What can I do if I forgot my Windows password?
- If you have an Ubuntu live CD you can reset it using
chntpwapplication - You can use Bart's PE + Password Renew to reset the password
- You can use Offline NT Password Editor to reset the password.
Detailed instructions on using any of the 3 are available over here.
If you can find a Microsoft ERD 6.5 or 7.0 boot disk, it can reset the Windows 7 password by using the Locksmith utility. It has to match the bit version to work, 32 or 64-bit Windows X.
ERD (Emergency Repair Disc) boot disk is part of the DaRT (Diagnostic and Recovery Toolset), which is part of MDOP (Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack). These are not available to the public, but they can be found.
ERD comes in five versions currently:
- 5.0 for XP
- 6.0 for Vista
- 6.5 or 7.0 for Windows 7
- 8.0 for Windows 8, 8.1
- 10.0 for Windows 10
There is an alternative method for Windows 7; all you need is either a Windows 7 install disk, System Repair Disk or WinRE partition on the hard drive.
Use F8 or boot from the disc. Once RE loads, choose "Repair your Computer", then load Command Prompt and run these two commands. The second command you will get a prompt to overwrite; say "yes".
copy c:\windows\system32\sethc.exe c:\
copy c:\windows\system32\cmd.exe c:\windows\system32\sethc.exe
Restart the PC. When you reach the Login screen, hit the Shift key five times. A command window will open. Type the following:
net user (type the name of the account) (type any password)
and hit the Enter key, and when prompted to overwrite, type "Yes", and hit the Enter key again, and close the command window, and log on with the new password you just created.
After that you might want to put the original sticky key file back in its place, so go ahead and boot your PC with the repair CD or USB that you used earlier, and in the command prompt window type the following:
copy c:\sethc.exe c:\windows\system32\sethc.exe
press Enter, then when prompted to Overwrite, type "Yes" and hit the Enter key again, then close the window, and restart the PC.
Or if you prefer a 3rd party password cracker, here is a good one "tested from NT3.5 up to Windows 8.1, including the server versions like 2003, 2008 and 2012. Also 64 bit windows supported."
Run an Ophcrack LiveCD to try and crack the password, provided that you have a sufficiently easy alphanumerical password.