How to reset a Windows Vista password

Filed Under Geek, Hacks and Mods, Tools on 2008-04-14, 13:02

So you, er I mean “a friend”, forgot your password on a Windows Vista machine that you haven’t used in awhile. You would never forget a password, right? And now you need to get into the machine and don’t want to blast away and install Windows fresh. If you use Windows XP you can just boot into Safe Mode and use the built in administrator account, but if you’re in Vista that account has been disabled by default. Luckily there’s a tool that will help you reset that password in Windows NT and Vista. It’s called Offline NT Password & Registry Editor (pretty catchy name, eh?). Simply download the zip file containing an .iso, burn it with your favorite CD burning software, pop it in the drive and go. It will boot up a copy of linux off the CD and ask you all sorts of questions. When in doubt, hit Enter to accept the default. Before you know it, you’ll have a reset password and will be staring at your desktop again in no time. There is another way to reset Vista passwords, but it requires that you created a password reset disk before you forgot your password. You might want to do this now in case you forgot your password. There are instructions over on Microsoft’s site.

Of course all of this exposes just how easy it can be to get into a machine that’s password protected. In the end, it’s pretty safe to say that if someone has physical access to your machine, you’re just plain screwed.

Comments

Jorisvincken

Windows Password Reset Kit 1.5 is a very quick and useful utility for resetting Windows login passwords.
http://www.reset-windows-password.net
Larry

If you are looking for method to recover windows password, http://www.windowsloginrecovery.com now has a program that could reset forgotten windows password in a breeze.
Crious622

It's a sickening,powerless feeling to be locked out of your own computer,Windows Password Reset has a neat trick that will get you back in.This method is easy for everyone to follow.
Download the utility and install it then burn the software to a CD/USB drive,then insert the newly created CD/USB drive to your locked pc and reboot your computer,then press "F2" to enter your BIOS setup,following the instruction to reset your lost windows password .
Zhuismile

I have locked out of my computer for a while,and have tried everything i could do but failed.Until I found this great tool Windows Password Key 8.0 as recommend above.It works great,Such a marvellous and useful tool.
http://www.lostwindowspassword.com
Steve

I know a simple way to reset windows password to blank when you forgot administrator password,it need not to reinstall windows OS,and wont loss any data,by using “Reset Windows Password 1.3 “. Maybe this could help you.

You can learn how to use it to reset windows password from the reference link: http://www.top-password.com/how-to-reset-window...
recover lost password

I would like to introduce a perfect software called Windows Password Recovery 6.0.. It not only supports WinXP, Win2000/2003/2008, I have personally tested it with Vista Home Premium. It works perfectly to reset any local user account to a blank password.Also use bootable CD/DVD. Booting up and clearing a password takes a minute or two works like a charm. You can download it from http://www.recoverlostpassword.com/products/win...
happykaka

A few days ago, I had met the headache things that I had forgotten Windows login password. The login screen rejected my passwords. I was frustrated because there was very important data on my disk and I couldn't reinstall the OS. ............. However, I fortunately got to know the Windows Password Unlocker, which is a professional windows password recovery tool for us to reset windows 7 passwordinstantly yet no data loss.
happymark

The program that I recommend is the Windows Password Key 8.0, it is very easy to create a
recovery disk that you can use on any Windows PC. It works perfectly to reset any local user account to a blank password. Just an easy to use bootable CD/DVD . It can also be used on a USB Flash Drive. http://www.lostwindowspassword.com/
tanpopo

Reset /crack/hack/recovery windows password/admin password/ vista password with windows password unlocker

1. Log onto a computer that can link to the Internet. Download Windows Password Unlocker 4.0 from http://www.passwordunlocker.com/products/wpu.html and decompress it on that PC. Note that: there is a .ISO file. Burn the .ISO file to a CD.
2.Get out the newly created CD and insert it to the locked computer.
3.Re-boot the locked computer and then follow the process of instructions. Just after a few steps, the old password will be removed.
4.Set new password:
Step 1: Open the "Control Panel
Step 2: Click the "User Account
Step 3: Select the account you wanna set a new password.
Step 4: Click "Changing Account " and "Set Up Password", then fill out the form as listed. Click "Create Password".
linky1124

The convenient and easy way is to use the Windows Password Reset that can do all the job for you within a few minutes automatically! It's worth a try! http://www.resetwindowspassword.com/
windows

There are a lot of Windows password revealers and crackers available, but I’ve found that Windows Password Recovery Tool is the most effective.:
it not only supports XP, 2000, and NT, I have personally tested it with Vista Home Premium and Ultimate. It works perfectly to reset any local user account to a blank password

You can use the ISO to burn a boot CD. Follow these instructions:

1. Download ISO file from http://www.windowspasswordsrecovery.com Windows Password Recovery Tool
2. Burn to a CD using a CD burning tool such as Nero or Roxio or MagicISO
3. Insert CD into drive and reboot.
4. You may have to select an option in the BIOS to get the computer to boot from the CD.

Booting up and clearing a password takes a minute or two works like a charm.
dan

I have a small pocket cd that has these tools on them - very useful to keep around!
beertree

how to recover windows password? I puzzled it also before. but i found Advanced Windows Password Recovery 3.0. It is a professional utility to recover windows password. With no data loss and no reinstall.importantly, 100% recovery rate guarantee!
http://www.recoverwindowspassword.com