Forum Discussion
tboggs
Jul 20, 2020Copper Contributor
Allow removal of "Connected to Windows" accounts from Edge profiles
I love being able to create multiple profiles for the various accounts and services I have to use, I am now up to 7. It's great to be able to separate them and just utilize sso to do what I need without constantly having to login to each admin console.
The problem is that every once in a while, my "Connected to Windows" account get associated with a profile and it becomes a royal nuisance. The only way I have seen to fix it is to delete the profile and start over and that hasn't always worked.
On any profile, you can "Sign-Out" or "Sign-Out and Forget" a non-Connected to Windows account. I would like to see the option to "Remove from this Profile" option for the Connected to Windows account.
It would also be great if when setting up a new profile there was a more streamlined process to add a work account that won't let the company manage the pc and is only for this application. Perhaps after adding one work account to Edge, the default should be reversed?
Thanks for the feedback, we've heard this from other users too. Re: the connected to windows accounts, we are working to remove this but since it is cross group collaboration, it may take a while. We eventually would like to just sign you in with the profile account.
Re: Adding an account only to the app, if you select the "This app only" option in the sign in flow where you are asked to manage the device, the account won't be added to the computer and nor will your device get managed.
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- dloder
Microsoft
Seems to be fixed in Edge now (Nov 2023) with the correct settings. First, make sure you are actually signed into the account for the profile, selecting just this app so it's only for the Edge profile you are setting up. The first sign-in to the azure portal should default to the Connected to Windows account, but you can sign out then sign in with the correct Entra ID account. You now get prompted to choose between the profile account and the Connected to Windows account when signing into the portal. Finally, in Settings, Profile, Profile Preference, make sure "Automatically sign in to sites with your current work or school account?" is turned on. This should automatically sign you in to the portal based on the account that's signed into the profile. I have different admin accounts in several tenants, and my machine native-joined to my corporate tenant. With profiles set this way, each profile goes directly to the portal for that tenant.- DanielNiccoliSteel Contributor
dloderThat is not a fix. That's an entirely different new feature. I don't want to be signed into my browser. I want a blank profile that is not connected to anything. Not to Windows. Not to Edge. Only websites.
A proper fix is removing this stupid "Connected to Windows" without additional requirements like having to sign into the browser.
- DanielNiccoliSteel Contributor
That's already a start. What needs to happen next ist that Microsoft removes that annoying "Connected to Windows" account, so my alternative Microsoft account (that I use purposely!) is logged in automatically‼
- roysta0Copper Contributor
Hi,
My original setup was an AD hybrid joined device and I had no problems like this.
My new setup is one with an AAD only device linked to my AAD account, and both Edge and Firefox make use of the 'connected to windows' account by kindly logging me into each SSO session with that account.
Edge and Firefox were both used to maintain separation between tenant accounts, the same as knyhus.
To resolve the issue of having the windows account auto login, the best solution I have found is below. It stops the SSO login and the presentation of credentials for the 'connected to windows account' during the creation of each profile in Edge. I am unsure of the effect on profiles that were configured before this change (I had deleted all mine in anger and swore off ever using Edge again!).
For firefox, in 'about:config', set the 'network.http.windows-sso.enabled' to false.
It disables SSO but does allow for individual container tabs to be logged in with the chosen account, instead of having the SSO login, logout and change chore.
For Edge, with reference to [https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/deployedge/microsoft-edge-policies#nonremovableprofileenabled] (accessed 2023-03-04), the following registry entry was added:
HKCU:/Software/Microsoft/Policies/Edge
NonRemovableProfileEnabled = DWORD:0x00000000Effect as above; it prevents the 'connected to windows' account from auto-logging in.
Best wishes.
Roy - knyhusCopper Contributor
tboggsAgree and have more to add to this problem. I'm an independent IT consultant, with admin rights to many M365/Azure tenants, limited admin rights to some -- and a personal M365 account.
When I try to log in to one of my TENANT accounts where I'm a partial (not global) admin (and only for this one), the login screen switches to my personal account, and I have to "use other account."
I'm willing to do the dance, but I think it's what's breaking my ability to use Bookings with my tenant's account (where I am trying to publish my availability). Bookings breaks whenever I try to create a shared Bookings page (I get an 'ugh-oh' error, which is not idiomatic, but that's a different problem...).
The tenant in question is "Connected to Windows" and I am unable to disconnect it.In an attempt to dissociate my personal M365 account from this "problem" client tenant account, I have
- removed the personal account from 'accounts'
- renamed it
- removed the 'problem' email address from my personal account and made another one primary (and sole)
- signed out everywhere from the tenant account
- rebooted
IDK whether I have to hack the registry or get an AAD admin on the tenant to un-manage my PC.
It's a royal PITA.
- DanielNiccoliSteel Contributor
josh_bodner Do you have any news on this 2-year old topic? Will this ever be resolved? I, too, use a separate profile to manage M365 and Azure with a different user account and it is really annoying being asked 30 times a day, what account I want to use to sign into Azure. When it really should just use the one account, I already signed in with in the morning.
The "Connected to Windows" account needs to have an opt-out! Otherwise this browser is not doing the job, I set it up to do. Meaning, I will just switch to a different one altogether.
- TomAafloenCopper ContributorI almost forgot about this issue since I installed the Edge Addon called “Use My Current Account”. It uses the account that is logged in to the browser profile. You can easily disable it if you want to choose account again. No affiliation, just a great little Addon.
https://microsoftedge.microsoft.com/addons/detail/use-my-current-account/hbfacnnpimgddoojjaonnnbeljegicfl- Justin RussellCopper Contributor
TomAafloen - Thank you so much for recommending this extension! It completely solves the issue in this thread.
- Christo GreeffCopper ContributorThis is probably my #1 dislike about Edge at the moment - not being able to remove the "Connected to Windows".
- encimita
Microsoft
This is an adoption blocker for me. It's such a time waster and issue generator that I'd rather use private mode than having to switch logins all the time. - Spider_SamCopper Contributor
tboggs I'm having this same issue too. Any updates on this error from Microsoft?
My environment is slightly different, but same result.We migrated from one 365 tenant to another.
Now the old accounts cannot be removed from the client PC.
I can connect to the old account through the "Manage" option in Windows Email & Account Settings, but I cannot find anywhere to remove the PC. Only "Deactivate."
This seemingly does nothing to the 365 accounts in Windows Email & Account Settings.
- David NichollsCopper Contributor
I have profiles in Edge for my work account and then about 20 customer M365 Admin profiles and this habit of signing in with the locally connected account (mine) is really annoying.
Please fix so that the profile can ONLY know about the account we actually sign it in with.
It's really annoying and a huge time waster.
- TomAafloenCopper ContributorI agree, this is a daily nuisance for me to. It's annoying to need to select the right account for every new tab you open (that uses Azure AD as IdP), but in some scenarios I am automatically logged in with my Windows Account in a profile dedicated to a customer. That can lead to bad things. Please let us hide the Connected to Windows account in Edge profiles.
- Nash PhersonFormer Employee
This is still an issue. When using multiple profiles signed in with Office 365 accounts, it still shows the one connected to windows. This makes it really easy to mess things up, like managing office 365 when your main account has some admin permissions and a secondary account has full permissions. Even when you launch your secondary profile, you get prompted for 'which account' you want to use... and I always seem to click the wrong one. Is there any setting for -not- passing through the 'connected to windows' accounts per profile? If not, what's the best place to up vote feedback?