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You cannot automatically sign in to Windows Messenger and MSN Messenger by using different .NET Passports

Article ID: 330114 - View products that this article applies to.

This article was previously published under Q330114

Symptoms

When you configure Windows Messenger and MSN Messenger to automatically sign you in to the Microsoft .NET Messenger Service by using different Microsoft .NET Passport accounts, you are signed in to both Microsoft Messenger Service clients through the same .NET Passport account.

For example, if you are automatically signed in to Windows Messenger through one .NET Passport account, and you sign in to MSN Messenger through a different .NET Passport account, and then you click Sign me in automatically in the .NET Messenger Service window, you are signed in to Window Messenger through the same .NET Passport account that you used for MSN Messenger.

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Cause

This issue occurs because you cannot automatically sign in to Windows Messenger and MSN Messenger by using different .NET Passport accounts. When you click Sign me in automatically to sign in through a .NET Passport account in one Messenger Service client, the same .NET Passport account is used for the other Messenger Service client.

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Resolution

To resolve this issue, download and install MSN Messenger 7.5 or a later version. This issue has been resolved in MSN Messenger 7.5 by using an MSN Messenger-created account list that is not associated with Windows Messenger.

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Workaround

To work around this issue without upgrading to the latest version of MSN Messenger, manually sign in to each Messenger Service client by using different .NET Passport accounts. To manually sign in to Windows Messenger or MSN Messenger, follow these steps:

In the notification area at the far right of the taskbar, click Windows Messenger or MSN Messenger, and then click Sign In.

Note If you are already signed in, first click Sign Out, and then click Sign In.
In the .NET Messenger Service window, type your .NET Passport account e-mail address and password, and then click OK.

Important Do not click to select the Sign me in automatically check box.

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More information

Windows Messenger is included with Windows XP and is installed when you install the operating system.

For more information about how to use Windows Messenger, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

307887

(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/307887/ )

How to use Windows Messenger Instant Messaging

For more information about how to download the latest version of Windows Messenger, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://messenger.microsoft.com

(http://messenger.microsoft.com)

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