How do I enable the user switching feature for the guest account in Windows 8?

5

I'm running Windows 8 and have enabled the guest account. When I am logged in as my normal user, and click my user name in the top right corner of the Start screen, I get this menu:

Change account picture
Lock
Sign out
Guest

If I click Guest, Windows switches to the Guest account.

But my problem is that Guest's user menu just contains:

Sign out

and not my user name. So to switch back to my user, I need to log out Guest.

Is there a setting to enable user switching from the Guest account?

Peter Jaric

Posted 2012-11-22T20:38:51.670

Reputation: 1 756

3I am sure it has to do with the extremely low security privileges the guest account has. To defeat this behavior would put the PC at risk, suggest using a regular user account without admin privileges. – Moab – 2012-11-22T21:48:37.663

1

Take a look at this link. There is some info on enabling and disabling this globally.

– Justin Dearing – 2013-01-30T18:46:25.490

Answers

2

There is an alternative procedure that is almost as easy to perform. While you are logged on as guest and want to switch to another user, press CTRL+ALT+DEL, then click on Switch user. Enjoy switching from guest account without signing out!

user306162

Posted 2012-11-22T20:38:51.670

Reputation: 36

Works like a charm, how could I miss that? This answer is now the accepted one. – Peter Jaric – 2014-03-09T10:26:45.713

1

Due to the low capabilities of the guest account on windows operating systems there is really no way of changing the contents of this menu. Instead of creating a guest account have you considered making a new account all together and setting that account to have very few permissions and no password? This way, you have an account with essentially the same function as a guest account while still being able to switch users to and from your normal account.

Ben Franchuk

Posted 2012-11-22T20:38:51.670

Reputation: 1 584

Sounds like a good plan. – Peter Jaric – 2013-05-01T18:37:19.860

thanks. good luck to you and your future computer related endeavors. – Ben Franchuk – 2013-05-01T20:56:14.343