Change Registered Owner and Organization in Windows 11 & 10 (and Every Other Name)

To change the registered owner and organization in Windows 11 or 10, open Registry Editor, go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion, and edit the RegisteredOwner and RegisteredOrganization values. Press Windows + R, type winver, and the About Windows box shows the new names straight away. Here is what surprises most people: the registered owner is only a label. It does not change your sign-in name, your PC's name, your Microsoft account, your license or activation. Windows shows names in at least five different places, each changed separately, and this page covers all of them so you change the one you actually see.

Ethan bought a refurbished laptop from a company clearance sale. Everything worked, but the About Windows box said the PC was licensed to "IT Department, Contoso Logistics", Office documents were authored by "Contoso User", and the support information in Settings showed a help desk phone number that rang an office in another city. Nothing was broken; it was just someone else's names everywhere. At Jake's shop they changed the registered owner and organization, the Office user name and the support details, renamed the PC, and checked the license was a proper consumer activation. Ten minutes later the laptop said "Ethan" wherever a name appeared. This page shows each of those changes, and which ones matter.

Editing these registry values is low-risk: they are plain text labels that Windows displays. Still, change only the values named here, and create a restore point first if you are new to Registry Editor.

Every name Windows shows, and where to change it

Most people asking how to change the "registered owner" actually want one of the other rows too. Check the table, then jump to the matching section.

See the current registered owner

Press Windows + R, type winver, and press Enter. The About Windows box shows the Windows version and build, and near the bottom: "This product is licensed under the Microsoft Software License Terms to:" followed by the registered owner and, on the next line, the registered organization. On a PC set up at home, the owner is usually your first account's name and the organization is blank. On refurbished or ex-business PCs you often see a company name or "Windows User". Our guide to finding your Windows version explains the rest of that window.

The same box also shows the Windows version and OS build, which is handy to note while you are there.

winver is also the fastest way to confirm which feature update you have, such as 24H2 or 25H2, when an article or support agent asks; the version line sits just above the owner details, so one window answers both questions.

Change the registered owner and organization in Registry Editor

1. Press Windows + R, type regedit, press Enter, and click Yes at the User Account Control prompt.
2. Paste HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion into the address bar at the top and press Enter.
3. In the right pane, double-click RegisteredOwner, type the new name, and click OK.
4. Double-click RegisteredOrganization, type the organization or clear it to leave it blank, and click OK.
5. If either value is missing, right-click empty space, choose New > String Value, name it exactly RegisteredOwner or RegisteredOrganization, and set its data.
6. Run winver again; the new names appear immediately, with no restart.

On 64-bit Windows, a copy of these values also exists under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion, which some older 32-bit installers read. Change them there too for consistency, so old setup programs show the right default name.

The value names are case-sensitive in practice for some tools, so type them exactly as shown, with capital R, O and so on. If winver still shows the old name after editing, check you edited the value under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, not a similarly named key under HKEY_CURRENT_USER.

Change it with PowerShell

Open Terminal (Admin) and run:

$k = "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion"
Set-ItemProperty -Path $k -Name RegisteredOwner -Value "Ethan"
Set-ItemProperty -Path $k -Name RegisteredOrganization -Value ""

Repeat with HKLM:\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion for the 32-bit copy. To check the values, run Get-ItemProperty $k | Select-Object RegisteredOwner, RegisteredOrganization. In Command Prompt as administrator, the equivalent is reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion" /v RegisteredOwner /t REG_SZ /d "Ethan" /f.

Run the Get-ItemProperty line before changing anything as well; it records the old values on screen, which is a quick way to note them in case you want them back.

Changes made with PowerShell are identical to editing in Registry Editor, and take effect immediately in winver.

What else lives in the CurrentVersion key

Only the first two rows are labels meant to be personalized. The rest describe the installation, and changing them can confuse updates and apps that read them. Look, but do not touch.

The key also holds values used by Windows Update and activation internally, which is another reason to change only the two labels and leave everything else alone.

Why ProductName says Windows 10 on Windows 11

A well-known quirk: on Windows 11, the ProductName value in the CurrentVersion key still reads something like "Windows 10 Pro". Windows 11 kept the same internal product family, and apps are expected to use the build number, 22000 or higher for Windows 11, to tell the versions apart. winver and Settings show the correct name. If a tool reports Windows 10 on a Windows 11 PC, that is why; do not edit ProductName to "fix" it.

Scripts that need the Windows name should read the build from CurrentBuild or use Get-ComputerInfo | Select-Object OsName, which reports Windows 11 correctly.

Why it shows a company name or "Windows User"

The registered owner is set when Windows is installed, from the name typed during setup or from an automated setup file. Business PCs are usually installed from a company image, so they carry the company's name and IT department labels. "Windows User" or "User" appears when setup ran without a name, common on factory images. Refurbishers often reset Windows but keep the original image's labels. None of this means the PC is still owned or managed by that company; check that separately, as shown below.

Laptops from schools, hospitals and government agencies often carry department names or asset codes too; those are equally harmless once the device is no longer managed.

Seeing a name you do not recognize on a brand-new PC from a shop is unusual; check with the seller, since new retail PCs normally ask for your name during first setup.

Make sure an ex-business PC is really yours

A company name in winver is harmless, but a PC that is still enrolled in a company's management is not. Check these three things on a second-hand business laptop:

• Settings > Accounts > Access work or school: there should be no connected organization accounts you do not recognize. Disconnect any that appear.
• Settings > Windows Update and other pages: "Some settings are managed by your organization" means policies remain.
• Settings > System > Activation: the activation state and edition should be normal; a message about an organization's activation server means a volume license that may stop working.

If policies or management remain, the cleanest fix is Reset this PC with Remove everything and a cloud download, which also resets the registered owner to whatever you type during setup. Ethan's laptop passed all three checks, so changing the labels was enough.

It is also worth opening Settings > Privacy & security > Find my device and Settings > Accounts to see whether a previous owner's Microsoft account is still connected anywhere, for example as a family member or with Find my device turned on. Remove any account that is not yours. A quick look in Settings > Apps > Installed apps for company tools such as remote support agents or management clients completes the check; uninstall anything you do not need, or reset the PC if they will not leave.

What the registered owner does not change

• Activation and license: activation is tied to the PC's hardware and your digital license or product key, not to the registered owner text.
• Ownership: it is not a legal record of who owns the PC.
• Your sign-in name or Microsoft account: those are separate.
• The computer name other devices see on the network.
• File ownership and permissions, which belong to user accounts, not this label.

That is why changing it is safe: it touches nothing Windows depends on.

If you ever need proof of purchase for a PC, keep the receipt; Windows records nothing that substitutes for it.

The same goes for upgrades: moving from Windows 10 to Windows 11, or from Home to Pro, keeps the registered owner as it was, because the upgrade carries the labels across with everything else. If the previous owner's name survived several upgrades on a second-hand PC, that is why.

Check edition, product key and activation

1. Open Settings > System > Activation to see the edition and activation state, such as "Active, Windows is activated with a digital license linked to your Microsoft account".
2. For more detail, open Terminal (Admin) and run slmgr /dli; a window shows the license channel, such as Retail, OEM or Volume.
3. To read a key embedded in the PC's firmware by the maker, run (Get-CimInstance SoftwareLicensingService).OA3xOriginalProductKey in PowerShell.
4. If the channel says Volume and activation mentions an organization's server, the PC used a business license that may expire; reset or relicense it.

Linking your digital license to your Microsoft account, from the Activation page, makes reactivation easy after hardware changes, and it is a stronger sign of ownership than any registry label.

Change your account display name

Local account: open Control Panel > User Accounts > User Accounts, click Change your account name, type the new name, and click Change Name. For another user's account, choose Manage another account first. Microsoft account: the name comes from your online profile; sign in at account.microsoft.com, open Your info, click Edit name, and save. The PC shows the new name after you sign out and in, sometimes after a restart. Our guide to user accounts covers creating new accounts if you want a fresh start.

On a shared PC, use first names or nicknames people recognize; the sign-in screen lists every account, and clear names avoid people signing in to the wrong one.

Renaming your account does not change your password, PIN, files or apps; it is purely what Windows displays.

Names on the sign-in screen

The sign-in screen shows each account's display name and, by default, sometimes the Microsoft account email. To hide the email, open Settings > Accounts > Sign-in options and turn off Show account details such as my email address on the sign-in screen. The display name itself comes from the account name described above. Account pictures help tell users apart at a glance; our guide to account pictures covers changing them.

On PCs in shared spaces such as offices or libraries, hiding email addresses also reduces the personal information visible to anyone walking past.

Microsoft account name vs email

A Microsoft account has a display name, which Windows shows, and an email address used to sign in. Changing the display name online does not change the email; to sign in with a different email, add it as an alias at account.microsoft.com under Your info > Account info > Edit account info, and make it the primary alias. The PC keeps working with either alias. Changing the display name is the right fix when Windows shows a misspelled or old name.

The display name also appears to people you share files with through OneDrive and in Outlook.com, so changing it updates how you appear to others across Microsoft services.

Display name changes can take a little while to appear everywhere; the PC usually updates at the next sign-in, while other services may take up to a day.

Change your PC's name

Open Settings > System > About and click Rename this PC. Type a name of up to 15 letters, numbers and hyphens, such as Ethan-Laptop, click Next, and restart. Other devices on your network, your router's device list and Bluetooth pairing screens then show the new name. Ex-business PCs often have names like CONTOSO-LT0457; renaming is a quick win. Our guide to renaming networks and your PC covers the related network names too.

If the PC is joined to a work or school domain, renaming it needs the organization's permission and credentials; ask IT rather than renaming it yourself.

Restart soon after renaming; until you do, some apps and network devices still see the old name, which can cause confusing duplicate entries on the network.

Your PC's name in your Microsoft account

Your Microsoft account lists your devices at account.microsoft.com under Devices, by computer name. After renaming the PC, the list updates the next time the PC checks in, which can take a day. Removing an old, sold PC from this list is good housekeeping; it also stops it appearing in Find my device. Bluetooth headphones and phones also show the PC by its computer name, so they pick up the new name the next time they pair.

Renaming the PC does not affect your Microsoft account's licenses or Store purchases; they follow the account, not the device name.

Change the user name in Office

Word, Excel and PowerPoint stamp your name as the author of new documents and on comments and tracked changes. Open any of them, go to File > Options > General, and under Personalize your copy of Microsoft Office, set User name and Initials. Check Always use these values regardless of sign in to Office if a signed-in account keeps overriding them. The change applies to new documents; for existing ones, open File > Info > Properties or Inspect Document to change or remove the author.

On Mac versions of Office the setting is under the app's Preferences, General; on the web versions, the author is always your signed-in account name.

Teams, OneDrive and Outlook show your Microsoft or work account name instead of this setting, so change that name online if it is wrong there.

Change or remove support information

Settings > System > About may show a Support section with a manufacturer, phone number, website and hours. That comes from the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\OEMInformation key, with values such as Manufacturer, Model, SupportPhone, SupportHours, SupportURL and Logo. PC makers set it for their own support; companies and refurbishers sometimes set their own. Export the key as a backup, then edit the values or delete the ones that no longer apply. Deleting all values removes the Support section; it does not affect drivers or warranty.

To change the details step by step:

1. Open Registry Editor and go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\OEMInformation.
2. Right-click OEMInformation and choose Export to save a backup.
3. Double-click a value, such as SupportPhone, and edit or clear it; or right-click and delete values you do not want.
4. Close and reopen Settings > System > About to see the result.

What Settings > System > About shows

The About page gathers several names and identifiers. Device name is the computer name, with a Rename this PC button. Device specifications list the processor, installed RAM, Device ID, Product ID and System type. Windows specifications list the edition, version, install date and OS build. A Copy button copies each section as text, handy for support requests. The Support section appears only when OEM information is set. The registered owner is not shown here; it appears only in winver.

When a support person asks for your PC's details, the Copy buttons give them everything they need in one paste, without screenshots or typing model numbers by hand.

Device ID and Product ID: are they private?

The Device ID identifies the PC for Microsoft services, and the Product ID identifies the Windows installation's license channel. Neither is your product key, and neither lets anyone activate Windows. They are not secret, but there is little reason to post them publicly; share them only with support staff who ask. Your actual product key, if you have one on a sticker or card, is the item worth keeping private, since it can be used to activate another PC.

If a website or caller asks for your Device ID, Product ID or product key to "fix" Windows, treat it as a scam warning; genuine support never needs your key to diagnose a problem.

Why your user folder keeps the old name

Renaming an account does not rename its folder under C:\Users. That folder name is fixed when the account first signs in, and many apps store paths that include it. Renaming the folder by hand, or through registry tricks, frequently breaks apps, OneDrive and Start. If the folder name truly matters to you, create a new account with the name you want, sign in once so its folder is created, copy your files across, and remove the old account. For most people, the old folder name is invisible in daily use and best left alone.

If an app shows the old folder name in a path, that is expected and harmless; it is just the folder's permanent name.

Get a new folder name the safe way

1. Create a new account with the name you want under Settings > Accounts > Other users, and make it an administrator.
2. Sign in to it once, so Windows creates C:\Users\NewName.
3. Sign back in to the old account and copy Documents, Desktop, Pictures and other personal folders to the new account's matching folders, or move them through OneDrive.
4. Sign in to the new account, set up your apps, browser and email, and check everything is there.
5. Once you are sure, remove the old account under Other users, choosing Delete account and data.

It takes an hour or so for a typical profile, but leaves a clean account with exactly the folder name you want and no broken paths.

Names that installers pre-fill

Some older programs ask for a name and company during installation and pre-fill them from the registered owner and organization. That is the main practical reason to change those values: so new installs default to the right name rather than an old company's. Modern Store apps and most current installers do not use these fields at all.

If an old program has already installed with the wrong company name, reinstalling after changing the values usually corrects what it displays in its About box.

Business software sometimes records the company name during setup for licensing; for those, contact the vendor rather than editing registry labels.

Apps that ask for a name and company during installation today usually store their own copy, so later changes to the Windows labels will not update them; check the app's About or account settings instead.

Before selling or giving away a PC

Do not bother editing names on a PC you are passing on. Back up your files, sign out of your Microsoft account in Settings, turn off Find my device, then use Settings > System > Recovery > Reset this PC > Remove everything, choosing to clean the drive. The new owner sets up Windows from scratch with their own name, account and PC name, and none of your details remain.

Also remove the PC from your Microsoft account's device list after the reset, so it no longer counts against any device limits for apps or subscriptions.

When to leave names alone

Do not change names on a work or school PC; organizations use them for inventory, support and security, and changes can break management or trigger alerts. On a shared family PC, change only your own account's name, not other people's. And on any PC, leave the internal values in the CurrentVersion key untouched apart from the two owner labels. Personalizing a PC you own is harmless; renaming things that belong to someone else's system is where problems start.

When in doubt on someone else's PC, ask first. Names feel cosmetic, but they are how families and offices keep track of which device is which.

Ex-business PCs that return to company setup

Some business laptops are registered with their organization's deployment service. If, after a reset, Windows setup shows a company's own sign-in page or a message that the device is set up by an organization, the PC is still registered there. Changing names cannot fix that, and neither can another reset. Only the organization can release the device from its registration, so contact the seller or refurbisher; a reputable one will arrange it. Check for this before buying a second-hand business laptop if you can, by asking the seller to confirm it was released.

Names on shared family PCs

On a shared PC, the registered owner can be the household name, such as "The Ahmed Family", while each person's account carries their own name. That keeps winver tidy without favoring one person, and each user's documents and Office files carry their own author name through their account and Office settings.

Children's documents created in Office carry their own account's name too, which helps teachers see whose homework is whose when files are shared.

If one person leaves the household, change the registered owner to the household name rather than another individual, so the PC does not seem to belong to whoever happened to be listed.

Undo the changes

To go back, set RegisteredOwner and RegisteredOrganization to their previous text, or to blank values; Windows does not require any particular content. If you exported the CurrentVersion or OEMInformation keys before editing, double-click the .reg file to restore them exactly. Account and PC names can be changed back the same way they were changed.

If you changed the computer name and want the old one back, rename the PC again with the previous name; other devices may need re-pairing or reconnecting after either change.

For the Office name, set the old value back in File > Options > General; it applies to new documents from then on.

Nothing on this page needs a reinstall to undo, which is part of why it is a safe place to start personalizing a new or second-hand PC.

Windows 10 differences

Everything on this page works the same on Windows 10: the CurrentVersion key, winver, OEMInformation, account names and the Rename this PC button under Settings > System > About. Windows 10 reached end of support in October 2025; the names carry over unchanged if you upgrade to Windows 11.

Windows 10's About page lays out the Rename button slightly differently, near the top under Device specifications, but it opens the same dialog.

Office, account and OEM settings are also identical, since they belong to the apps and the registry rather than the Windows version.

For IT admins: owner and OEM details at scale

Deployment. Set RegisteredOwner and RegisteredOrganization in the unattend.xml answer file during setup, and OEMInformation values for your service desk. For existing devices, a short PowerShell remediation script sets them consistently.

Disposal. When retiring devices, reset or reimage them so company names, support details and management enrollment do not follow the hardware to its next owner.

Asset tags. Many organizations put asset numbers in the computer name or OEM fields; keep a register so retired devices can be traced and wiped properly.

Naming. Agree a computer naming convention before deployment; renaming hundreds of machines later is far more work than naming them well once.

Computer name and description in System Properties

The classic System Properties window has two more name fields. Press Windows + R, type sysdm.cpl, and open the Computer Name tab. Computer description is a friendly label, such as "Ethan's laptop", that some network views show next to the computer name; type one and click Apply. The Change... button renames the PC and sets the workgroup or domain. Settings is simpler for renaming, but the description field exists only here.

The description is optional and rarely seen on modern networks, but it is a handy place to note who uses the PC or where it sits, such as "Upstairs study".

Changing the computer name here and in Settings is the same operation, so use whichever you find easier; both ask for a restart before the new name takes full effect on the network.

Change the workgroup name

Home PCs belong to a workgroup, named WORKGROUP by default. Workgroup names matter little on modern networks, but some older devices and network tools group PCs by it. To change it, open sysdm.cpl > Computer Name > Change..., select Workgroup, type the new name, and restart. Keep the same workgroup name on every PC in the house if you change it at all.

Workgroups do not provide security or sharing on their own; file sharing depends on sharing settings and accounts, not the workgroup name.

Domain-joined work PCs show a domain instead of a workgroup; changing that requires IT and is not part of personalizing a home PC.

Rename printers and other devices

Printers often carry long model names or a previous owner's labels. Open Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers & scanners, select the printer, choose Printer properties, and change the name on the General tab. Bluetooth devices can be renamed by the device's own app, and drives by right-clicking them in This PC and choosing Rename. Clear names such as "Kitchen printer" or "Backup drive" make the PC easier for everyone in the house to use.

Printer names show in every app's Print dialog, so a clear name also prevents the classic mistake of printing to an old or absent printer.

Shared printers on other PCs keep the name set on the PC that shares them, so rename those at the source; renaming on your PC only changes how it appears to you.

The name on your emails

The name recipients see on your emails is set per email account, not by Windows. In Outlook, open the account settings and edit the Your name or display name field; in the Mail or Outlook app on Windows, open Settings > Accounts, select the account and change Your name. For Outlook.com and other webmail, change it in the web settings, which the apps then pick up.

Use the name you want people to recognize, such as your full name for work email and a first name for family accounts; recipients' address books then file your messages correctly.

Privacy: what your names reveal

Some names travel beyond your PC. The computer name is visible to other devices on any network you join, including café and hotel Wi-Fi, and in Bluetooth device lists nearby. A name like "Ethan-Smith-Laptop" announces who owns the device to anyone looking. A neutral name, such as "Laptop-7" or a nickname, reveals less. The registered owner and Office name stay on your PC and inside documents you share, so check a document's properties before sending it outside your family or workplace.

Ethan chose "Ethan-Laptop" at home, which is fine on his own network; on laptops that travel, many people prefer something less personal.

Phones show the PC's name in their Bluetooth and casting lists too, so a renamed PC is easier to pick out when you send photos or play music from your phone.

Remove your name from documents and photos

Documents and photos store names in their properties. In File Explorer, right-click a file, choose Properties > Details, and click Remove Properties and Personal Information; you can create a clean copy or remove selected properties such as Author, Last saved by and, for photos, GPS location. In Office, File > Info > Check for Issues > Inspect Document finds and removes author names, comments and hidden content. Do this before publishing files online or sending them to people outside your circle; it is the names inside files, more than any Windows label, that travel furthest.

For many files at once, select them all in File Explorer before opening Properties; the remove option then applies to the whole selection, which is handy before sharing a folder of photos.

"Owner" of files and folders is something else

Windows also uses the word owner for files and folders: every file has an owner account in its security settings, which controls who can change its permissions. That is unrelated to the registered owner. If you see "Access denied" or "You need permission" on files from an old PC or drive, the file owner is an account that no longer exists, and taking ownership in the file's Properties > Security > Advanced fixes it. Our guide to access denied ownership errors walks through it safely.

Taking ownership changes security settings on files, so do it only on your own data folders, never on Windows or Program Files folders.

A ten-minute name checklist for a used PC

1. Check Access work or school and the Activation page for leftover business management.
2. Rename the PC in Settings > System > About, and restart.
3. Set RegisteredOwner and RegisteredOrganization in Registry Editor.
4. Edit or remove the OEMInformation support details.
5. Create your own account, if the PC still has the seller's, and remove theirs after copying anything you need.
6. Set your Office user name and initials.
7. Run winver and check Settings > System > About to confirm everything reads correctly.

This is exactly the sequence Jake used on Ethan's laptop, and it leaves no trace of the previous owner on screen.

Allow extra time if you create a new account in step 5, since copying files and setting up apps again takes longer than the renaming steps.

Quick reference: name commands

• winver: shows the registered owner and organization.
• hostname: prints the computer name.
• whoami: shows the signed-in account as PC\user.
• net user: lists local accounts on the PC.
• Rename-Computer -NewName "Name" -Restart: renames the PC from PowerShell (admin).
• Get-ItemProperty "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion" | Select RegisteredOwner, RegisteredOrganization: reads the labels.

None of these commands change anything except Rename-Computer, so they are safe to run any time you want to check what Windows currently calls things. They are also quick to read out to someone helping you over the phone.

For the full system summary, systeminfo in Command Prompt lists the registered owner, organization, computer name, Windows version, install date and more in one screen.

Changing the registered owner: frequently asked questions

Ethan's refurbished laptop no longer announces a logistics company every time he checks the Windows version. More importantly, the checks along the way confirmed it was genuinely his: no leftover management, a normal activation, and a clean set of accounts. Changing names is cosmetic, but it is a good excuse to look at the things that are not. Change the labels you see, check the ones that matter, and the PC feels like yours.

Revision note. Written October 2, 2026, rewriting our 2016 guide to cover every name Windows 11 and 10 display. May every name on your PC be yours.