How to Reset Forgotten Password on Windows 10, 8 and 7
It could be extremely frustrating when you have forgotten the administrator password you use to access your computer. You can always run a clean install of Windows, but no one wants that hassle. In this tutorial we’ll show you 2 easy methods to reset forgotten Windows 10, 8 and 7 password, avoid starting Windows installation from scratch.
Method 1: Reset Forgotten Windows Password with Installation Disk
This method requires you to have your original Windows installation disk. Here is how to use it to reset Windows 10 / 8 / 7 password that you’ve forgotten:
- Boot your computer from Windows installation disk.
- Wait until you see the Windows Setup screen. Simply press SHIFT + F10 keyboard shortcut and you can open the Command Prompt.
- Run the following commands one by one, in order to replace ultiman.exe with cmd.exe.
copy d:\windows\system32\utilman.exe d:\
copy /y d:\windows\system32\cmd.exe d:\windows\system32\utilman.exe
- After that reboot your computer and remove the installation disk. At Windows login screen, click the “Ease of Access” icon and it will open an elevated Command Prompt instead of the Ease of Access application.
- From the Command Prompt you can use the net user user_name new_password command to reset forgotten password of your locked account.
Method 2: Reset Forgotten Windows Password with PCUnlocker
Forgot your Windows password or accidentally got all admin accounts disabled? Lock yourself out of your laptop because of too many incorrect password attempts? Someone has managed to prank you by changing your PC password? Don’t worry, you can easily get back in with the PCUnlocker utility, and it works with Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista and XP.
1. To start, you have to download PCUnlocker ISO file using another computer you can log in as administrator.
2. Now, you have to create a bootable media from that ISO file. Download and install the freeware ISO2Disc. Import the ISO file you’ve downloaded into ISO2Disc, choose your target device (CD or USB drive) and click Start Burn.
3. Once the burning process completes, remove the CD/USB and insert it into your locked computer. Set it to boot from CD/USB by changing the boot sequence in the BIOS.
4. After the PCUnlocker utility loads from the CD/USB, select your problematic account and click on Reset Password button to unlock / reset the password.
5. Finally, reboot your computer and let it boot from hard drive. You can then get back into Windows account without typing a password!
Conclusion
Forgetting Windows password is never fun. But, at least there are a few ways you can get back in, assuming you take advantage of Windows installation disk or PCUnlocker. Have you ever been locked out of your computer? Tell us how you fixed it in the comments.
