Stuck at login window after unsuccessful wipe via Microsoft Entra IDSolved

Participant
Discussion
6 months ago

Hey there, 

I ran into an issue while wiping a Windows device joined with Microsoft Entra ID from the Microsoft Entra admin portal. The wipe action didn’t complete successfully for some reason, and now I am stuck at the login screen. 

It shows a login user with the same name as the user in the login screen, but I tried both the local user password and the Entra ID user password, but neither worked. And there is no “Other user” option on the login screen. 

Has anyone else encountered this issue or know of a possible solution? Any help would be greatly appreciated. 

Replies (4)

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Participant
6 months ago
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I encountered a similar issue, but I found a workaround by entering recovery mode and resetting the PC from there. After completion, I was able to access the PC without any problem. 

To enter Recovery Mode in Windows without logging in, follow these steps: 

  1. Press and hold the power button on your device for about 10 seconds to force a shutdown. 
  2. Press the power button again to turn on the device. 
  3. As soon as the device starts booting up, press and hold the power button again for about 10 seconds to force another shutdown. 
  4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 two more times (a total of three shutdowns). This process should trigger the Automatic Repair mode. 
  5. After the third shutdown, allow the device to boot up normally. It should now enter the Automatic Repair mode. 
  6. Here, click on “Advanced options” to access the recovery environment and Select “Troubleshoot” option. 
  7. On the “Troubleshoot” screen, click on “Reset this PC”. 
  8. Choose between “Keep my files” or “Remove everything”. “Keep my files” will reset your PC while preserving personal files, while “Remove everything” will delete all files, apps, and settings. 
  9. If you choose “Remove everything”, select whether to remove files from all drives or just the drive with Windows installed. 
  10. Choose between “Cloud download” or “Local reinstall” when prompted. A cloud download will reinstall Windows using the latest version online, while a local reinstall will use the existing Windows installation files. 
  11. And follow the on-screen instructions to complete the reset process. Your PC will restart several times during the reset. 
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Participant
5 months ago
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I appreciate the help, but I can’t access Safe Mode or do a factory reset since BitLocker is enabled. To make matters worse, the recovery key was stored in the Microsoft Entra admin portal, but now the device is no longer shown in the Microsoft Entra admin portal. 

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Participant
5 months ago
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Hey, 
Since you were already wiping your device, I presume you don’t need the data, right? So, can’t you just reinstall the Windows OS altogether? 

Use a bootable USB to wipe and install a fresh copy of the OS. If your PC/laptop doesn’t allow booting from the USB drive, you’ll need to change the settings in the BIOS. If the BIOS is password protected, you’ll need to know the BIOS password to make these changes. 

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Participant
5 months ago
Marked SolutionPending Review

Thanks for the help, 

I was able to wipe and reinstall the windows OS using the bootable USB. It was successful even though the drive was locked with BitLocker. 

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