How to set up a guest account on Windows 10

It’s definitely a positive that Microsoft is continuing to push out update after update for Windows 10, but with the latest version, some users may have realized that a commonly used feature is now missing for one reason or another.

For reasons that are currently unknown, Microsoft has removed the usual mechanism that has been afforded to Windows users for adding and removing guest accounts within the system. If you miss the option in Control Panel to easily add or remove new guest accounts, then as you might expect, there is a workaround in place that involves the command line.

We’re going to walk you through the relatively simple steps of adding a new guest account, assigning a password to it, and then adding and removing the account from different grouping levels. Ready to dig into some command lines? Let’s go!

1. While signed into your administrative account, click on the Start button and search for "Command Prompt."

2. Right-click on the Command Prompt app when it appears in the search results and click on "Run as administrator," and then click "Yes" in the pop-up window.

3. The Command Prompt will then open on your computer screen. It appears as a large black box partially filled with code. Type the following code, exactly as it is (with "Friend" being replaced by the name you want to use for your new guest account), then press Enter: 

net user Friend /add /active:yes

4. The next step is to create a password for the guest account. Since it's meant to be for guests using your computer, there's no need for an actual password. To bypass the password creation, type the following code and then press Enter twice:

net user Friend *

5. Your next step is to remove your guest account from the "Users" list and add it to the "Guests" list. To remove the account from "Users," type the following code and press Enter:

net localgroup users Friend /delete

6. Next, add your guest account to "Guests" by typing the following code and pressing Enter:

net localgroup guests Friend /add

At this point, you can close the Command Prompt window. 

To test if you were successful, sign out of your Windows account. Your new guest account should appear alongside your user account on the Windows sign-in screen.