How to Reset Lost Password in Windows 10, 8 or 7
Different types of tools are available online that allow you to reset lost Windows 10, 8, or 7 user’s password. However, you can also use a native method that doesn’t require any third-party tool. You just need a Windows installation disk i.e. bootable CD/DVD or bootable USB to reset the lost Windows Password.
As you are aware, Windows 10 supports two types of user accounts, i.e. Microsoft Account and Local Account. So, for a Microsoft account, you can reset your password online via the microsoft.com website. But for Local Account, you can follow this tutorial.
SEE ALSO: How to Reset Windows Password using Password Reset Disk?
A) Reset Lost User Password in Windows 10, 8, and 7 using Installation Media
In this tutorial, we are going to use Windows 10 installation media to reset the lost user password of a Windows 10 PC. You can also use Windows 7 or Windows 8’s installation media. We will also discuss a third-party tool in the second half of the post. But before that, let’s see the native method.
NOTE: This method will not work for encrypted Hard Disks. You will have to decrypt your HDD first.
Step 1: Insert Windows 10, 8, or 7 Installation Media and Restart your PC
First of all, insert a Windows installation disk into your computer and restart it.
Now, we will need to boot from Windows 10 installation media. So, you may need to change your BIOS settings to boot from a CD/DVD or USB drive.
Step 2: Boot from Installation Media and Launch CMD
Now on startup, you will see “Press any key to boot from CD/DVD or USB…”. Press any key to boot from the installation media
Windows Setup will start, and you will see the following screen.
Press “Shift + F10″ on the Keyboard to open the command prompt. We will use this CMD window to pave our way to reset the lost or forgotten user password in Windows 10, 8, or Windows 7.
SEE ALSO: How to create a Password Reset Disk for Windows?
Step 3: Replace On ‘Ease of Access’ utility with CMD
Now, we all know that we can use “Ease of Access” on the Windows login screen. So, we will replace the utilman.exe with cmd.exe in Windows 10, 8 or 7. After that, we will be able to launch CMD on the Windows login screen.
But first, we will have to find the Windows installation directory by using the dir command. As you can see, D drive has Program Files, Program Files (x86), Users, and Windows folders. It means D is the drive where Windows is already installed.
Now, type the following commands in the command prompt window and press Enter key each time you enter a command. These commands will create a backup of utilman.exe and create a copy of cmd.exe as utilman.exe.
cd Windows\System32 ren utilman.exe utilman.exe.bak copy cmd.exe utilman.exe
utilman.exe with cmd.exeWe have successfully replaced utilman.exe with cmd.exe. We will now use this hack to reset the lost user password in Windows 10.
Step 4: Launch the Command Prompt on the Login screen
Now you can close the command window. Further, cancel the Windows setup, restart your PC, and remove installation media from your PC.
Let your Windows 10, 8, or 7 PC boot to the lock screen. Make sure you are on the login screen. Now, click on the Ease of Access button at the bottom right corner.
This should launch a command prompt window with administrator privileges.
Step 5: Reset Windows 10, 8 or 7 User Password or Create New Account
Now, you can use net user command to see and reset the forgotten password in Windows 10, 8, or 7. You can also create a new user account from here. We have explained both processes below.
1. Reset the Password of the Existing Account in Windows
Enter the following commands in the CMD prompt window that popped up in the previous step. Don’t forget to press Enter after every command.
net user
(This command shows you the list of all users on your PC)
net user <username> *
(This command is used to change or reset the password of a selected user in Windows 10, 8, or 7. make sure to replace <username> with your actual user name.)
After pressing the Enter key, you will be asked to type a password for the user. Now, type the password twice and press Enter each time. You may also leave the password blank and simply press Enter twice.
You have successfully reset the lost user password in Windows 10, 8, or 7. Now you can log in with the new password. If you left the password blank, Just click on your User account to log in without a password.
2. Create a new Local account using Command Prompt
You can also create a new local account on your Windows PC using the Command prompt. This will come in handy in case you have only a Microsoft Account on your PC and no local accounts. You can also use this method if you have mistakenly disabled all user accounts on your Windows PC.
Now, enter the following commands in the CMD window and press Enter after each command.
net user User1 /add
(This command will add the User1 local user to your PC, you can type your desired name in place of User1)
net localgroup Administrators User1 /add
(This command makes User1 a member of the Administrators group)
net user User1 *
(Create a password for the new user account. Type the same password twice and press Enter.)
SEE ALSO: How to Change Windows Login Screen Background?
Step 6: Login with New Password
Now you can close the Command Prompt window. Restart your computer and wait for the login screen. You will see a new User on the logon screen that you just created.
Select your desired user account and type its password to log in. If you have set a blank password, simply click the “Sign in” button to log in without a password.
B) Reset Lost Windows Password Using PCUnlocker Utility
PCUnlocker is a bootable disk that can bypass or reset lost passwords of local and Microsoft accounts in Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista, and XP. You can download it from the official website. After that, make a bootable USB or CD/DVD for the PCUnlocker utility.
You may need to set up your PC to boot from USB or CD/DVD depending upon the type of bootable disk you have created. Follow these steps to reset your lost user password in Windows 10 using PCUnlocker.
Step 1: Boot from PCUnlocker Utility
Insert the bootable PCUnlocker disk into your PC and restart your computer. If you have correctly set your PC to boot from USB or CD/DVD, it will automatically load the PCUnlocker utility.
Step 2: Reset the Lost User Password in Windows 10 using PCUnlocker
PCUnlocker automatically detects your SAM file which stores passwords for user accounts. In case it doesn’t detect it automatically, you can manually browse for it.
After that, PCUnlocker will display the list of all user accounts on your PC. Select a user account and click the Reset Password button to reset its password.
Enter a new password for the selected account. Password is displayed in plain text. After entering the new password click OK.
Step 3: Exit PCUnlocker and Login with New Password
After successfully changing the password, click the Restart button to restart your PC. Make sure to remove the bootable PCUnlocker CD/DVD or USB from your PC after that.
Your PC will boot into Windows, just like before. Enter the new password to log into your PC.
After logging in, you can revert the changes we have made. Check this link for further process.
NOTE: This method will not work for encrypted Hard Disks. You will have to decrypt your HDD first.
Reset or Change Lost User Password in Windows 10, 8 or 7
The above tutorial explained two ways to reset the lost password of your Windows 10, 8, or Windows 7 PC. While the native (first) method is a bit trickier, but it doesn’t require any third-party tool. However, the second method which uses the PCUnlocker utility, is easy to use.
So, we leave it to you to decide which method to use. We also recommend you create a password reset disk for your Windows PC to avoid troubles in the future.
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