OS and Software > Microsoft Help > [XPPro] Forgotten Password for Windows XP...

[XPPro] Forgotten Password for Windows XP...

try
»pcsupport.about.com/od/toolsofth···very.htm
Never tried any of them. but surely 1 will work.

I have used Austrumi

»thedatalist.com/pages/Password_Tools.htm

reply to hayc59

reply to hayc59
Did you try to just hit enter? Often the Administrator account has a blank password by default.

reply to hayc59
Petter Nordahl's "Offline Windows Password & Registry Editor" works a treat. Works on all version of Windows from NT on up:
»pogostick.net/~pnh/ntpasswd/

Crap - Site appears to be down at the moment.
Try tomorrow - this is worth having in your tool set.

Edit: I found an alternate download site:
»www.brothersoft.com/offline-nt-p···-s2.html

reply to dvd536

lophtcrack is not what you want - it does brute force 'guessing' against the password database. The other tools mentioned above should work.

Edit: Forget the above. I see Ophtcrack is a different program than the 'lophtcrack' that I'm familiar with.

Give this a read:

»www.petri.co.il/forgot_administr···word.htm

You'll find most of these are bootable CD's that you need to create on another PC and then boot the PC with the lost password with it. The CD will contain a utility to return the Administrator password to blank and you can go from there.

reply to hayc59
The default, hidden Admin account has a blank password and most people never set a password for it (they should though).

Is your Mom's account an adminstrator account? If so, then craig70130 solution would not work as the computer is asking for the password for HER admin account NOT the default hidden admin account that probably never had a password set on it.

So, try Microsoft's solutions. There is more than one based on if the computer is part of a workgroup or not:

»support.microsoft.com/kb/321305

This should allow her to get into the default, hidden admin account where she can change the password for her admin account.

Then create a reset disk! That should be done routinely, during setup long before a new computer is allowed internet access. (Of course, it isn't foolproof either as you could lose it)!

»pcsupport.about.com/od/tipstrick···disk.htm

Another thought. How is the time set for expiration of the XP password? I set it to NEVER expire. If it has reached expiration date then that could be why she is being prompted for it.
--
When governments fear people, there is liberty. When the people fear the government, there is tyranny. Thomas Jefferson

XP does not hide the administrator account. Unless another one was setup manually, it's the default user account and whether or not it has/had a password depends on if the user created one.

reply to hayc59
That wont work neither one of my pc's have ever seen a floppy disk drive LOL
"Note: You will need a floppy disk drive and a blank floppy disk."
»pcsupport.about.com/od/tipstrick···disk.htm

reply to craig70130
Huh? Of course, XP hides the default admin account when you set up YOUR admin account or any other account(s) on the computer.

If she is so ignorant about computers that she did not know to do this when she first set up the computer (and to make a reset disk at that time also) then she shouldn't be using a computer that is her own (she should go to a senior center, library, etc and use one there). A computer is NOT a toaster and all users have got to understand this and at least do a few simple things to secure their computer if they intend to use one. Did she also go on the internet without first configuring IE for security and safety? Did she also go the internet without first setting the XP firewall to ON? These are basic things everyone does when they set up a new computer with XP on it.
--
When governments fear people, there is liberty. When the people fear the government, there is tyranny. Thomas Jefferson

reply to hayc59
Here's an article that says you can reset it during a REPAIR of XP due to a security hole...that might have been patched by MS for SP3 but maybe not.

»pubs.logicalexpressions.com/Pub0···p?ID=305
--
When governments fear people, there is liberty. When the people fear the government, there is tyranny. Thomas Jefferson

A full repair will reset the password, however, you'll need to redownload service packs, updates, enter product key, possibly re-activate Windows, hope she has a copy of her XP install media, etc.

Why on earth do that when there are so many EASY free programs available that will do it in seconds. Why direct the OP to do something that will take hours to accomplish?

Attacking the OP's mother serves no purpose. She likely didn't grow up with computers and doesn't care about learning the ins and outs. I deal with my mother on silly issues like this constantly.

reply to hayc59
»ophcrack.sourceforge.net/download.php
I think I will give this a go..but need to know which
one would be the easiest to use
Live CD or .EXE? and thanks alot

reply to hayc59
Live CD

reply to hayc59
Downloading now and BurnAware should do the trick right?
then just pop it in the laptop and reboot and hopefully
will do its majik
wow 416 MB's large file