[WORKAROUND] We can't sign in to your account error in Windows 10 build 20226

Last week, Microsoft released Windows 10 Preview Build 20226 to the Windows Insiders in the Dev channel, which came with a new storage health monitoring system to detect hardware abnormalities in NVMe SSDs and other new improvements. But after installing this build, many insiders reported not being able to log in to their user profile(s) as expected.

Microsoft now acknowledged this issue and came up with a workaround. There are two scenarios that they have covered for the users encountering this 'User Profile Logon Issue'. Continue reading further to learn how you can resolve it by applying the workaround.

After installing the Windows 10 Insiders Preview Build 20226 if you encounter an issue which is not allowing you to log in to your system with existing user profile, and asking you to sign out with the message "We can't sign in to your account", you don't have to worry. Microsoft identified the cause of this bug and the engineers are currently working on a fix.

And before the fix comes up in later builds to the insiders, Microsoft shared a workaround and this workaround ONLY applies to build 20226.

If your account is an Administrator account on the affected device:

1. When you see the "We can't sign in to your account" dialogue, click the Close button.
2. Open an elevated Command Prompt window.
3. Enter and submit the following commands one line at a time:

cd c:\users\%username%
takeown /F ntuser.dat*
icacls ntuser.dat* /reset
icacls ntuser.dat* /setowner "SYSTEM"


4. Sign out.
5. You will stop seeing the above dialog on your next sign-in.

If your account is NOT an Administrator account on the affected device:

1. When you see the "We can't sign in to your account" dialogue, click the Close button.
2. Open a standard Command Prompt window.
3. Enter the following command:

echo %username%
(Make note of the returned username, you will use it in step 6)


4. Close the standard Command Prompt window.
5. Open an elevated Command Prompt window.
6. Enter and submit the following commands one line at a time:

cd c:\users\username
takeown /F ntuser.dat*
icacls ntuser.dat* /reset
icacls ntuser.dat* /setowner "SYSTEM"


7. Sign out
8. You will stop seeing the above dialog on your next sign-in

Microsoft also said that, if the above steps don't resolve the issue for you on build 20226, you may bypass this issue by performing a rollback to your previous build. You may then reinstall build 20226 and you will not encounter the issue a second time.