User Guide

© 2013 Microsoft Page 41
Accounts and sign in
A user account determines how you interact and personalize your Surface. When you want to use Surfa ce, you
sign in with your user account.
What type of account do I have?
To see which type of account you're using:
 Open the Settings charm, tap or click Change PC settings > Accounts > Your account.
o If you see your name and email address, you’re using a Microsoft account.
o If you see Local account, this means your account is on Surface and you don’t have the benefits of
connecting to the cloud.
o If you see a network domain (domain name\username), then you’re using a domain account, such
as an account for your workplace.
Questions? See User accounts: FAQ on Windows.com.
What is a Microsoft account?
A Microsoft account is the email address and password that you use to sign in to services like Outlook.com,
SkyDrive, Windows Phone, and Xbox. If you use an email address and password to sign in to these Microsoft
services, then you already have a Microsoft account. To learn more, see All about accounts on Surface.com.
To switch from a local account to a Microsoft account:
 Open the Settings charm, tap or click Change PC settings > Accounts > Switch to a Microsoft
account.
What is a domain account?
A domain is a group of PCs on a network that share a common database and security policy. PCs on a workplace
network are usually part of a domain.
You can connect your Microsoft account to your domain account if you’d like. Here’s how:
 Open the Settings charm, tap or click Change PC settings > Accounts > Your account > Connect your
Microsoft account.
Create another account
If more than one person uses your Surface, each person can have their own account. This way they can sign in
and personalize everything.
To find out how to create another account on your Surface, see Create a user account on Windows.com.