp’s storage to the cloud, and synced Mrs. Chandler’s Dell to the same account. The result was the complete mirroring of all my important data to the Dell, which I upgraded to maximum memory.

The next step is to remove both the 1TB SSD drive and the backup 1TB HD from my old comp, which I will reformat and insert into external USB cases. I will on a regular schedule back up my data physically to the USB drives, switching them and storing them off site.

Basic data backup security.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

PS - Linux Mint is my favorite linux distribution. The desktop is similar to the windows desktop you are familiar with.

https://linuxmint.com/

[citizen]

The Dell I bought came with Win 11. So I am okay as I am right now?

Wouldn’t that give me an Msft account?

I just want it ( and the laptop) to work as they do now.

[Songcraft]

Thanks very much, E. Pluribus Unum.   Much appreciated.

[Bob434]

Y3s, go here to https://distrosea.com/ znd try one or a few. I woukd suggest linux mint as perhaps the easiest. Ubuntu is 9k too, but i never liked ubuntu.

[dayglored]

> If you want to use the same OS for free forever, go Linux.

I've been running Linux since 2001. It rapidly became my operating system of choice, since I'd been a Unix fan starting in the 80's but used Macs and PCs because they were easier than Unix. But Linux had the best of both worlds -- a POSIX system with a decent desktop environment.

I was a Fedora/CentOS guy for many years but the past decade I've become an Ubuntu fan. Works good.

I still have a Windows 7 virtual machine that I use to run some ancient programs I still use. Skipped 8. Used 10 and 11 at work because I had to. But at retirement (not far in the future) the Win7 will be my only remaining Windows box. I have VMs of 10 and 11 if for some reason I have to crank up a program that will only run on those. But they won't be on 99% of the time.

[Songcraft]

Thanks again!      🙂

[Jeff Chandler]

Most modern apps require Windows or Mac. I don’t have the time to fart around with Linux. I have done so in the past for elderly family/friends who wanted to save pennies, but life is too short to spend wrestling with esoteric operating systems. Time is money.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Actually you could just use the live boot instructions on the linux mint website.

https://linuxmint-installation-guide.readthedocs.io/en/latest/