Switch User in Windows 11 and 10: Every Way, What Stays Open, and Fixes

To switch users in Windows 11 or 10 without closing your apps, press Ctrl + Alt + Delete and choose Switch user, or open Start, select your profile picture and pick another account from the list. You can also press Windows key + L to lock the PC and choose another account at the bottom left of the sign-in screen, or press Alt + F4 on the desktop and choose Switch user. Your apps and files stay open in the background while the other person signs in, which is called fast user switching. To close your session instead, choose Sign out. If Switch user is missing, the PC may have only one account, or a policy named Hide entry points for Fast User Switching may be on. Before shutting down, check that nobody else is still signed in, since their unsaved work would be lost.

Ethan's family shared one laptop, and every time someone wanted to check email, the person already using it would save everything, close their apps and sign out. Ethan's mother assumed that was the only way. Jake showed her Ctrl + Alt + Delete and Switch user: her son's homework stayed open exactly where he left it while she read her email in her own account, and switching back took seconds. Later the same week, the laptop warned that someone else was signed in when she tried to shut it down, and she knew to check before clicking Shut down anyway. This page explains every way to switch users, what happens to open apps, and how to fix Switch user when it disappears.

What switching users does

Windows lets several people share one PC, each with their own account, files, apps, settings and desktop. Switching users lets a second person sign in while the first person's session keeps running in the background. Nothing is closed: open documents, browser tabs, music and downloads stay exactly as they were, and the first person can switch back later and carry on. Windows calls this fast user switching.

The alternative is signing out, which closes all of your apps and ends your session before the next person signs in. Signing out frees memory and is the polite choice when you are finished for the day, but switching is far more convenient when two people take turns during the day, such as a parent checking email while a child does homework.

Each account keeps its files private from the others by default. One person cannot see another's Documents, Desktop or browser history without an administrator account and deliberate effort, which is a good reason to give each family member their own account rather than sharing one.

Switching also suits a single person with two accounts, such as a personal account and a separate account for a side business, keeping files and email apart on one PC without closing either.

Every way to switch users

1. Press Ctrl + Alt + Delete and select Switch user, then pick the account on the sign-in screen.
2. Open Start, select your profile picture or name at the bottom left, and choose another account from the list.
3. Press Windows key + L to lock the PC, then choose another account in the bottom-left corner of the sign-in screen.
4. Show the desktop with Windows key + D, press Alt + F4, choose Switch user in the Shut Down Windows box and select OK.
5. In Task Manager, open the Users page, right-click another signed-in account and choose Switch user account.

All five lead to the same place: the sign-in screen with the account list. The Ctrl + Alt + Delete route works even when the Start menu or taskbar is not responding, which makes it the most reliable. Our guide to Ctrl+Alt+Del sign-in covers the related option that requires pressing those keys before signing in.

Switching on laptops and tablets

On laptops without a Delete key in the usual place, Ctrl + Alt + Delete may need the Fn key, or use the Start menu method instead. On tablets and 2-in-1s without a keyboard, use the Start menu's profile picture to reach the account list with touch; on older Windows tablets with a hardware Windows button, pressing it together with the power button acts like Ctrl + Alt + Delete. The sign-in screen's account list in the bottom-left corner responds to taps.

With an external keyboard attached, all the shortcuts on this page work as on a desktop. Windows key + L is the quickest everyday habit, because it locks your session in one step and leaves the sign-in screen ready for the next person.

Touch-friendly sign-in, such as face recognition on a 2-in-1, makes switching on a tablet as quick as on a desktop.

Switch users from the Start menu

In Windows 11, open Start and select your profile picture or name at the bottom left. A menu appears with your account settings, Lock, Sign out and the other accounts on the PC listed below. Select an account to switch to it; Windows locks your session and opens the sign-in screen for that person. In Windows 10, the profile picture is near the top of the left edge of Start, and the menu works the same way.

If the other account is not listed, it may be hidden from the menu, or it may be a type of account that does not appear there, such as an account that has never signed in. In that case, use Windows key + L and look on the sign-in screen, or choose Other user and type the account's name.

The account list in the Start menu shows only accounts on this PC; it does not list Microsoft accounts that have never signed in here. Add them first in Settings, then have the person sign in once so they appear for switching from then on.

What happens to your apps and files

When you switch users, your apps keep running, but your session is locked. Anything you were doing continues in the background: downloads finish, music may keep playing until the next person's session takes over the speakers, and long tasks such as video exports carry on. When you switch back, everything is where you left it.

Your session still uses memory and some processor time while another person works. On a PC with 8 GB of memory or more, two or three sessions run comfortably. On low-memory PCs, a background session with a busy browser can slow the active one, so sign out if you are done for a while. Some apps, especially those that use the camera, microphone or exclusive hardware, may pause or release the device when you switch, and some games and media apps stop playback.

What keeps running in a background session

It helps to know what continues while another person uses the PC. File downloads in browsers and download managers continue. Cloud sync apps such as OneDrive keep syncing that person's files. Long jobs like video exports, backups and game updates in launchers keep going. Scheduled tasks for that account run at their set times. Printing jobs already sent carry on.

What usually pauses is anything that needs the screen, camera, microphone or speakers, which pass to the active session. Video calls in a background session lose audio and video, and media playback stops or continues silently depending on the app. Before switching away from a call or recording, end it or switch quickly back.

A quick look at Task Manager's Users page before switching back shows whether your background tasks finished, without opening each app.

Switch user, sign out or lock?

Locking and switching are closely related: locking shows the sign-in screen for your account, and from there anyone can choose a different account. The difference is mostly intent. Signing out is the only option that frees all the memory your session uses.

When to sign out instead

Switching is convenient, but signing out is better in a few situations. Sign out at the end of the day so updates can restart the PC without risking anyone's work. Sign out when the PC feels slow and several sessions are open. Sign out of a shared or public PC, such as a library or office computer, so the next person cannot switch back to your session. And sign out before handing a PC to someone you do not know well, even with a password on your account.

Saving your work and signing out takes a moment longer than switching, but it leaves nothing running and nothing open for anyone else to find.

On a family PC, a good compromise is switching during the day and signing out in the evening.

Shutting down with other users signed in

When another person is still signed in and you choose Shut down or Restart, Windows warns that someone else is using the PC and that shutting down could cause them to lose unsaved work. If you continue, their apps are closed without saving. Check with them first, or switch to their account and save their work before shutting down.

Windows Update restarts follow the same rule: if updates need a restart while several people are signed in, Windows may wait or warn. Signing out of accounts that are not in use before the end of the day avoids lost work when an update restart happens overnight. The Users page in Task Manager shows who is signed in at any time; our guide to opening Task Manager every way explains how to get there.

A simple routine for a shared PC

Families who share a PC smoothly tend to follow a few habits. Each person has their own account with its own picture. Short turns use Switch user, so nobody loses their place. Everyone signs out when finished for the day, which frees memory and avoids lost work during overnight updates. The person who manages the PC keeps the administrator account private and uses it only for installing software and changing settings.

A short note by the PC reminding everyone of the Ctrl + Alt + Delete, Switch user shortcut helps in the first weeks. After that, it becomes a habit, and arguments about closed homework or lost game progress disappear.

For households with teenagers, agreeing that everyone locks their session with Windows key + L when walking away protects privacy as much as separate accounts do.

Switch user option missing

If Switch user does not appear on the Ctrl + Alt + Delete screen or in the Start menu, check these causes in order. First, the PC may have only one account; Windows hides Switch user when there is nobody to switch to. Add an account in Settings > Accounts > Other users or Family. Second, a policy may hide it. Work and school PCs often turn fast user switching off, and some tweaking tools do the same on home PCs.

On Windows 11 or 10 Pro, run gpedit.msc, go to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Logon, open Hide entry points for Fast User Switching and set it to Not Configured or Disabled. On Home, check the registry at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System for a value named HideFastUserSwitching; set it to 0 or delete it, then restart. Back up the registry first.

Third, a Remote Desktop connection to the PC can limit switching, since some editions allow only one active session. Sign out of remote sessions if switching misbehaves.

Switch user disappeared after an update

If Switch user vanished right after a Windows update or after installing a tweaking or privacy tool, the tool or a reset policy is the usual cause. Check the Group Policy and registry setting described above first. Some privacy tools turn off fast user switching as part of a hardening profile; their own settings may have an option to turn it back on, or uninstalling them may restore the default.

If neither shows anything, sign out of all accounts and restart, since a stuck session can make Windows hide switching until it clears. As a final check, make sure at least two accounts exist and both have signed in at least once.

Note what you changed, so the next update or tool does not quietly undo it again without you noticing.

Remote Desktop and multiple sessions

Windows 11 and 10 Pro can accept Remote Desktop connections; Home editions cannot host them. Client editions of Windows allow only one active session at a time, so when someone connects remotely, the person at the PC is locked out of their session, and vice versa. If the same account connects remotely, it takes over the session; if a different account connects, the local user is disconnected but their session keeps running, like switching users.

That is why switching can behave oddly on PCs used for remote work. If a remote session is left disconnected, its apps stay open and use memory, and the account shows as signed in. Signing out properly at the end of a remote session keeps the PC tidy for whoever uses it locally.

Shared PCs at work and school

Offices, schools and libraries often run shared PCs differently from homes. Some use a shared PC mode that signs people out automatically after a period of inactivity and deletes their local data, so each person starts fresh. Others turn off fast user switching entirely, so only one person is ever signed in and everyone must sign out when finished. These settings exist to protect privacy and keep shared machines running smoothly.

On such PCs, always sign out rather than switch, even if Switch user appears, and save your work to the network or cloud storage your organization provides rather than the local Desktop, which may be cleared. If a shared work PC shows someone else's signed-in session, do not use it; tell IT or the person responsible.

Personal accounts on work PCs are usually not allowed, so keep family use to family devices.

Temporary profile after switching

Occasionally, after switching or signing in, Windows shows a message that you have been signed in with a temporary profile, and your desktop, files and settings seem missing. This means Windows could not load your normal profile, often because a background program held a file in it open or the profile was damaged. Do not save anything important in the temporary profile, since it is deleted when you sign out.

First, sign out and restart the PC, then sign in again; this fixes most cases, especially when the cause was a program holding files open. If it keeps happening, run sfc /scannow from an administrator Terminal and check the disk for errors. As a last resort, create a new account and copy your files from C:\Users\YourOldName. Our guide to a wrong name in the C:\Users folder explains how profile folders work.

Backups protect against the rare case where a profile cannot be recovered; File History or OneDrive copies of Documents and Desktop make moving to a new account painless.

If the message appears for one account only, the problem is in that profile rather than Windows as a whole.

Black screen or delay after switching

Switching usually takes a few seconds. If you see a black screen, a spinning Please wait or the sign-in screen freezes, wait a minute, since the other session may be busy. If it stays stuck, press Ctrl + Alt + Delete, which usually brings up the security screen, and try switching again. Updating the graphics driver fixes many black-screen switching problems, since each session redraws the display when it becomes active.

If one user's session is consistently slow to resume, a heavy app in it, such as a browser with dozens of tabs or a game, may be the cause; sign that user out to clear it. Restarting the PC clears all sessions and is the reliable fix when switching gets stuck repeatedly.

Once the screen responds, sign out any sessions that are no longer needed.

Someone is still signed in, but nobody is

Sometimes Windows warns that other people are signed in when you shut down, even though nobody else is using the PC. This happens when another account was switched away from days ago and never signed out, or when a remote session was left disconnected. Open Task Manager's Users page to see which accounts are signed in.

If the session belongs to someone who has finished, an administrator can right-click it in the Users page and choose Sign off, which closes that person's apps without saving, so check with them first. Otherwise, switch to their account and sign out normally. Restarting the PC also clears all sessions, again closing any unsaved work.

Encouraging everyone to sign out at night prevents most of these warnings from appearing in the first place.

Add an account for each person

Switching is only useful when each person has their own account. To add one, open Settings > Accounts. For family members, choose Family and Add someone, which creates or links a Microsoft account and, for children, enables Family Safety controls. For other people, choose Other users and Add account. To create a local account without a Microsoft account, choose I don't have this person's sign-in information, then Add a user without a Microsoft account, and set a name and password.

New accounts are standard users by default, which is safer for everyday use; only give administrator rights to the people who manage the PC. Our guide to finding your username in Windows helps when an account's name is unclear, and our page on Windows Hello PINs covers quick sign-in for each account.

Types of accounts you can switch between

Switching works the same between any of these. The type mainly affects what each person can do after signing in, and whether their settings follow them to other devices.

Child accounts must be Microsoft accounts to use Family Safety features, though children can sign in with a PIN rather than typing an email address.

Create a local account step by step

1. Open Settings > Accounts > Other users.
2. Select Add account next to Add other user.
3. Choose I don't have this person's sign-in information.
4. Choose Add a user without a Microsoft account.
5. Enter a user name, a password and three security questions, then select Next.
6. To make the account an administrator, select it in Other users, choose Change account type and pick Administrator; otherwise leave it as Standard User.

The new account appears on the sign-in screen after its first sign-in, and in the Start menu's account list for switching. The first sign-in takes a minute or two while Windows sets up the account's folders and apps.

Write the new account's password down for its owner, and ask them to change it on first sign-in if you set it for them.

For a family member, linking their own Microsoft account instead lets their settings follow them to other PCs and makes password recovery easier.

The sign-in screen and Other user

On the sign-in screen, accounts that have signed in before appear in the bottom-left corner. Select one to sign in. Accounts that have never signed in, or accounts hidden by policy, do not appear; to use them, select Other user where available and type the account name and password. Domain-joined work PCs often show only Other user.

If the account list is missing entirely, or you see only one account, a policy may be set to show only the last signed-in user. If the power button is missing from the sign-in screen, that is a separate policy; our guide to the power button missing on the sign-in screen covers it.

Accounts hidden from the sign-in screen can still sign in through Other user if they know the name.

Telling accounts apart

On a family PC, the sign-in screen can show several similar names. Giving each account its own picture makes switching quicker and avoids signing in to the wrong one. Each person can set their picture in Settings > Accounts > Your info, choosing a photo or taking one with the camera. Clear display names help too, and for Microsoft accounts, the name comes from the account's profile online.

Desktop wallpapers and accent colors are also per account, so each person's desktop looks different once signed in, a quick visual check that you are in the right account before opening email or files.

A recognizable picture is especially helpful for young children who cannot yet read the account names.

Which account appears first

The sign-in screen shows the most recently signed-in account by default, with the others listed in the corner. On a shared PC, that means the next person often has to choose their account rather than typing into someone else's. If you want the sign-in screen to show no account until someone chooses, organizations use a policy that hides the last signed-in user; at home, most families find the default convenient.

Windows can also sign in automatically to one account at startup, using settings meant for single-user PCs. On a shared PC, automatic sign-in is a bad idea, since anyone who turns the PC on lands in that account with full access to its email and files.

If the wrong person keeps appearing first, it is simply because they signed in last; the order resets with each sign-in.

Switching users with children

Children's accounts set up through Microsoft Family Safety come with screen time limits, content filters and activity reports. When a parent switches to their own account, the child's session stays open but their screen time continues to count only while they are active. Switching back to the child's account shows their apps as they left them, which avoids arguments about lost game progress or homework.

Make sure children's accounts are standard accounts without administrator rights, so they cannot install software or change settings that affect others. A child who knows the parent's password could switch to the parent's account, so use a PIN or Windows Hello for your own sign-in and keep the password private.

Older relatives sharing a PC with grandchildren benefit from the same setup, and a simple rule, never sign in to someone else's account, protects both generations' privacy.

Review the settings together as children grow older.

Remove an account that is no longer needed

Old accounts from people who no longer use the PC clutter the sign-in screen and keep files that take up space. To remove one, sign in with an administrator account, open Settings > Accounts > Other users, select the account and choose Remove, then Delete account and data. This deletes the account's files from the PC permanently, so copy anything worth keeping first from its folder under C:\Users.

Family members' Microsoft accounts are managed in Family settings; removing a child from the family group online does not remove their account from the PC, and removing it from the PC does not delete their Microsoft account. The two are separate.

Removing an account does not affect files saved in the Public folder or shared cloud folders, which stay available to everyone else.

Guest access for visitors

Windows 10 and 11 no longer offer the old built-in Guest account that earlier versions had. For visitors who need the PC briefly, create a standard local account named something like Visitor, without administrator rights, and switch to it when needed. Visitors then cannot see your files or change important settings, and you can remove the account or clear its data afterward.

For a public or shared device, such as a family computer in a guest room, kiosk mode or a dedicated visitor account is safer than letting guests use your own session. Switching to the visitor account takes seconds and keeps your session locked.

Clear the visitor account's browser data afterward, or remove and recreate the account occasionally, so one visitor's sign-ins are not left for the next.

A visitor account also keeps your browser sessions and saved passwords out of reach.

Switch and disconnect from the command line

For quick switching, the tsdiscon command disconnects your session and shows the sign-in screen, the same as switching users, on editions that support it, including Pro. Run it from Terminal or the Run box. Administrators can see sessions with query user on Pro editions, which lists signed-in users with their session numbers and states, Active or Disconnected.

To sign out completely from a command line, run shutdown /l, or logoff on Pro editions. These commands are useful for shortcuts and scripts, but the keyboard shortcuts are quicker for everyday switching.

On Home editions, where some of these commands are missing, the keyboard shortcuts and Start menu methods do the same job.

Performance with several users signed in

Each signed-in user adds their apps' memory use to the total. Task Manager's Users page shows how much memory and processor time each person's session uses, which helps decide whether to sign someone out. A browser with many tabs left open in a background session is the most common cause of a shared PC feeling slow.

On a family PC with limited memory, a simple rule helps: switch users for short turns, and sign out at the end of the day. Restarting the PC regularly also clears everyone's sessions and lets updates install cleanly.

A quick restart once a week keeps a shared PC running smoothly, clearing old sessions and applying any pending updates.

Apps installed for one user or for everyone

Some apps install for every account on the PC, and others only for the account that installed them. Most traditional desktop programs ask during installation whether to install for all users or just you; choosing all users needs administrator rights and puts the app in Program Files for everyone. Microsoft Store apps are installed per account, though Windows can share the download, so each person installs the apps they want from their own account.

If an app appears for one person but not another after switching, it was probably installed for one account only. Install it again from the other account, or reinstall it for all users. Each person's app settings, such as browser profiles and saved passwords, stay separate either way.

Browser profiles versus Windows accounts

Some families share one Windows account and use separate browser profiles instead, in Chrome, Edge or Firefox, so each person has their own bookmarks, history and saved passwords. Browser profiles are convenient, but they are not private: anyone at the PC can open another profile, and files on the Desktop and in Documents are shared. Separate Windows accounts protect everything, including email apps, files and settings, not just the browser.

For adults sharing a PC, separate Windows accounts are the better choice. Browser profiles still have a place within one person's account, for example separating work and personal browsing, and they work alongside switching users.

Switching between Windows accounts also switches browser profiles automatically, since each account has its own browser data.

Security and privacy between accounts

Separate accounts keep each person's files, browser history, passwords and email private from the others, and protect the PC as a whole by limiting what standard users can change. Fast user switching does not weaken this: each session is locked when someone else uses the PC, and switching back requires that person's password, PIN or Windows Hello.

Administrators can, in principle, access other users' files, so share administrator rights only with people you trust. If several people share an administrator account, they share everything, including saved passwords in the browser, which is a strong argument for separate accounts. Our guide to the account lockout policy covers protecting accounts from password guessing on shared PCs.

Locking your session whenever you step away, even briefly, matters most on shared PCs, since an unlocked session gives anyone at the keyboard full access to your email and files.

Windows Hello for each person

Each account can set up its own Windows Hello sign-in: a PIN, a fingerprint or face recognition, in Settings > Accounts > Sign-in options. On a shared PC with a fingerprint reader or face camera, Windows recognizes who is in front of it and signs in the right account, which makes switching especially quick. With face recognition, simply selecting the account and looking at the camera signs that person in.

Each person must set up Hello while signed in to their own account; fingerprints and faces are not shared between accounts. If a PIN stops working after switching, our guide to the PIN isn't available error covers the fix.

For people who use a screen reader, Narrator announces each account on the sign-in screen, and the Tab and arrow keys move between them, so switching works fully from the keyboard.

Up to several fingerprints can be registered per account, which helps if one finger is injured or dirty.

Sharing files between accounts

Since each account's files are private, sharing needs a deliberate step. The simplest is the Public folder at C:\Users\Public, which every account on the PC can read and write; put shared family photos or documents there. Another option is a shared folder in OneDrive or another cloud service, which also works across devices. Avoid sharing by giving everyone the same account, which removes all privacy.

Administrators can open other users' folders after confirming a permission prompt, which is useful for recovering a file for a family member, but it should be done with their knowledge. Printers, Wi-Fi networks and most installed desktop programs are shared across accounts automatically.

For a shared calendar or shopping list, a family group in an app such as Outlook, Google or a notes service works across phones and PCs, which is usually more useful than a shared folder on one PC.

What this page said before

The original version of this page, from 2015, explained how to switch users in Windows 10 for beginners and senior citizens, using the Start menu and Ctrl + Alt + Delete. Those methods still work. This rewrite updates it for Windows 11 and adds every switching method, what happens to open apps, the difference between switching, locking and signing out, shutting down safely with several users, and fixes for a missing Switch user option.

The core steps have not changed in a decade, but sharing a PC has become more common as families work and study from home, which makes switching users one of the most useful everyday skills on a shared computer.

Switch user in Windows: frequently asked questions

Ethan's family now takes turns on the laptop without closing anything. His mother switches to her account for email, his brother's homework waits untouched, and everyone signs out before bed so the overnight update restart loses nothing. The laptop feels less crowded than it did when they all shared one account.

Revision note. Written October 3, 2026, rewriting our 2015 beginner's guide to switching users in Windows 10 into a complete guide for Windows 11 and 10, covering every method, open apps, shutting down safely and a missing Switch user option. May every turn at the family PC be a short wait.