There are several ways to temporarily lock the computer when we walk away, so that no one can read our documents or check our history. Locking the PC is essential especially for consultants and people who work in shared offices with other people.In this guide we will show you all the methods to lock the PC screen with a password, also using the automatic lock procedure supported by the latest versions of Windows (we get up and, if we move away enough, the screen will lock with a password).
READ ALSO -> Customize the lock screen in Windows
1) Preliminary information for effective blocking
Local Windows accounts (without a Microsoft account) do not guarantee effective protection: if we are away for a long time, anyone could restart the PC and use one of the password recovery and reset tools compatible with any version of Windows.
For this reason, we recommend that you always use a Microsoft account on our PCs equipped with Windows 11 and Windows 10: the access password will be encrypted with the online account and it will be impossible to recover or bypass it without having access to our account.
On the same topic we can read our articles on Why use your Microsoft account in Windows 10 and 11 and up how to change account type in windows 11 and 10.
If we don’t want to type the Microsoft account password every time to unlock, we can use the PIN to speed up access or biometric unlocking of Windows Hello, as seen in our guide to the unlocking your PC with fingerprint or recognition (Windows Hello).
2) Manual lock from keyboard
The simplest and most immediate way to lock the PC is to press the key combination Windows+L on the keyboard: the screen will immediately freeze and the Windows login screen will appear in its place.
If we don’t want to use automatic methods or configure the phone, we can also just limit ourselves to always press WIN+L as soon as we get up from the seat: this simple shortcut will protect you from prying eyes, to the point of having to become automatic every time we work in front of the computer and need to get up.
3) Manual lock screen with mouse
Without using programs we can Lock your Windows PC screen by adding a one-click desktop shortcut.
To proceed, press the right mouse button on the desktop background, go to the path New > Link and, to the newly created link, we supply as destination:
Rundll32.exe user32.dll,LockWorkStation
Now we press up Avantiwe provide a name for the new desktop shortcut (for example Quick lock screen) and confirm. Whenever we will double click on this link Windows crashes with password request to access.
We can also create shutdown and restart shortcuts for the computer, as seen in guide to shutdown the PC with a shortcut.
4) Manual screen lock on laptops
If we use a laptop to work or study we can lock the screen simply closing the lid, so as to start the suspension or hibernation procedure; the next time the lid is opened, the PC will exit the suspended state and show the lock screen, thus protecting against unauthorized access.
To hibernate or suspend the PC when the laptop lid is closed, open the Start menu, type “lid”, press on the item Change the settings made when the lid is closedlet’s get to the voice When the lid is closed and we set Iberê o Suspension for both columns (Battery powered e Mains power supply).
On the same subject we can read our guide on how to activate hibernation in windows 10 and 11.
5) Automatic screen lock with screensaver
To lock a Windows PC automatically without programs we can simply activate the Windows screensaver, which will automatically lock the screen after a certain period of time.
To set the screensaver on Windows 11 we press WIN+I on the keyboard, let’s go to the path Personalization -> Lock screenwe press on the menu Screensaverwe choose a screensaver among those present, we set the activation time, we tick the item Upon reset, return to the login screen and finally we press on OK for the changes to take effect.
To set the screensaver on Windows 10, right-click on the Start menu, click on Settingslet’s go to the same path seen before (i.e Personalization > Lock screenwe press down on Screen saver settingsuse the screensaver of the black screen and, at the same time, activate the option On reset, it returns to the login screen.
To learn more, we can read our guide on how change the Lock and Screen Off Timeout in Windows.
6) Automatic screen lock with phone
On Windows 11 and Windows 10 we can lock the PC screen with a password completely automatically using the Bluetooth connection between our computer and the phone.
To proceed, we connect our phone to the PC via Bluetooth connectionwe press WIN+I on the keyboard to open the settings, let’s go to the path Account -> Login Optionslet’s expand the menu Dynamic block and tick the voice Let Windows automatically lock your device when you’re away.
From now on it will be enough to get up and take the phone away from the PC to lock the screen and make the computer unusable until our return.
On this topic we can read our article on How Dynamic Lock works in Windows 10 and 11where we can find out how to best configure it.
7) Screen lock after a certain amount of time
Anyone who often leaves their PC on overnight can benefit from the screen lock after a few minutes of inactivityusing both the settings provided by Windows and some simple programs designed for automatic blocking with timers.
To take advantage of the Windows settings, all we have to do is take us to the path Settings -> System -> Power & Batteryexpand the menu Screen and suspension and change monitor sleep times (Turn off screen) by changing both the screen deactivation when on battery power and when on mains power.
To be sure that the screen is locked when the screen is deactivated let’s go back to the path Settings -> Accounts -> Sign-in options and set up Always the voice After a period of absence, when do you want Windows to ask you to sign in again?
Alternatively we can use timer shutdown programs such as Auto Lock e PowerOff Timeralready seen in our guide on how to lock or shut down our PC with timer.
8) Screen lock with USB stick
Another effective method to immediately lock the PC screen when we move away is to configure a personal recognition USB stick, to be removed as soon as we get up from the workstation: without the key, the PC will block the screen and prevent use; returning to the station, just insert the key to immediately unlock the screen and start working.
The lock key can be configured directly from the Windows settings: so let’s go to the path Settings -> Accounts -> Sign-in optionsconnect an empty USB stick to one of the computer’s USB ports, press on Security keyclick on Manage and follow the procedure to create your personal account lockout key. Obviously we must never lose this key, otherwise someone else could access our computer with it.
Alternatively we can lock and unlock your computer with a USB stickusing Predator, an excellent program to transform any USB stick into a PC unlock key.
9) Lock PC screen remotely
Have we forgotten the PC screen turned on and have we not set any of the automatic blocking systems seen so far? If we were smart enough to log in with the Microsoft account we can lock the PC remotely by opening any browser (even from a phone or tablet), take us to the page Microsoft deviceslog in with the same Microsoft account used on the computer, press on the name of the PC to block and finally click on Find my device come on Block.
To apply PC remote control we can read our guide on How to shut down or lock your PC remotely.
10) Other programs to lock PC screen
On the Web there are numerous programs to download to lock the PC screen with a password, also using automatic activation mechanisms. The best programs to download are:
- Mouselock: this tool allows you to block anything on your PC, we will simply have to decide the password and then press the “lock” to lock the computer. In the advanced settings you can also decide whether to darken the screen and make it impossible to terminate the program from the task manager (not even by pressing Ctrl-Alt-Del).
- Smart PC Locker: a great program from NoVirusThanks to lock your PC with password in different ways. You can set a power-on lock, lock different parts of Windows such as the task manager or CD player, lock your PC automatically after a certain period of inactivity.
- Screenblur: another program with advanced functions for locking the Windows computer. The best part is that you can configure Windows to automatically lock after a certain amount of time.
- Eusing Block Maze: advanced locking system that provides a pattern, i.e. a sequence to be entered using the mouse. Only those who know the exact pattern will be able to unlock the screen.
In another article we have seen three other alternative programs to lock keyboard mouse and PC desktop when we’re not there.
Conclusions
Locking the PC screen when we are not present in front of it or we are on a coffee break is very importantgiven that in our absence some curious user could read our mail or our documents without authorization.
Locking your PC and screen is a common practice learn very well when working in the officeusing at least two of the methods that we have shown above: only in this way will we protect our work and our privacy well.
To learn more we can read our guides on how to shut down or Lock your PC remotely with an email come on how to use your smartphone to shut down your computer remotely.