Password Recovery

[jafo105 39057]

Today I received my mother's computer. She passed away in January. I have been trying to log in to it but I do not know what her password was. I have tried to brainstorm as many possibilities as I can think of but nothing works.

 

I would really like to preserve what ever documents she has on the computer.

 

I purchased this PC for her in 2011. It is a Compaq CQ57 Notebook PC. With Windows 7 OS. It does have a built-in manufacturers reset program but that will probably destroy her records.

 

I have tried a couple free downloadable programs but they do not see the OS.

 

I would appreciate any suggestions others may have.

 

Cheers,

[bcguy42 38594]

Timing is everything. Last week's Cnet newsletter was about recovering lost Windows Admin passwords.

 

The discussion can be found here:

 

http://nls.cnet.com/pageservices/viewOnlineNewsletter.sc?list_id=e497&send_date=04/11/2014

[backrubman 64800]

I have tried a couple free downloadable programs but they do not see the OS. I would appreciate any suggestions others may have.

 

You need to be careful with this one, lots of freely available password recovery programs (if just Google for it) are malware or viruses in disguise.

 

The "real" free one that really works (even with Windows 8.1) is here: Offline Windows Password and Registry Editor.

 

Microsoft's "official" stance has always been that it is impossible and they have directed many people to reinstall the operating system over the years and loose all their data rather than admit how easy it is which is another case of big business gone bad.

 

You need to burn a special CD, write a bootable USB stick, or there is even a floppy disk version (but most computers do not have one anymore, just the same I have a USB floppy drive that I use for this purpose) and then boot from that to erase the password. Read and follow the instructions carefully as this one is not fancy or friendly but it works 99.9% of the time.

 

My computer fix-it friends usually take the hard disk out of the system first and back up all the data by connecting the hard disk to another computer (which is another method) before actually writing to the registry to erase the password (just in case the registry is corrupt or something goes wrong).

[Guest S*rca****sid]

Try this:

 

 

1. Insert either your Windows 7 installation DVD, or a Windows 7 System Repair disc, into your optical drive and then restart your computer. If you have either on a flash drive, that'll work too.
    
    
   Note: If you don't have original Windows 7 media and never got around to making a system repair disc, don't worry. As long as you have access to any other Windows 7 computer (another in your home or a friend's will work fine), you can burn a system repair disc for free. See How to Create a Windows 7 System Repair Disc for a tutorial.
   
2. After your computer boots from the disc or flash drive, click Next on the screen with your language and keyboard choices.
   Tip: Don't see this screen or do you see your typical Windows 7 logon screen? Chances are good that your computer booted from your hard drive (like it normally does) instead of from the disc or flash drive you inserted, which is what you want. See the appropriate link in the tip from Step 1 above for help.
   
3. Click on the Repair your computer link.
   Note: If you booted with a system repair disc instead of a Windows 7 installation disc or flash drive, you won't see this link. Just move on to Step 4 below.
   
4. Wait while your Windows 7 installation is located on your computer.
   
5. Once your installation is found, take note of the drive letter found in the Location column. Most Windows 7 installations will show D: but yours may be different.
   Note: While in Windows, the drive that Windows 7 is installed on is probably labeled as the C: drive. However, when booting from Windows 7 install or repair media, a hidden drive is available that usually isn't. This drive is given the first available drive letter, probably C:, leaving the next available drive letter, probably D:, for the next drive - the one with Windows 7 installed on it.
   
6. Select Windows 7 from the Operating System list and then click the Next button.
   
7. From System Recovery Options, choose Command Prompt.
   
8. With Command Prompt now open, execute the following two commands, in this order:
   copy d:\windows\system32\utilman.exe d:\ copy d:\windows\system32\cmd.exe d:\windows\system32\utilman.exe To the Overwrite question after executing the second command, answer with Yes.
   Important: If the drive that Windows 7 is installed on in your computer is not D: (Step 5), be sure to change all instances of d: in the commands above with the correct drive letter.
   
9. Remove the disc or flash drive and then restart your computer.
   You can close the Command Prompt window and click Restart but it's also okay in this situation to restart using your computer's restart button.
   
10. Once the Windows 7 logon screen appears, locate the little icon on the bottom-left of the screen that looks like a pie with a square around it and then click it!
    Tip: If your normal Windows 7 logon screen did not show up, check to see that you removed the disc or flash drive you inserted in Step 1. Your computer may continue to boot from this device instead of your hard drive if you don't remove it.
    
11. Now that Command Prompt is open, execute the net user command as shown, replacing myusername with whatever your user name is and mypassword with whatever new password you'd like to use:
    net user myusername mypassword So, for example, I would do something like this:
    net user Tim 1lov3blueberrie$ Tip: If your username has spaces, put double quotes around it when executing net user, as in net user "Tim Fisher" 1lov3blueberrie$.
    
12. Close the Command Prompt window.
    
13. Login with your new password!
    
14. Create a Windows 7 Password Reset Disk! This is the Microsoft-approved, proactive step you should have done a long time ago. All you need is a blank flash drive or floppy disk and you'll never need to worry about forgetting your Windows 7 password again.
    
15. While not required, it would probably be wise to undo the hack that makes this work. If you don't, you won't have access to accessibiily features from the Windows 7 login screen.
    To reverse the changes you've made, repeat Steps 1 through 7 above. When you have access to Command Prompt again, execute the following:
    copy d:\utilman.exe d:\windows\system32\utilman.exe Confirm the overwrite and then restart your computer.
    Important: Undoing this hack will have no impact on your new password. Whatever password you set in Step 11 is still valid.
    

[jafo105 39057]

Thank you to everyone for your help. I found a program that did the trick. It cost about $24 -- well worth it IMHO. I found a lot of photos and other documents from on my mother's old computer.

 

Windows Password Key

http://www.lostwindowspassword.com/

[Guest S*rca****sid]

Waste of money when you can do it for free.

[Boomer 33202]

Waste of money when you can do it for free.

 

Not a waste if you aren't comfortable with managing a computers operating system, and the solution he chose did the trick easily.