How to Turn On or Off Auto Unlock When Windows Recognizes Your Face in Windows 11

What is Windows Hello?

Windows Hello is a feature that lets you sign into your Windows 11 computer using your face, fingerprint, or a PIN instead of a password, making it faster and more secure.

Using Windows Hello makes signing in faster and safer because your PIN works only on your device and is backed up by your Microsoft account.

You can set up face sign-in using your PC’s built-in infrared camera or an external one.

Once you’ve set up facial recognition, you can decide if you want your PC’s lock screen to unlock automatically when it sees your face.

How to Turn On or Off Auto Unlock with Face Recognition

Option 1Use 🪟 Windows 11 Settings (Easy Way)

1. Press Windows key + I to ⚙️ open Settings.
2. Click Accounts on the left side.
3. Click Sign-in options on the right.
4. Under Ways to sign in, find and click the arrow next to Facial recognition (Windows Hello) to open more options.
5. Check the box for “Automatically dismiss the lock screen if Windows Hello recognizes your face” to turn it on, or uncheck it to turn it off.
6. Close ⚙️ the Settings window when done.

You can turn the windows hello auto unlock feature on or off easily through Windows 11 Settings.

Open Sign-in options and expand Facial recognition settings

Toggle auto dismiss lock screen option

Option 2Use Registry Editor (For Advanced Users)

Advanced users can change the windows hello auto unlock setting by editing the Windows Registry.

1. Open Windows Terminal, and choose Windows PowerShell.
2. Type this command and press Enter to see all user accounts and their IDs (called SIDs):
   
   Get-WmiObject win32_useraccount | Select name,sid
3. Find the SID for the user you want to change. It looks like this: S-1-5-21-xxxxxxxxxx-xxxxxxxxxx-xxxxxxxxxx-xxxx.
4. Open Registry Editor by typing regedit in the ⊞ Start menu and pressing Enter.
5. In Registry Editor, go to:
   
   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Authentication\Logon UI\FaceLogon
6. Look for a folder (called a key) named with the SID you found earlier and click on it.
7. On the right side, double-click AutoDismissOn.
8. Change the value to 1 to turn on auto unlock, or 0 to turn it off, then click OK.
9. Close Registry Editor and Windows Terminal when done.

Here’s the command showing user accounts and SIDs:

Here’s how the registry folder looks:

Registry key where face recognition settings are stored

Helpful Links

• Windows Hello Face Authentication
• Windows Hello Biometric Requirements
• Windows Hello Biometrics in Enterprises
• Troubleshoot Windows Hello Problems

Summary

Windows Hello facial recognition lets you unlock your PC with your face, and you can choose whether it automatically dismisses the lock screen.