"You have been logged in with a temporary profile" - there is more than 1 user but I can't switch to it!

Hi,

1.    Have you made any changes to the computer prior to the issue?

2.    What happens when you try to logoff the user account?

Method 1: Follow these steps and if the issue persists.

Step 1: Try to boot into safe mode and check if the issue persists. Refer the following link to boot the computer in safe mode

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows7/Start-your-computer-in-safe-mode

Step 2: If the issue does not occur in safe mode then, start the computer in clean boot to check if any third party program is causing the issue. To configure your computer to clean boot refer the following link.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929135

Note: After you have finished troubleshooting, follow step 7 in the article to boot to normal startup.

Method 2: If the issue persists then, follow these steps and check if that helps.

Note: Modifying REGISTRY settings incorrectly can cause serious problems that may prevent your computer from booting properly. Microsoft cannot guarantee that any problems resulting from the configuring of REGISTRY settings can be solved. Modifications of these settings are at your own risk.

Refer the following link to backup the registry.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/Back-up-the-registry

Step 1: Delete the profile by using the Computer Properties dialog box.

a)    Click on ‘Start’, right-click ‘Computer’, and then click ‘Properties’.

b)    Click ‘Change settings’.

c)    In the ‘System Properties’ dialog box, click the ‘Advanced’ tab.

d)    In the ‘User Profiles’ area, click ‘Settings’.

e)    In the ‘User Profiles’ dialog box, select the profile that you want to delete, click ‘Delete’, and then click ‘OK’.

Step 2: Follow these steps and check for the issue.

a)    Click on ‘Start’ and type ‘regedit’ in the Search box, and then press Enter.

Note: If you are prompted for an administrator password or for confirmation, type your password, or click Continue.

b)    Locate and then click the following registry subkey:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ProfileList

c)    Under the ‘ProfileList’ subkey, delete the subkey that is named ‘SID.bak’.

Note: SID is a placeholder for the security identifier (SID) of the user account that is experiencing the problem. The SID.bak subkey should contain a ProfileImagePath registry entry that points to the original profile folder of the user account that is experiencing the problem.

d)    Exit ‘Registry Editor’.

e)    Log off the system.

f)    Log on to the system again and check if the issue persists.

​Hi,

Good to know that you were able to resolve the issue yourself and thank you for sharing the information with us. Feel free to contact us back if you face any issues with Windows in future.

I had the problem with being logged in to a temporary profile, but on logging out of it and logging back in to my normal user, it was OK. Thus the user profile is presumably not corrupt.  The problem does not happen always, but quite a lot.