(Solved) OOBEEULA Error after Factory Reset on Windows 10/11

Problem: After hard resetting your PC, you see the “something went wrong, but you can try again OOBEEULA” error on the Network tab, and you cannot start up your computer. Clicking on the Try again button doesn’t work.

Cause: This error happens when the Out-of-box experience (or simply OOBE) cannot read your choice regarding the end-user license agreement (EULA) due to missing files.

When the OOBEEULA errors appear, press SHIFT + F10 to open the command prompt. On the command prompt, run the following command:
net user administrator /active:yes
cd %windir%\system32\oobe
msoobe.exe

The PC will restart automatically, and you should be able to get past the error screen.

The command above enables the hidden administrator account. Since the out-of-box experience is only active when you have no account set, you will be able to log in normally on your PC, from where you can create an account if you want.

If pressing SHIFT + F10 does not open the Command Prompt in the OOBEEULA screen, click Try again and then Skip now to go back to the Region screen. Then try to press SHIFT + F10 on that screen.

If you still can’t get past the error screen, try the following solutions:

• Forcefully shut down your PC to reload the OOBE. Hold the power button for a few seconds to shut down your PC and reload OOBE.
• Modify your Registry. You can do this by creating a new registry entry that will allow you to log into Windows by following the steps below.

(Do you know if it is right to disable automatic restart on system failure? If not, I’ve written an article on whether you should disable automatic restart on system failure.)

Modify your Registry to Fix the OOBEEULA error

Another way to fix this issue is by creating a registry entry that will fix the error and allow you to log into Windows. There are two ways to do this:

• Creating a registry key to let Windows recognize that you already accepted the Microsoft Windows EULA thus preventing the OOBEEULA error from showing up.
• Creating a registry key to allow you to log in without a created user account.

Modify your Registry to Bypass the OOBEEULA error

1. When the OOBEEULA screen shows up, press SHIFT + F10 to open the command prompt.
2. On the command prompt, run the following command to open the Registry Editor:
   regedit.exe
   
3. On the Registry Editor, navigate to the following path:
   Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup\OOBE
   
4. Click on the empty space on the right side of the windows and click on New > DWORD (32-bit) value
   
5. Name the new entry as SetupDisplayedEula.
6. Double-click on it and modify its value to 1:
   
   

Modify your Registry to Bypass the OOBEEULA error

1. When the OOBEEULA screen shows up, press SHIFT + F10 to open the command prompt.
2. On the command prompt, run the following command to open the Registry Editor:
   regedit.exe
   
3. On the Registry Editor, navigate to the following path:
   Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup\OOBE
   
4. Click on the empty space on the right side of the windows and click on New > DWORD (32-bit) value
   
5. Name the new entry as UnattendCreatedUser.
6. Double-click on it and modify its value to 1.

Conclusion

This error happens when the Out-of-box experience (or simply OOBE) cannot read your preferences for things such as Region, Keyboard, or Language (Thus, there are also such errors as OOBEREGION, OOBEKEYBOARD, or OOBELANGUAGE).

The OOBEEULA error is probably related to the Out-of-box experience of being unable to read your choice regarding the end-user license agreement (EULA) due to missing files.

You can fix it by pressing SHIFT + F10 on the OOBEEULA screen and running the net user administrator /active:yes command, as explained at the beginning of this article. Or, you can make some changes to the Registry Editor.

If your Windows time zone keeps changing, I’ve written an article on how to fix that.