Password lockout

[JillyNY]

Can somebody please tell me how you go about getting past the login screen for XP when nobody knows the password. An employee was recently "let go" and in the process changed the admin. passwords so nobody can get into the system. What do I do to remove this password and get back in and change it? HELP!!!

[Catweazle]

Start the system in 'Safe mode'. (Press <F8> prior to the Windows Logo screen displaying)

Log in as 'Administrator'. You should be able to do so if the disgruntled ex-employee hasn't altered that one as well. From there you should be able to remove existing user accounts and create new ones.

[antioed]

You can pay for a utility that will do this from here or use an open source linux utility from here. You run a risk attempting to use these utilities...it would be helpful to know what exactly you're trying to do with the system as there may be much easier methods for extracting data from the drive, for instance, that you or an IT admin could more easily approach. The first utility, from SysInternals, costs a LOT but is very easy to use and tends to be fairly reliable. The second utility, the freebie, requires a user who:

1. Can follow directions that are fairly technical/complex.
2. Has a basic understanding of Linux.

I am by no means a Linux guru yet I have used this utility numerous times - word to the wise should you try the free utility, it tends to break very important files in the OS so if you're hoping to get into Windows again you might want to post back here letting us know exactly what you're trying to do with the system...we might have better suggestions.