Transition Your Personal Windows Laptop from Your Chatham Account

 

Overview

If you used your Chatham University account to set up your personal Windows laptop, you should transition the laptop to a personal account before your Chatham account is deactivated.

This process allows you to continue using the laptop while keeping access to your existing Desktop, Documents, Downloads, and other personal files.

 

Instructions

Before You Begin

Before making changes:

  • Make sure you can still sign in to the laptop with your Chatham account.
  • Make sure your Chatham account is still active.
  • Back up important files.
  • Check whether files are stored in Chatham OneDrive.
  • Do not remove the Chatham account or Windows profile until the new account is working and your files have been copied successfully.

Step 1: Create a Local Windows Account

You will first create a local account on the laptop. This account will later be connected to a personal Microsoft account.

  1. Sign in to the laptop using your Chatham account.
  2. Select Start → Settings.
  3. Select Accounts.
  4. Select Other users.
  5. Under Other users, select Add account.

Do not select Add a work or school account.

  1. When the Microsoft sign-in window appears, select I don't have this person's sign-in information.
  2. Select Add a user without a Microsoft account.
  3. Create a username and password.
  4. After the account is created, return to Settings → Accounts → Other users.
  5. Select the new account and choose Change account type.
  6. Change the account type to Administrator.

Step 2: Test the Local Account

Before making any additional changes, verify that the local account works.

  1. Sign out of the Chatham account.
  2. At the Windows sign-in screen, select Other user if necessary.
  3. Enter the local username using the following format:
.\username

For example:

.\JohnLocal
  1. Enter the password you created.

The .\ tells Windows to sign in using an account stored locally on the laptop rather than the Chatham account.

Restart the laptop and verify that you can sign in to the local account again.

Step 3: Create a Personal Microsoft Account

If you already have a personal Microsoft account, you may skip this section.

A free Microsoft account can be created using a new Outlook.com email address or an existing personal email address.

To create one:

  1. Open a web browser.
  2. Go to Microsoft's account creation page.
  3. Select Create account.
  4. Choose whether you want to:
    • Create a new Outlook.com email address, or
    • Use an existing personal email address.
  5. Create a password.
  6. Complete the requested verification steps.

Do not use your Chatham email address for the new personal Microsoft account.

Step 4: Connect the Local Windows Account to Your Personal Microsoft Account

After the personal Microsoft account has been created:

  1. Sign in to the new local Windows account.
  2. Go to Start → Settings → Accounts → Your info.
  3. Select Sign in with a Microsoft account instead.
  4. Enter the personal Microsoft account email address and password.
  5. Complete any verification steps.
  6. Restart the laptop.
  7. Sign back in and verify that the personal Microsoft account works.

The local Windows profile is now connected to the personal Microsoft account.

Step 5: Copy Your Existing Desktop and Files

The new account has its own Windows profile, so your existing Desktop and files will not automatically appear.

Sign in to the new personal account and open:

File Explorer → This PC → Local Disk (C:) → Users

You should see folders for both the old Chatham profile and the new personal profile.

For example:

C:\Users\OldChathamProfile
C:\Users\NewPersonalProfile

Open the old Chatham profile.

If Windows displays a message stating that you do not currently have permission to access the folder, select Continue.

Copy Your Desktop

Open:

C:\Users\OldChathamProfile\Desktop

Copy the files and folders you want to keep.

Paste them into the Desktop folder for the new account.

The new Desktop may be located at:

C:\Users\NewPersonalProfile\Desktop

If personal OneDrive backup is enabled, it may instead be located at:

C:\Users\NewPersonalProfile\OneDrive\Desktop

Copying the files will combine the contents of the old Desktop with the new Desktop.

If Windows asks whether you want to replace files with the same name, review the files before replacing them.

Step 6: Copy Other Personal Files

Repeat the same process for other folders you want to retain, including:

  • Documents
  • Downloads
  • Pictures
  • Videos
  • Music
  • Favorites
  • Any personal folders created under the old Windows profile

We recommend copying the files first rather than moving them.

Do not copy the entire Windows user profile.

In particular, do not copy:

NTUSER.DAT

or the entire:

AppData

folder.

These contain Windows and application profile settings and may cause problems with the new account.

Step 7: Check Chatham OneDrive

Your files may be stored in Chatham OneDrive rather than directly on the laptop.

Under the old Chatham profile, look for a folder similar to:

OneDrive - Chatham University

Review the contents carefully.

Files stored only in Chatham OneDrive may no longer be available after your Chatham account is deactivated.

Copy files you want to retain to:

  • Your new personal OneDrive
  • Your local computer
  • An external drive
  • Another personal cloud storage service

Make sure important files have fully downloaded before your Chatham account is deactivated.

Step 8: Verify the New Account

Before removing anything related to Chatham:

  1. Restart the laptop.
  2. Sign in using the personal Microsoft account.
  3. Verify that you can access:
    • Desktop
    • Documents
    • Downloads
    • Pictures
    • Important applications
    • Personal OneDrive
  4. Open several important files to confirm they work.

Important

Do not delete the old Chatham Windows profile until you are certain that everything you need has been copied and verified.

Once the personal Microsoft account is working and your files have been transferred successfully, the Chatham account can be removed or disconnected.

If Your Chatham Account Has Already Been Deactivated

If your Chatham account has already been deactivated and you can no longer sign in to the laptop, contact IT Support Services.

Your Chatham account may need to be temporarily reactivated so you can complete the transition to a personal account.

 

For additional help, please contact the IT Support Services at (412) 365-1112.

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