separate desktops for office 365 Family

Hi, I'm John! I will help you with this.

Each person in Microsoft 365 Family should have their own Windows user account. That’s what gives them a separate desktop and files.

Right now, it sounds like everyone is using the same Windows profile.

To help narrow down the issue:

1. Are all users signing into the same account on the PC?
2. Do they already have their own Microsoft accounts added on the device?
3. When they save files, where are those files going (Desktop, OneDrive, or a shared folder)?

Let me know what you see, and we can go from there.

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Each person in a Microsoft 365 Family subscription needs their own Windows user account and their own OneDrive to have a separate desktop and private storage.

1. Create separate Windows user accounts
   On the shared PC, create a user account for each family member. Each account gets its own desktop, documents, and app settings, keeping everyone’s files separate and private.
2. Sign each person into Windows with their own Microsoft account
   When a family member signs into their Windows account with their own Microsoft account, that account’s OneDrive and Microsoft 365 services are associated only with that user. Their desktop, Documents, and OneDrive folders are then independent from other users.
3. Use Windows multiple desktops only for organizing one user’s work
   Features like Task view → New desktop (or Windows key + Tab → New desktop) create multiple desktops, but only for the currently signed‑in Windows user. These desktops are for organizing that one user’s apps and windows; they do not separate different people’s files or permissions.
4. Saving files to the correct desktop/Documents
   After signing into their own Windows account, each family member can save files to their own Desktop or Documents folder. Other users on the same PC will not see or use those files when signed into their own accounts.

If family members are currently all using the same Windows account, they will share the same desktop and folders. Switching to separate Windows user accounts is required for truly separate desktops and storage.

References:

• Manage User Accounts in Windows
• Configure Multiple Desktops in Windows
• How to Multitask in Windows
• Manage Microsoft 365 Family subscription sharing