Re: Reset password in repair console

Tech-Archive recommends: Repair Windows Errors & Optimize Windows Performance

From: Steve N. (me_at_here.now)
Date: 05/25/04 

Date: Tue, 25 May 2004 13:53:09 GMT

Malke wrote:

> darius wrote:
>
>
>>Hello
>>
>>Trying to fix a friend's WinXP laptop after he forgot his password (he
>>kept using hibernate so he was never asked for the password, until he
>>had
>>to reboot by which time he'd forgotten it). I'm able to get into the
>>repair console by booting from the CD and I can log as administrator.
>>Is there a cmd line tool I can use to reset the password in the repair
>>console?
>>
>>(At the GUI log on screen, there's no "Administrator" user, just
>>"default", so I can't log in as Administratpr there.)
>
>
> I don't believe you can reset the password with the Recovery Console.
> However, unless your friend has XP Pro, if you boot into Safe Mode the
> hidden Administrator account will now be available. If he never set a
> password, the default password is a blank. Then you can go into Control
> Panel, User Accounts and change your friend's password. If he has XP
> Pro or for some reason this doesn't work (like he set a password for
> the default Administrator account and doesn't remember it), then you
> can easily change the password with the program ntpasswd from:
>
> http://home.eunet.no/~pnordahl/ntpasswd/
>
> Read the howto first, of course. The best thing is to set the new
> password to be blank.
>
> Malke

I keep wondering why in XP home (and some Pro installs) the
Administrator pwd is blank. Seems like a big security risk to me. What's
the point of having a backup admin acct if there is no security? I
realize in Home you can't get at the admin acct outside of Safe Mode but
why a blank pwd in Pro? Makes no sense.

Steve

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