Windows 10: Is there any way to make a local account password as secure as a PIN?

I'm setting up a new laptop for myself and need to make some decisions regarding how to log in to the laptop. There are clearly a lot of upsides to PINs. Recently I read online that

A password is transmitted to the server -- it can be intercepted in transmission or stolen from a server. A PIN is local to the device -- it isn't transmitted anywhere and it isn't stored on the server. When the PIN is created, it establishes a trusted relationship with the identity provider and creates an asymmetric key pair that is used for authentication. When you enter your PIN, it unlocks the authentication key and uses the key to sign the request that is sent to the authenticating server.
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I also read that

One important difference between a password and a Hello PIN is that the PIN is tied to the specific device on which it was set up. That PIN is useless to anyone without that specific hardware. Someone who steals your password can sign in to your account from anywhere, but if they steal your PIN, they'd have to steal your physical device too! Even you can't use that PIN anywhere except on that specific device. If you want to sign in on multiple devices, you have to set up Hello on each device.
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Which doesn't seem like it'd be an issue for me, since I'm trying to decide between signing in with a local account password instead of a PIN, not my Microsoft account password instead of a PIN.

I've always used a local account to sign in instead of my Microsoft account, and I think I'm going to keep it that way. I really, really don't want to sign in with a Microsoft account for other reasons (I'm not signed in to anything except OneDrive on my current machine). I wish PINs were an option with local accounts, but it doesn't seem like they are. That being said, is there any way to make local account passwords more secure? Like preventing them from being intercepted in transmission or stolen from the server where they're stored in (I assume) plaintext, as described in the blurb above?

I'd appreciate any advice you guys have to give.

submitted by /u/win_linx
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:)

 

Local Account password changed to Online Account Password

Hi,

I suggest you to follow the steps on how to switch from Microsoft account to Local account:

• Click on search in taskbar and type account.
• Click on Accounts.
• Now, under Your account, click on Sign in with Local account instead.
• Enter your Microsoft account password for confirmation and then follow the screen instruction.
• Enter User name credentials for your the Local account and click OK.
• Now, login to Local account.

Hope it helps.

 

Microsoft Account PIN and password

We appreciate the screenshot that you provided. to start troubleshooting the issue with you logins, we suggest that you follow the steps below on how login pin goes back to password:

• Click Start menu and go to Settings.
• In Settings, click the Accounts icon.
• Click on Sign-in options.
• Change both your password and pin one by one.

Let us know how it goes.

 

Local account installation question

I'm fairly certain that Skip this step was available in 10.0.130 - the workaround in Step 20 (back button) is no longer required.

The currently known, as of 10.0.130, ways to create a Local account sign-in are

• Skip this step at the MS account creation phase
• No Internet connection during the install
• static IP (post# 2 by Fragment) - New (to me anyway)