Archive for the ‘Tips & Tricks’ category

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »

How to Blank or Clear a Forgotten Windows Password

April 16th, 2013 by Admin

Is there anyway to blank or clear Windows password if I’ve forgot my password? I changed my password on Friday and by Monday I have no idea what I changed it to. I don’t want to reinstall OS. Please help!

Forgot your Windows password and locked yourself out of the system? No problem! This tutorial will show you an easy way to blank or clear a forgotten Windows password easily! This method works with all versions of Windows, including Windows 8/7/Vista/XP.

How to Blank or Clear a Forgotten Windows Password?

Reset Windows Password is a small boot disk that you can use to blank/clear lost Windows password quickly and easily. This utility can enable you to blank or delete passwords, but it cannot tell you what the password for an account actually is. No matter how strong your password is, it can clear your forgotten password instantly.

  1. First, download the compressed ISO image of Reset Windows Password utility on an alternate PC and extract it locally. Burn the resulting ResetWindowsPwd.iso file to a blank CD or USB flash drive using ISO2Disc program.
  2. Second, insert the CD or USB drive into the locked computer that has a forgotten password and reboot it. Before the Windows OS loads (while the manufacturer’s screen is briefly displayed), hit the appropriate key (usually one of the twelve ‘F’ keys) to enter the boot menu option where you can specify a device to boot to.
  3. Your computer will load the contents of the bootable CD or USB drive. When it is finished you will be prompted with the Reset Windows Password screen.
  4. The program will search your PC for Windows SAM registry files and display the local user accounts on your system. Choose a desired user account and click on “Reset Password” button. It will blank/clear your forgotten Windows user password immediately.
  5. After clearing Windows password, remove the CD or USB drive and restart the computer. You can then log in to Windows without typing a password! It’s so simple!

At this point the user account should have no password. You can reset the password once you successfully log in to Windows.

Comments Off on How to Blank or Clear a Forgotten Windows Password »

Posted in Tips & Tricks, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows Vista, Windows XP

Tags:

How to Find Office Product Key

April 15th, 2013 by Admin

How to find a lost Microsoft Office Suites product key? I had to do a system restore but to reinstall Office I need the product key. The product key was written down and a family membership accidentally threw it away.

Losing your Office product key (CD key) might not seem like a big deal but it can quickly become one if you end up needing it for some reason. Office product key is a necessity for reinstalling or verifying your Office software. If you couldn’t find the product key sticker or it is scratched, you can still find the keys from your Microsoft Office installation. Follow this guide to help locate your MS Office product key easily!

How to Find Office Product Key?

  1. Download Product Key Finder and follow the installation process to install it on your computer.
  2. Launch the program and then click on “Start Recovery” button. It shows a list of recovery options.
  3. Choose the “From current system” option, the program will scan Windows registry and find the product keys of supported programs, including various versions of Windows and Microsoft Office.
  4. When the scan is complete, the program will display a text box with product keys for whatever installed versions of Windows and Office it detected.
  5. Right-click inside the text box and select “Select All” option from the context menu, all the product keys will be selected. You can then use Ctrl + C and Ctrl + V to paste them into a text file for safe keeping.

The product key finder utility can quickly locate your Office key (along with the keys for many other installed programs) and display it for you. If you are out of luck and fail to find your key, Microsoft may be able to replace a lost product key. Contact Microsoft support online or by phone to see what your options may be.

Comments Off on How to Find Office Product Key »

Posted in Product Key, Tips & Tricks

Tags:

Lost Windows XP Password – How to Get Back In?

April 12th, 2013 by Admin

Lost Windows XP password? How do you get back in? Is there a way to override or reset the password without wiping the entire system? Well, it is nearly impossible to recover the original password, but you can reset it easily, and Reset Windows Password utility can help. This tutorial will explain the process involved for resetting lost Windows XP password so you can get back in your computer quickly!

Lost Windows XP Password? A Simple Way to Get Back in Your Computer

Reset Windows Password utility is a program which runs from a bootable CD or USB flash drive. To reset your lost Windows XP password, you need to access to a computer with internet access in order to install the program to a CD or USB drive. After installing, you can use the CD/USB drive to boot off your locked PC and remove the login password instantly. Here are detailed instructions:

Step 1: Download

Download the Reset Windows Password utility on an alternate PC with internet access. Once the download completes Right-click the .zip file and Select “Extract All”. This will decompress the contents, which there should just be a single .iso file inside.

Step 2: Installing to CD or USB Drive

Next, use the freeware ISO2Disc to make a bootable CD/USB drive from the ISO image you downloaded in the previous step. Open up ISO2Disc program and click on “Browse” button to locate the ISO file and choose the blank CD or USB flash drive you’ve plugged in, then click on Start Burn. A password reset bootdisk will be created in minutes.

Step 3: Change Boot Order in BIOS

Insert the bootable CD/USB drive into your Windows XP computer which is locked out. Restart the computer and hold down F2 or whatever the setup key is shown as during the initial boot screen. This should bring up the BIOS. Change the boot order in BIOS so your computer will boot from the CD/USB drive prior to the hard drive.

Step 4: Boot from the CD/USB Drive

If you set up the BIOS correctly the computer should automatically boot from the bootable CD/USB drive. When it loads to the Reset Windows Password screen, click on “Reset Local Admin/User Password” option. It will display a list of Windows local user accounts existing in your Windows XP system.

Step 5: Reset Lost Windows XP Password

Choose a user account and click on “Reset Password” button, it will reset/remove your lost Windows XP password in seconds. Remove the CD/USB drive and restart the computer, you can then immediately get back in your Windows XP system without typing a password!

The procedure is so simple that nearly every user with some basic computer skills can use it to reset Windows XP password easily when they forgot or lost Windows XP password. This method also works with Windows 8, 7, Vista and other operating systems.

Comments Off on Lost Windows XP Password – How to Get Back In? »

Posted in Tips & Tricks, Windows XP

Tags:

How to Reset Forgotten Safe Mode Password in Windows

April 11th, 2013 by Admin

Stuck in Safe Mode and can’t login? Forgot Safe Mode password on your computer? Many times in order to remove a piece of spyware or for troubleshooting and diagnostic purposes, you’ll have to start Windows in Safe Mode. After booting into Safe Mode you’ll be prompted for a password to get past the logon screen. What to do if the Safe Mode won’t accept your password?

safe mode password

In this tutorial we’ll show you how to reset Safe Mode password using a password removal bootdisk (CD, DVD or USB flash drive). To get into Safe Mode, we need to log on with the built-in administrator account or other local account that has administrator permissions. Follow these instructions to see how can you reset forgotten Safe Mode administrator password easily! This works with all versions of Windows, including Windows 8/7/Vista/XP and Windows Server operating systems.

How to Reset Safe Mode Administrator Password in Windows?

  1. Download the Reset Windows Password utility on an alternate PC with internet access. Once the download completes Right-click the .zip file and Select “Extract All”. This will decompress the contents, which there should just be a single .iso file inside.
  2. Next you need to burn this iso image file to a blank CD or USB flash drive using the freeware ISO2Disc. Here I’ll make a password removal Live CD. After starting ISO2Disc program, click on the “Browse” button to locate the iso file you’ve downloaded, then choose the “Burn to CD/DVD” option, click on “Start Burn” button and the password removal Live CD will be prepared in minutes.

  3. Put the Live CD into the CD/DVD drive of the computer that needs a Safe Mode password removal. Restart the computer and hold down F2 or whatever the setup key is shown as during the initial boot screen. This should bring up the BIOS. After getting into BIOS, look for a option similar to Boot order or Boot Device Priority. Set your CD drive as the first boot device. Once you’ve got it, save changes and reboot.
  4. If you set up the BIOS correctly the computer should automatically boot from the Live CD. When it loads to the screen shown below, click on “Reset Local Admin/User Password” option. It will display a list of Windows local user accounts existing in your system.

  5. Choose the built-in administrator account and then click on “Reset Password” button. The program will reset/blank your Safe Mode administrator password immediately! Now you’re almost done. Remove the Live CD and restart your computer. Now you should be able to log into Safe Mode without typing a password!

Can’t Log into Safe Mode Using the Password Which Works in Normal Mode?

Only thing that comes to mind is that you are joined to a domain. To log into domain user account in Safe Mode, you need to choose the “Safe Mode with Networking” option from the Advanced Boot Options, which allows your computer to connect to the domain controller to validate your password. If you choose the “Safe Mode” option, you would have to log into the PC with a local account instead of a domain account.

Comments Off on How to Reset Forgotten Safe Mode Password in Windows »

Posted in Tips & Tricks, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows Vista, Windows XP

Tags:

How to Unlock Your Netbook After Forgetting Windows Password

April 10th, 2013 by Admin

Forgot Windows password on your netbook? Get locked out of your netbook and can’t remember the login password? There are plenty of ways to reset forgotten Windows password with a CD/DVD. But this doesn’t work because most the netbooks don’t have the CD/DVD drive. So here I will show you how to use a USB flash drive to unlock any netbook when you lost or forgot your password.

How to Unlock Your Netbook After Forgetting Windows Password?

After forgetting netbook password, you’ll be locked out of your Windows account and unable to get past the Windows login screen. In such a situation, we have to make a bootable password cracking USB drive on another computer which we can access. Boot your netbook off the USB drive and it enables you remove/reset your forgotten Windows password easily! Let’s proceed.

  1. Download the Reset Windows Password utility on an alternate PC with internet access. Once the download completes Right-click the .zip file and Select “Extract All”. This will decompress the contents, which there should just be a single .iso file inside.
  2. Next you need to install this iso image file to your USB flash drive. The freeware ISO2Disc allows you to make a bootable USB flash drive easily. After starting ISO2Disc program, click on the “Browse” button to locate the iso file you’ve downloaded, then choose the USB drive you’ve plugged in, click on “Start Burn” button and the bootable USB drive will be prepared in minutes.

  3. Plug in your USB drive to the netbook that you need to unlock. Restart the computer and hold down F2 or whatever the setup key is shown as during the initial boot screen. This should bring up the BIOS. After getting into BIOS, look for a option similar to Boot order or Boot Device Priority. Set your USB flash drive as the first boot device. Once you’ve got it, save changes and reboot.
  4. If you set up the BIOS correctly your netbook should automatically boot from the USB flash drive. When it loads to the screen shown below, click on “Reset Local Admin/User Password” option. It will display a list of Windows local user accounts existing in your netbook.

  5. Choose the user account that you need to reset password for, then click on “Reset Password” button. The program will reset/blank your netbook login password immediately! Now you’re almost done. Unplug the USB flash drive and restart your netbook. Now you should be able to log into your netbook without typing a password!

By follow this step-by-step tutorial you can reset netbook password quickly and easily, no matter what version of Windows operating system are running on your netbook, including Windows 8, 7, Vista and XP.

Comments Off on How to Unlock Your Netbook After Forgetting Windows Password »

Posted in Tips & Tricks, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows Vista, Windows XP

Tags:

How to Fix a Lost Administrator Password Using Windows 7 or Vista System Restore

April 8th, 2013 by Admin

Lost or Forgot the administrator password on your Windows PC? There are tons of password cracking tips and tricks available on the internet which can help you recover or reset a lost admin password, but most of them involve in many complex steps and often it’s hard to get them to work if the security holes in your system are already blocked.

Thankfully, you can easily fix a lost administrator password using Windows 7 or Vista system restore. Just restore Windows to a point that includes an old password you can remember. This will definitely save you a lot of trouble and may also save your data and user settings. For this to work, you only need a System Repair Disc or the original Windows installation DVD. If you don’t have a System Repair Disc, you can create one easily by following this guide: Create a Windows System Repair Disc for Emergency Use.

How to Fix a Lost Administrator Password Using Windows 7 or Vista System Restore?

Insert your Windows Installation DVD or System Repair Disc into your drive, turn on the computer, and wait until you see the message “Press any key to boot from CD or DVD”. Press any key to continue. (Note: If you don’t see this message, you probably have to change the boot order in the BIOS and/or disable Secure Boot.)

When the system boots from the DVD, follow along with the prompts as you normally would. When you get to the Install Windows screen, click the Repair Your Computer link.

After searching the Windows installations on your hard drive, you’ll then be prompted to select the operating system to repair. Just select your desired operating system and click Next.

The System Recovery Options dialog box will open up and offer different recovery options to help you troubleshoot computer problems. Here we need to click System Restore to load the System Restore wizard.

When you see the first window of the System Restore wizard, click Next.

At this screen you’ll be prompted to select the restore point that you want to use. Click Next.

Finally, you’ll be prompted to confirm your restore point and if everything looks right, click Finish.

Click Yes to the warning message that comes up making sure you want to restore the computer to the selected restore point. The restore process will begin. It may take a while to complete, so sit back and be patient.

Once the restore operation is complete, you’ll be prompted to restart your system.

Remove the DVD and restart the computer. You can then log in to your machine with an old password which you used before. Done!

Conclusion

Windows 7 or Vista system restore will make sure that you don’t lose any documents or files. However, any programs or updates that have been installed since the corresponding restore point have to be installed again. This approach works perfectly with Windows 8, 7 and Vista. But it doesn’t work with Windows XP.

If you can’t even do a system restore or can’t afford to lose any software recently installed on your computer, I would highly recommend you using some commercial software to unlock your forgotten password, such as Reset Windows Password utility.

Comments Off on How to Fix a Lost Administrator Password Using Windows 7 or Vista System Restore »

Posted in Others, Tips & Tricks, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows Vista

Tags:

How to Get Past Windows Password at Startup

April 7th, 2013 by Admin

I have a compaq nc 6200 notebook that has been packed away for a while. When I turn it on it asks for the administrator password at startup. I couldn’t remember the password any more. Is there a way to bypass or reset it?

Have forgotten the administrator password of your Windows 7 installation and locked out? How can you remove the login password on Windows startup? This tutorial will explain the process involved for you to easily get past Windows password at startup. Works with Windows 8/7/Vista/XP and Windows 2012/2008/2003/2000 Server.

How to Get Past Windows Password at Startup?

After forgetting the administrator password, you’ll be stuck at the password login screen and can’t install any software on the computer. To get past your forgotten password, you need to use some password cracking programs which can run from a bootable CD or USB drive. Reset Windows Password utility is such a program that enables you to get past Windows 8/7/Vista/XP password easily in just a few steps.

Step 1: Make a Password Cracking Boot CD/USB Drive

Download the bootable CD image of Reset Windows Password utility, which is zipped. After the download is complete, extract the ISO file from the Zip archive using WinZip, 7zip or WinRAR. Burn the ResetWindowsPwd.iso file to a blank CD using BurnCDCC, CDBurnerXP or other burning program you prefer. If you don’t have a blank CD lying around, you can choose to use a USB flash drive instead and burn the disk image to your USB drive using ISO2Disc utility.

Step 2: Using the Boot CD/USB Drive to Get Past Windows Password

Simply insert the boot CD into the computer that you can’t get in to and restart it. You may have to bring up the boot menu by pressing F12 or something, but it may automatically boot from the CD drive you inserted. Next, the Windows PE operating system inside the CD will boot up. After one or two minutes, it will open up the Reset Windows Password program.

By default, the program automatically finds your Windows installations and displays a list of local user accounts existing in your machine. Simply select a user account and click on the “Reset Password” button, it will remove/blank your forgotten Windows startup password in seconds.

Now remove the boot CD and restart your machine. When you reach the password login screen, just left the password as blank and you can log in to your system quickly. Now you’ve successfully got past Windows password at startup.

Conclusion

It’s also a good idea to make a password cracking boot CD/USB drive beforehand, so you can get past Windows password easily and avoid becoming severely anxious or upset in the event that you lost or forgotten your administrator password. Reset Windows Password utility also enables you to get past Windows domain admin/user password, not just Windows local user account password.

Comments Off on How to Get Past Windows Password at Startup »

Posted in Tips & Tricks, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows Vista, Windows XP

Tags:

The Simple Way to Crack Windows Server 2003 Password

April 6th, 2013 by Admin

Have you forgot your Windows server 2003 password and ended up locking yourself out of your PC? Or perhaps the previous system admin has left without leaving the server password? Well, then this article is for you! In this article you’ll find detailed instructions for you to crack Windows server 2003 password quickly and easily!

How to Crack Windows Server 2003 Password?

All you need to do is to create a Live CD which contains password cracking utility on another computer you can login, then bring the Live CD to boot up your server that you need to crack a password on.  It allows you to crack both local administrator password and domain administrator password on your Windows Server 2003. These instructions are written assuming a bootable CD is being used, but are essentially the same for a bootable USB flash drive.

  1. Download the bootable disk’s image of Reset Windows Password utility, it comes in a .ZIP file. Unzip the download file and you’ll get the ISO image file: ResetWindowsPwd.iso.
  2. Burn the ISO image on a new CD use your favorite burning software (If you don’t have one, I recommend you use ISO2Disc.) Once the CD is burned successfully, unplug the Live CD from the computer.
  3. Insert the Live CD into your locked computer with a forgotten Windows Server 2003 password. Set the computer BIOS to boot with CD drive as first boot device. After booting from the CD, the computer will load the Windows PE operating system inside the CD drive and open up the Reset Windows Password utility.
  4. Select your Windows SAM registry hive from the drop-down list. The program will perform a complete analysis of the SAM file and display a list of Windows local user accounts inside it. If you’re going to crack the domain admin/user password, click on the “Reset Active Directory Password” option, the program will show you all domain user accounts on your server.
  5. Choose the user account whose password needs to be cracked, and click on “Reset Password” button. It will crack/remove your lost or forgotten password instantly.
  6. Remove the CD and re-boot the system and you should now be able to log on Windows Server 2003 immediately.

The Live CD could also be used to crack lost or forgotten admin/user password on Windows Server 2012/2008/2000. This is probably the most effective, simple piece of software that you have seen around.

Comments Off on The Simple Way to Crack Windows Server 2003 Password »

Posted in Others, Tips & Tricks

Tags:

How to Remove Windows Startup Password After Forgotten

April 2nd, 2013 by Admin

Forgot your Windows startup password? How to reset or remove it after forgotten? There are several types of startup passwords which could be used to protect a Windows computer: BIOS password, Syskey, Windows user account password. After setting up one of these startup passwords, the computer will prompt you to enter your password each time you start up.

Tired of entering the startup password every time you boot your PC? Or simple forgot your startup password? This article will introduce you to all common options of removing startup password in Windows.

BIOS Password

BIOS is the first program that runs when your computer starts. You can tell the BIOS to ask for a password when it starts, thus restricting access to your computer. BIOS passwords can be added extra layer of security for desktop and laptop computers, and are used to either prevent a user from changing the BIOS settings or to prevent the PC from booting without a password.

Forgetting your BIOS password can lock up the hardware and make the computer completely unusable. Fortunately there are a few known backdoors and software that can be used to bypass or reset the BIOS password on most systems. The BIOS password on desktop computer can be reset by removing the CMOS battery for a few minutes. However, laptop BIOS passwords are stored in a special chip on the motherboard and the only way to recover this password is to using BIOS password cracking utility. Have a look at this article:Recover BIOS/CMOS Password Using Free CMOSPwd Utility.

Syskey Password

As we all know, the Security Accounts Manager (SAM) database has been used by Windows to store password hashes for local user accounts. To make the hashes harder to decrypt, Microsoft introduced SysKey password, an additional layer of obfuscation SysKey which can be enabled in Windows using the SysKey utility. To learn how to enable Syskey, please refer to this article: How to Lock Your Computer with Syskey.

Syskey password can be helpful to prevent hackers from cracking Windows user password. There are no reliable tools that will help brute forcing Syskey password. The Offline NT Password & Registry Editor claims that it can help you disable Syskey startup password but I’ve tried it with no luck. After forgetting your Syskey password, the only feasible option is to do a system restore using a restore point dated before SysKey password was set, or reinstall the operating system.

Windows User Password

Have you ever been locked out of your computer by a forgotten Windows user password? There’s no need to get frustrated. It is relatively easy to bypass this safeguard. Reset Windows Password utility is the well-known software which enables you to remove Windows admin/user password easily by creating a password removal Live CD/USB. It works with almost all versions of Windows, including the latest Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012.

Comments Off on How to Remove Windows Startup Password After Forgotten »

Posted in Others, Tips & Tricks

Tags: