Member Avatar for markmcvey

I Have Been Locked Out Of My Adminastrator Account I Think The Password Could Have Been Changed. I Can Access The Computer In Other Accounts With No privilages Tho. Plz Can Annyone Help Me

  • 6 Contributors
  • 7 Replies
  • 245 Views
  • 2 Years Discussion Span
  • Latest Post Latest Post by zandiago

Dani AI

Generated

A few focused points that build on , and ’s suggestions and that are still true years later.

First, confirm whether the locked account is a local machine account or a domain account. If the machine is domain‑joined, local SAM edits or boot‑CD tricks won’t change the domain credentials — a domain administrator or AD tools are required. (learn.microsoft.com)

Second, if the account is local and the built‑in Administrator route (Safe Mode) doesn’t work, the standard offline options are: boot rescue media and either recover the password (rainbow‑table tools like Ophcrack) or clear/blank the password (Offline NT Password & Registry Editor / chntpw). Before making changes, create a copy of the SAM and SYSTEM hives from the Windows partition so there’s a fallback. (sourceforge.net)

Important caution about encrypted data: forcefully resetting a user’s password can make that user’s EFS‑encrypted files, personal certificates and some saved credentials permanently inaccessible unless the original password, a prior password‑reset disk, or a configured Data Recovery Agent exists. Treat any account that may have used file/certificate encryption differently — export keys or use recovery agents when available. (ftp.zx.net.nz)

Recommended short workflow (practical, sequenced):

  1. Verify local vs domain account.
  2. Try the built‑in Administrator/Safe Mode check already suggested by @Suspishio.
  3. If still locked and local, boot rescue media and back up the SAM/SYSTEM and the user profile.
  4. Try password recovery first (ophcrack) if preserving access to encrypted data is a concern; otherwise use an offline reset tool.
  5. After regaining access, export any EFS keys, create a password‑reset disk and add a secondary admin account; run full malware/AV scans and verify system integrity. (learn.microsoft.com)

These steps prioritize data safety (especially EFS) and are the usual, supported approaches for Windows NT/2000/XP‑era systems referenced in this thread.

Recommended Answers

All 7 Replies

Member Avatar for Bad Karma[CORE]

Look for a tool that is called Locksmith.
This will allow u to change the PW without knowing the current one

Member Avatar for nanosani

Locksmith is a good utility for recovering passwords ..... I havnt used it but I've heard of it ......... see

for locksmith.

Member Avatar for Bad Karma[CORE]

It is, u just start it, select the account to change the password for, enter new password et voila :)

Drove my colleagues at work mad for a while ^^

Member Avatar for smitster

i am having a similar problem only i do not have acces to other accounts, will this tool work for me? or is ther an easier way to fix this eg safemode etc. if so how would i get into safe mode?

Member Avatar for Suspishio

i am having a similar problem only i do not have acces to other accounts, will this tool work for me? or is ther an easier way to fix this eg safemode etc. if so how would i get into safe mode?

At the first beep on boot, press F8 a few times and you'll boot to a plain screen menu. Select SAFE MODE and log in as Administrator. There should be no password unless you've consciously changed it or a Trojan has hijacked the registry entry.

Good luck.

Member Avatar for smitster

it worked thanks a ton

Member Avatar for zandiago

With regards to Locksmith.... must it be installed on the machine with the lost password? Will you need to be logged on as another user and run the Locksmith interface, which allows you to select the broken account and reset the password? I'm not familiar with the Locksmith software....i'm familair with L0phtCrack application.

Be a part of the DaniWeb community

We're a friendly, industry-focused community of developers, IT pros, digital marketers, and technology enthusiasts meeting, networking, learning, and sharing knowledge.