Windows 11 update problem

Edward Kissam 0 Reputation points
2026-08-20T22:54:06.9133333+00:00

Whenever I do an update for Windows 11 after update is complete everything stays in the Temporary Profile. It does not put everything back in the Main profile. Please help!

Windows for home | Windows 11 | Windows update
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  1. AI answer

    2026-08-20T22:54:21.28+00:00

    This usually means Windows is signing in with a temporary profile after the update instead of loading the normal profile.

    Try these steps in order:

    1. Check whether Windows reports a temporary profile:
      • Go to Start > Settings > Accounts > Sync your settings.
      • If the message says You are logged on with a temporary profile. Roaming options are currently unavailable, restart the device and sign in again.
      • If the message says We can't sign into your account. This problem can often be fixed by signing out of your account and then signing back in, do that and sign in again.
    2. Restart more than once if needed:
      • It may take more than one restart before the normal profile loads again.
    3. Back up any files created while in the temporary profile before signing out:
      • Copy recent work to an external drive first.
      • Those files can be deleted when signing out of the temporary account.
    4. If files still seem missing after the update:
      • Check whether they are in a disabled built-in Administrator account.
      • Open Computer Management.
      • Go to Local Users and Groups > Users.
      • If Administrator shows a down arrow, open its Properties, clear Account is disabled, then select Apply.
      • Sign out and sign in with the Administrator account to check whether the files are there.
    5. If the issue happens during or after Windows Update, run the Windows Update troubleshooter:
      • Go to Start > Settings > System > Troubleshoot > Other troubleshooters.
      • Find Windows Update and select Run.
      • Follow the on-screen steps.
    6. If updates continue to trigger profile problems, repair system files. This requires administrator permissions:
      • Open Command Prompt as administrator.
      • Run: 
             DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth
      • After it completes successfully, run: 
             sfc /scannow
      • Wait for the scan to reach 100%, close Command Prompt, and try Windows Update again.

    If the problem continues after these steps, use the Feedback Hub app to report the update issue or contact Microsoft Support.

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  2. Hendrix-V 17,965 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2026-08-21T07:07:23.1333333+00:00

    Hi Edward Kissam,

    Since this appears to happen after every update, the issue may be related to how Windows is loading your user profile after the restart rather than the update itself.

    Here are some additional checking steps that you can try at this point:

    1, Check Event Viewer for User Profile Service errors

    • Press Win + X > Event Viewer
    • Go to Windows Logs > Application
    • Look for recent events from User Profile Service around the time you sign in after an update.

    2, Check the ProfileList registry entries

    • Press Win + R, type regedit
    • Browse to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ProfileList
    • See if you have duplicate profile entries or entries ending in .bak. This can indicate Windows is having trouble loading the correct profile.

    3, Check the drive for file system errors

    • Open Command Prompt (Admin)
    • Run: chkdsk C: /scan
    • Restart if Windows reports any issues that need repair.

    If possible, could you please share more information:

    • Are you using a local account or a Microsoft account?
    • Does the problem occur after every Windows update or only specific updates?
    • Do you see any notification such as "We can't sign into your account" when the temporary profile loads?

    Those details may help narrow down whether this is a profile configuration issue or something triggered during the update process.

    Let me know if you need further assistance, feel free to ask me by clicking "Add Comment" or "Add Answer" if you cannot add comment so your response will be visible. Thanks for your effort.

    Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.

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