Windows 10: Windows 11. Laptop is linked to MS account but does not show up.

I had to reinstall windows 11 on Lenovo ThinkPad. Now the laptop is linked to my MS account but it does not show up. The laptop prior to the reinstall of win11 was on Windows account. I tried the local account setup and then back to MS account but it did not work.

:)

 

Devices linked to MS account - an oddity

Win10 21H1 build 19043.1526 I'm preparing to replace the motherboard and CPU on one of my computers. I usually use local account on them, but I switched to using my MS account on the one I'm going to upgrade and displayed Devices on my MS account to see what it showed. I was surprised to to see (in addition to the one I'm going to upgrade) two other computers listed - computers that are using local accounts. And least one of those computers shows "Windows is activated with a digital account linked to your Microsoft account" even when it's using my local account. Cool, thinks I! I don't need to use my MS account on the PC I'm about to upgrade. So I switched back to my local account ... and the PC disappeared from my MS account. *Sad I tried switching back and forth a couple times with a couple reboots thrown in with the same result. This PC shows in my MS account only when I use the MS account rather than the local account. But sometime during this futzing around another computer showed up in the MS account's list of linked devices: a laptop that also uses only local accounts. And that laptop hasn't been powered on today so I have no idea why it was missing earlier and shows now.*Confused The devices that show in my MS account's list of linked devices are:

1. a Surface Pro tablet ordered from MS
2. a keyboard for that tablet, also ordered from MS
3. a homegrown PC that originally had an OEM copy of Win7 Home, upgraded to Win7 Pro, requiring my MS account and Troubleshooter to upgrade to Win10, and another use of my MS account and Troubleshooter for a motherboard and CPU replacement a couple years ago (so who know what MS thinks of that copy of Windows)
4. a Lenovo laptop with an OEM copy of Win10 Pro. (I don't remember ever using my MS account on it, but I guess I must have.)

At any rate, I assume I need to be using my MS account on the PC right before and after the hardware change in order for the Troubleshooter to get my activation to work, and I assume I can switch back to my local account once the re-activation is complete. But I really don't understand what I'm seeing on my MS account's list of linked devices.

 

Win10 Pro - Digital Activiation - Not Linked to MS Account

I've been doing some more swapping of OS on one of my machines recently, and checking my MS Account to see how it's list of devices behaves. The key step you may have missed out is to sign in to your MS account once you have the OS up and running. You don't have to sign in to the PC with your MS account, just signing into an app like the Store is sufficient. Seems that a 'device' is defined by the hardware ID or serial number of the PC, not the name your Windows uses for it. On recognising that it's the same machine but with a different name the existing entry in 'My devices' gets updated rather than appearing twice as separate devices.

 

Creating a MS account without losing Local account

Go to https://account.microsoft.com, click Create account and fill the form:





With a Microsoft account you can then use OneDrive and Office Online apps for free. You can also use built-in native Windows apps which require a Microsoft account like Mail, Skype Preview, People, Calendar and download apps from Windows Store.

See steps 3 to 5 in this tutorial to continue using local account as Windows sign-in account even when / if you download apps from store and / or use Windows apps requiring a Microsoft account, to avoid Windows user account converting to Microsoft account: Store - Use when Signing in to Windows 10 with Local Account - Windows 10 Forums

Other tutorials you might be interested in when you have created a Microsoft account:

• Microsoft Account Two-step Verification - Turn On or Off - Windows 10 Forums
• Microsoft Account - Link to Digital License on Windows 10 PC - Windows 10 Forums