Help! I Did The Dumbest Thing About Windows 10

When Microsoft stopped supporting Windows 10 I managed to get set up so that I can continue safely using it without having to pay a monthly fee. (Thanks to you guys!) I even set up my special needs son's computer for that same purpose, although it has problems. He only goes on to look at youtube, so it's OK.

Last night I planned to sign into Microsoft so that I meet the requirement to do that and maintain the current deal I have. Unfortunately, I went to my computer first and signed in (or signed up, not sure) with his Microsoft info, including his password. After seeing the screen congratulating me, I realized what I had done. I attempted to sign in as myself but it won't let me do that on my computer!

What should I do now? It tells me that if I sign out of his account on my computer, it doesn't close out the account; it could take 10 days to even sign out. I had hoped to cancel this mistake, sign in properly on my computer, then do the same with his computer. I haven't touched his computer since this.

 

It does depend on how you signed into your son's account.

Either:
1. You added his Microsoft account as a sign‑in account
or:
2. You only signed into his Microsoft account inside the Microsoft Store or Edge

This page may provide some assistance: https://www.majorgeeks.com/content/page/microsoft_account_name_and_password.html

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It sounds like the first case and to fix do the following to add your Microsoft account back to your PC:

a. Go to Settings -> Accounts
On your PC (the one with the mistake):
Open Settings
Choose Accounts
Select Family & other users (or Other users)

b. Add your Microsoft account
Click Add someone else to this PC
Choose I want to sign in with a Microsoft account
Enter your Microsoft email and password
This creates a clean profile for you.

c. Sign out of your son’s account
Click Start -> your profile icon -> Sign out
Sign into the new account you just created
Now your PC is back under your control.

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The second case is easy: just sign out of his account inside the apps.

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The 10‑day warning appears ONLY when you try to close a Microsoft account permanently.

It does not apply to:
Signing out of Windows
Removing an account from a device
Switching users
Fixing a mistaken login

Microsoft requires a 30–60 day waiting period (varies by region) before permanently deleting an account, and during that time you can still recover it. Some screens summarize this as “up to 10 days to sign out,” but it’s referring to the account closure process, not your device.

In other words:

You accidentally clicked something that looked like “close account” or “remove account from Microsoft,” not “sign out of this device.”

You are NOT deleting his account.
You are NOT locked out for 10 days.
You do NOT need to wait.

The “10 days” message is about account closure, not device sign‑out.

Check the account recovery page at https://account.microsoft.com using your son's account to sign-in onthat page. Look for something like "Your account is scheduled for closure" or similar. There should be buttons to either "Cancel closure" or "Reopen your account". If you don't see the closure warning then the account is not scheduled for closure.

 

Thank you so much! I can see that you put a lot of work into this answer and I really appreciate it! I will try that tonight. I've been trying to get to it today, but my son is ill, which is why I made the mistake in the first place. (Won't do that again!)
I'm so grateful, and I wish you a Happy New Year! May it bring you health, peace, prosperity.

 

I couldn't face this on my own, so I had a young guy come over and work on it for me yesterday. He followed your very complete instructions and the problem seems to be solved. I don't know what he did, but it looks OK and I feel so much better about it. So thank you again and I'm sure you earned big Karma points for this!