regain access to my laptop

Hi Olena Dudik,

I understand how frustrating it must be when Windows Hello Face sign-in method suddenly stops working, and you also forgot your PIN. Since other options are missing, a common path at that point is to try to remove the Windows Hello data and then set a new one. But before getting further, it'd be helpful if you can confirm: 

• Are you signing in with a Microsoft account or a local account? 
• Do you know the password for it (or other way to verify it if you're using passwordless)?
• Have you tried using the I forgot my PIN option on the sign-in screen? Or it's also missing / doesn't work?

Because the process below will attempt to reset your Windows Hello completely, if you don't know the password or other methods to sign in, you'd still be locked out of the system. In that case, I suggest you try to recover your Microsoft account first before going further. If you're sure you can sign into your account from the web (other device), please follow the steps below carefully: 

1. You need to enter Windows Recovery Environment: 
   1. On the sign-in screen, hold Shift and select Power > Restart
   2. Or power off your Surface, press + keep holding Volume Down > press Power button 
   3. However, if it doesn't work, you might need to boot from a bootable USB to force the Surface into WinRE. 
2. Then go to Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Command Prompt 
3. Run these commands one by one (press Enter after each)
   1. diskpart
   2. list vol
   3. exit
4. Look for the volume that contains the Windows folder - often C:
5. Then run the following commands (replace C: with the correct letter if different) 
   1. cd /d C:\Windows\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Local\Microsoft
   2. dir
   3. ren Ngc Ngc.old
6. Restart the PC after > see if you have the option to sign in with password now. 

If any of the commands fails, reply back with the exact error text and I’ll see if there are additional commands or other solutions that may help. Also let me know if you're using local account or can't access your Microsoft account.

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