Microsoft has an official bypass for Windows 11 installs without internet, Microsoft Account

Last week, Microsoft made a major announcement as it blocked the popular BYPASSNRO workaround on Insider builds, used to skip the internet and Microsoft Account requirement checks during the Windows 11 installation OOBE (initial setup).

Microsoft has its reasons why it wants people to use a Microsoft Account instead of local accounts. The company explained in detail all about it back in 2024, and on the announcement blog post itself, it noted that the change was being made to "enhance security and user experience of Windows 11." Microsoft wrote:

We’re removing the bypassnro.cmd script from the build to enhance security and user experience of Windows 11. This change ensures that all users exit setup with internet connectivity and a Microsoft Account.

Following this announcement, enthusiasts and smart Windows users started looking for ways in which they could work around and circumvent this. That is when we picked up on this newish method proposed by the user ThePineapple. We say newish since it already existed for the last six months or so, but no one had noticed it as the BYPASSNRO script has been so popular.

The trick involves using a CXH URI string to trigger a hidden local account during the OOBE. We covered it in its dedicated article here. There is also a PowerShell script that can help in this regard.

Meanwhile, another user has discovered yet another way to bypass this. This is similar to the BYPASSNRO one but involves going to the Registry and tweaking it.

Upon finding this, Neowin looked around and found that Microsoft's own official documentation explains how this works. The company notes that by default, the HideOnlineAccountScreens value is set to "false" such that the sign-in page appears during the OOBE. So for the bypass to work, one has to change it to "true". Microsoft notes that this is "primarily for enterprises" for running unattended installs, but it should work for all users.

Neowin also noticed that there is also an option to hide the wireless network setup option too using HideWirelessSetupInOOBE. Again, the default value is "false" so that this page appears, but users can flip it to "true".

Source: Microsoft (link1, link2)

Source

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