using PIN to sign on to Windows 10

[soybean]

I am still using Insider Preview version of Windows 10; it's actually a version that was released subsequent to the release of Windows 10 to the general public.  It is Build 10525.  Today, I was prompted to create a PIN to sign on instead of using a password.  Have any of you encountered this? 

I went ahead and did it.  Now, when the Sign-in screen appears, I enter the PIN.  It is a quicker way to sign in than with the password I was using.  As soon as I type the last digit of the PIN, sign-in happens; I do not need to hit Enter or click the arrow on the Sign-in screen. 

What puzzled me about the screen that prompted me to create a PIN is that it declared that using PIN is more secure than using a password.  Hmm, how or why is it more secure?  It is fewer characters than the password I was using, and this would probably the case with many users. 

For a reference on creating a PIN for Windows 10, see Windows 10 – How To Create 4 Digit PIN Logon

[Geek-9pm]

Not logical, as Spook would say.
Four digits t have 10,000 permutations from 0000 to 9999.

Passwords are often six or more letters.

Six letters would have from  AAAAAA to ZZZZZZ using only capital letters.
Google says there be  308,915,776 possibilities.
what is 26 * 26 * 26 * 26 * 26 * 26
What are we missing here?   

[camerongray]

Sure a pin isn't as secure as a full password but we are talking about Windows logon here - It's there to protect against people casually trying to get into the PC, if you are determined enough it'll be easy enough to bypass a Windows login password and unless disk encryption is set up, even easier to access files stored on the system.  As far as I'm aware, if you enter the pin wrong 5 times it will lock you out for 30 seconds, so if you factor that in, trying to brute force the pin is totally impractical.  It's also possible to set up a total account lockout if required which will prevent an account from logging on if the password/PIN is entered incorrectly n times.  If a 4 digit pin is enough to secure my debit card, it's enough to stop someone casually logging onto my PC.

On regular PCs I still use a full password since I find it's quick enough to type sitting at a keyboard (pretty much muscle memory) however I use a pin on my Windows 8.1 tablet (soon to be upgraded to Windows 10) - On a tablet a pin is nice and quick to enter, having to open a keyboard and type a password on an on screen keyboard while pressing different buttons to switch between alphanumeric keys and symbols is a total pain on a tablet.

[soybean]

Actually, I used 5 digits for my PIN.  The link I posted implies the PIN would only be a 4-digit number.  I did not read that article before I created my PIN and I did not assume the PIN would, or must, be a 4-digit number.  I do not know what the limit is on the number of digits but knowing it can be longer than 4 digits allows making it more secure than 4 digits. 

[patio]

I had the release ver. of 10...now have the full release...neither have prompted me for a PIN logon...Interesting.

[BC_Programmer]

I had the release ver. of 10...now have the full release...neither have prompted me for a PIN logon...Interesting.

The Insider Preview program is still active, and those who participate receive builds of new versions of Windows 10. the released version is Build 10240; Soybean has 10525, so presumably this PIN feature is something they've added since general availability and is only available to those still part of the Insider Preview program.

[patio]

Got it...Thanx.

[Salmon Trout]

I have 2 machines running Windows 10

1. 64 bit upgrade from Windows 7 (10.0.10240)

2. 32 bit Insider Preview (10.0.10532)

Both have the "Create a PIN to use in place of passwords" option in Settings - Accounts - Sign-in options. To get it to show you may need to ensure that this setting is disabled:

Local Security Policy - Local Policies - Security Options - Interactive logon: Do not display last user name

When this policy is set to Enabled, apart from the Last User Name, neither Picture Password nor PIN is displayed at logon.

http://www.thewindowsclub.com/pin-and-picture-password-logon-not-offered-windows

[Computer_Commando]

All 5 of my Win10 machines are set to auto-login.  Don't need password or PIN.