With Windows 10, Microsoft has managed to solve a lot of the commonly discussed issues that users had with Windows 8x, particularly those that dealt with the mobile-centric approach of the operating system. Of course, the latest version of Microsoft’s OS has been designed to perform universally across all kinds of devices, meaning that users will still find some things that have no place on the desktop, for example. One of those is the Lock Screen which offers virtually nothing I actually want in my desktop. The potential for quick glances at notifications and alarms will surely benefit some users but if you think of the Lock Screen as an obstacle rather than a convenience, there are a couple of ways you can get rid of it completely.
The changes you will apply in both methods are instant and require no system restart. To view them in action you can quickly sign out of your account. If you followed the steps correctly then you will be met with the sign-in screen instead of the Lock Screen.
Using the Registry Editor
This method is available to all users but I would recommend that those with Pro or similar editions to follow the second method instead.
1. Open the Registry Editor. I recommend typing regedit.exe in your Start Menu and hitting Enter as it is the quickest method.
2. Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Personalization. If any key is missing, feel free to create it manually.
3. Right click on the empty right side of the Personalization key and create a new DWORD (32-bit) Value named NoLockScreen.
4. Double click on the new DWORD and change the value from 0 to 1. This will disable the Lock Screen until you either delete the DWORD or set its value back to 0.
Using the Local Group Policy Editor
Microsoft has once again made the Local Group Policy Editor unavailable in Home editions of Windows so only those with Pro, Enterprise and Educational licenses will be able to access it.
1. Open the Editor by typing gpedit.msc in your Start Menu and pressing Enter.
2. Navigate to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Control Panel > Personalization.
3. Double click on the setting that reads Do not display the lock screen.
4. Change the setting’s status to “Enabled”, click on OK to save it and feel free to close the Editor. To enable it once again, change the status of the setting to “Not configured”.
