Some Microsoft Insiders Fight to Drop Windows 11's Microsoft Account Requirements (windowscentral.com)
(Monday March 23, 2026 @12:34AM (EditorDavid)
from the lose-or-Windows dept.)
- Reference: 0181079512
- News link: https://tech.slashdot.org/story/26/03/23/0030225/some-microsoft-insiders-fight-to-drop-windows-11s-microsoft-account-requirements
- Source link: https://www.windowscentral.com/microsoft/windows-11/people-inside-microsoft-are-fighting-to-drop-windows-11s-mandatory-microsoft-account-requirements-during-setup
Yes, Microsoft announced [1]it's fixing common Windows 11 complaints . But what about getting rid of that requirement to have a Microsoft account before installing Windows 11? While Microsoft didn't mention that at all, the senior editor at the blog Windows Central reports there's " [2]a number of people" internally pushing at Microsoft to relax that requirement :
> Microsoft Vice President and overall developer legend Scott Hanselman has [3]posted on X in response to someone asking him about possibly relaxing the Microsoft account requirements, saying "Ya I hate that. Working on it...." [Hanselman made that remark Friday, to his 328,200 followers.]
The blog notes "It would be very easy for Microsoft to remove this requirement from a technical perspective, it's just whether or not the company can agree to make the change that needs to be decided."
Elsewhere on X someone told Hanselman they wanted to see Windows "cut out the borderline malware tactics we've seen in recent years to push things like Edge, Bing, ads into the start menu, etc." Hanselman's reply? "Yes a calmer and more chill OS with fewer upsells [4]is a goal ."
Q: When will we see first changes? for now it's just words...
Hanselman: [5]This month and every month this year .
[1] https://tech.slashdot.org/story/26/03/20/2043213/microsoft-says-it-is-fixing-windows-11
[2] https://www.windowscentral.com/microsoft/windows-11/people-inside-microsoft-are-fighting-to-drop-windows-11s-mandatory-microsoft-account-requirements-during-setup
[3] https://x.com/shanselman/status/2035110958314745891
[4] https://x.com/shanselman/status/2035169941163217029
[5] https://x.com/shanselman/status/2035136252630999104
> Microsoft Vice President and overall developer legend Scott Hanselman has [3]posted on X in response to someone asking him about possibly relaxing the Microsoft account requirements, saying "Ya I hate that. Working on it...." [Hanselman made that remark Friday, to his 328,200 followers.]
The blog notes "It would be very easy for Microsoft to remove this requirement from a technical perspective, it's just whether or not the company can agree to make the change that needs to be decided."
Elsewhere on X someone told Hanselman they wanted to see Windows "cut out the borderline malware tactics we've seen in recent years to push things like Edge, Bing, ads into the start menu, etc." Hanselman's reply? "Yes a calmer and more chill OS with fewer upsells [4]is a goal ."
Q: When will we see first changes? for now it's just words...
Hanselman: [5]This month and every month this year .
[1] https://tech.slashdot.org/story/26/03/20/2043213/microsoft-says-it-is-fixing-windows-11
[2] https://www.windowscentral.com/microsoft/windows-11/people-inside-microsoft-are-fighting-to-drop-windows-11s-mandatory-microsoft-account-requirements-during-setup
[3] https://x.com/shanselman/status/2035110958314745891
[4] https://x.com/shanselman/status/2035169941163217029
[5] https://x.com/shanselman/status/2035136252630999104
What they don't show (Score:1)
by apn_k ( 938000 )
What they don't show is Hanselman's nose getting longer with each reply.
Microsoft accounts are ransomware (Score:2)
With the Microsoft accounts they can hold every company and person and demand ransom to release them.
An US government directive can also lock out a whole country.
This is the way to make themselves 'Too important to fail'