Forgot your Windows admin password?
Ok, so you say you forgot your Windows administrator's password, huh? Oh well, it doesn't really matter if you did or you just say you did. The fact is that you need to gain access to a computer and you cannot "remember" the administrator's password. How can you get out of this situation without formatting and re-installing the operating system?
If you're not 'techie' or are short on time, our team always recommends Stellar Phoenix Password Recovery. This tool automatically makes you the ultimate startup CD for resetting any Windows password.
It's also loaded with a ton of other recovery tools IT techs use daily.
With Ophcrack, you don't need any access to Windows to be able to recover your lost passwords. Simply visit the site, download the free ISO image, burn it to a CD and boot from the CD. The Ophcrack program starts, locates the Windows user accounts, and proceeds to recover (crack) the passwords - all automatically.
In a test on a Windows 7 PC, Ophcrack recovered the 10-character password to my administrator account in 40 seconds. Ophcrack supports Windows 7, Windows Vista, and Windows XP.
Offline NT Password & Registry Editor works differently than most password recovery programs in that it erases your Windows password instead of recovering it. You can think of it as more of a Windows password reset tool.
I tried Offline NT Password & Registry Editor on a Windows 7 PC and it reset the password immediately without problem. It should work equally well with Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows 2000, and Windows NT. It should also work with 64-bit versions of these operating systems. see the video here.
PC Login Now is one of the better free Windows password recovery programs I've tested... even though it doesn't actually recover passwords.
Instead of discovering and displaying your current Windows password, PC Login Now deletes it, allowing you to access Windows without a password, after which you can create a new one.
PC Login Now works just like the free and popular Offline NT Password & Registry Editor (listed above) only it's much easier to use.
The trade-off with PC Login Now over Offline NT Password & Registry Editor is that PC Login Now causes Windows to detect a possible hard drive problem on the first reboot after deleting the password. I've never seen nor heard of a problem actually happening but it's still a little bothersome.
In a test on a Windows 7 PC, PC Login Now deleted the 15-character password to my user account instantly. PC Login Now supports Windows 7, Windows Vista, and Windows XP.
It's also loaded with a ton of other recovery tools IT techs use daily.
1. Ophcrack
The Ophcrack Windows password cracker is by far the best free Windows password recovery tool available. It's fast and easy enough for a first time Windows password cracker with a basic knowledge of Windows.
With Ophcrack, you don't need any access to Windows to be able to recover your lost passwords. Simply visit the site, download the free ISO image, burn it to a CD and boot from the CD. The Ophcrack program starts, locates the Windows user accounts, and proceeds to recover (crack) the passwords - all automatically.
Offline NT Password & Registry Editor works differently than most password recovery programs in that it erases your Windows password instead of recovering it. You can think of it as more of a Windows password reset tool.
Like Ophcrack, you boot to a burned CD created with the Offline NT Password & Registry Editor ISO file. After running the program, you can log in to your Windows account without entering a password at all.
If you like this "password deleting" strategy then I highly recommend this program. Offline NT Password & Registry Editor works basically the same way as PC Login Now, listed below.I tried Offline NT Password & Registry Editor on a Windows 7 PC and it reset the password immediately without problem. It should work equally well with Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows 2000, and Windows NT. It should also work with 64-bit versions of these operating systems. see the video here.
3. PC Login Now
PC Login Now is one of the better free Windows password recovery programs I've tested... even though it doesn't actually recover passwords.PC Login Now works just like the free and popular Offline NT Password & Registry Editor (listed above) only it's much easier to use.
The trade-off with PC Login Now over Offline NT Password & Registry Editor is that PC Login Now causes Windows to detect a possible hard drive problem on the first reboot after deleting the password. I've never seen nor heard of a problem actually happening but it's still a little bothersome.
In a test on a Windows 7 PC, PC Login Now deleted the 15-character password to my user account instantly. PC Login Now supports Windows 7, Windows Vista, and Windows XP.
4. Kon-Boot
Kon-Boot is yet another free password reset program, much like ONTP&RE and PC Login Now. Just burn the program to a disc, boot to it, and you're off.
Kon-Boot works differently than the two password reset tools above, so if you have problems using them, give Kon-Boot a try. It's very, very easy to use and probably the fastest password reset, and certainly password recovery, tool available.
Unfortunately, Kon-Boot 1.0 does not work with 64-bit versions of Windows.
I used Kon-Boot v1.0 to successfully delete the password on a Windows Vista PC and then also on a Windows XP PC. Kon-Boot is reported to also reset Windows 7 passwords but I was not able to make it work on two different Windows 7 PCs.
Kon-Boot works differently than the two password reset tools above, so if you have problems using them, give Kon-Boot a try. It's very, very easy to use and probably the fastest password reset, and certainly password recovery, tool available.
Unfortunately, Kon-Boot 1.0 does not work with 64-bit versions of Windows.
I used Kon-Boot v1.0 to successfully delete the password on a Windows Vista PC and then also on a Windows XP PC. Kon-Boot is reported to also reset Windows 7 passwords but I was not able to make it work on two different Windows 7 PCs.
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