Not only that, if someone has a tech knowledgable person set up their Windows 11 computer without online accounts MS updates will cause it to spam the tech-ignorant person owning that computer with misleading pop-ups saying they need to press this button to do $x thing. Which then secretly sets up online accounts which automatically and silently enables drive encryption. Which causes it to go to a bluescreen saying to go to some shady looking URL at aka.ms and type in a long code that appears on your blue screen only broken computer. It's basically ransomware. This is not some theory, I had this happen to a sewing machine laptop I set up for my mother.

And yes, I later learned that aka.ms is a real Microsoft URL. But when it was first described to me it sounded exactly like ransomware and had exactly that effect.

I'm by no means suggesting it's normal or that I think it's okay Microsoft removed the native ability.

You're right that I probably made an assumption that someone posting on hacker News would have the technical ability to hit a keyboard combination and type a command on a command line and hit enter, which is essentially what's required currently to utilize the local account ( https://rtech.support/guides/bypass-11/ )

My reply was intended as more of a direct message to OP, as opposed to general advice I think every end user should know and follow. I should have been more clear.

I had recently had to install windows for the first time in years, did some chatting with mr gpt and poking around on reddit until I arrived at: https://massgrave.dev. They guide you on how to download windows LTSC from the "official" Microsoft links. So much less crap shoved down the system, it's kind of nice.

I just recently had to install Windows 11 fresh on a computer and this is what I used

https://rtech.support/guides/bypass-11/

I have a Microsoft account, but I prefer to use a local account to avoid a lot of the "value add" that comes from using the Microsoft account.

If someone is already setting up Windows manually themselves, I believe they're already at some level of technical ability.. but as I pointed out in another comment, my reply was specifically to OP who I made an assumption had some technical ability given that they're here on hacker News. Maybe that assumption is wrong and I recognize that.

That said, the process is:

1) while installing Windows press shift f10

2) a command prompt will open and you type OOBE\BYPASSNRO

When you hit enter the computer will reboot and allow local mode.

I fully recognize that this is a hidden option that most people don't know about, but if you do, it seems pretty straightforward to me for someone that's already at a level where they're comfortable manually installing Windows, but I recognize I have an blind spot due to my own technical abilities.

Then you just reset the VM back.

Could you back this up? I did lots of unattended install without having to fill OOBE, and the Ctrl+Alt+Del menu always worked.

I'd recommend creating a sysprep answer file (with LLM's its pretty easy, also rufus can do it) instead of the trick mentioned above.

I just used it with the last official build media from Microsoft over the weekend.

Which part failed for you?

Couldn't open a command prompt? Error entering the command.

Note the command is case sensitive.