How to remove Windows user created by Parallels

[RalfR5]

Hi Everyone,
I'm running Windows 11 Pro as a virtual machine on macOS and it works perfectly. However, I've got a somewhat annoying problem: During the Windows install, Parallels created a user inferred from my macOS username. Right after installation, I added my Microsoft account user. Now I've got two users (with the same name).
I want to remove the user created by Parallels but also make sure, I'm not locking myself out of the system entirely. Since I come from a Mac background, I'm having difficulties "finding" the user, which Parallels has created. What I've tried:

• Settings > Accounts (I do see my Microsoft account as the active user) > Other Users

There is no other user listed here. I've got the option to "Add account" but I can't see the user created by Parallels

• Computer Management > Local Users and Groups > Users

There is a user "ralf" here and a user "Administrator" but I don't see my Microsoft account user here. This is confusing. Is the user "ralf" the one created by Parallels? Why is my Microsoft account not listed here as a user?

If any experienced Windows user/admin could shed some light on this, I'd be super thankful

 

[GeoffS3]

The problem is created when the Parallels Installation Assistant first builds the VM. It creates a local admin user account on the VM with a blank password, but nowhere do they explain that (nor tell you that the password is blank). Because the password is blank, when the machine reboots Windows automatically logs in using that account. What you are supposed to do, whilst logged on with that local admin account, is to convert it to a Microsoft account by adding your Microsoft account credentials. Microsoft will take you through an authentication process (which may include two factor authentication if you have that set up), and at the last step of that process it asks you for "one last time" to enter your "Windows" password. This is where the process fails for most people, because they don't realise that what they need to do here is enter a blank password and just click Next to complete the process. You try either the password from your Microsoft account, or the password from your Mac logon account, and both fail and you abort the process and work araound it by creating a new Microsoft account with admin privileges instead, but if you correctly realise and enter a blank password successfully as the "Windows password" then the process completes properly, Microsoft successfully converts the local admin account to a Microsoft admin account, and the oddly names account disappears. Which is what we all wanted in the first place.