Do you want to reset your Windows 7 user or admin password without any software or bootable USB/DVD? Look no further because this article will guide you through the process step-by-step.
The main idea of this trick is to reset the password with Command Prompt (CMD). To do this, we need to run CMD at the login screen. We can do this by assigning the function to the Ease of Access button. When we press this button, it runs the Ease of Access application, which is located in C Drive/windows/system32. Simply put, if we move any executable file named “util man” in this folder, the button will run that application at the login screen. CMD.exe is located in this folder, so we will rename it to “util man.”
First, perform an unexpected system shutdown by pressing the power button to turn off your PC when you see the Windows logo. Then, turn on your PC and click “launch startup repair.” After it does its job, you should get the message “startup repair cannot repair this computer.” If you see this, click “cancel” and wait for the error message. Click “view problem details,” scroll down, and click the “privacy statement” link. This is where the magic begins.
Go to the file menu and click “open.” Then, drop down the list and select “all files.” Using this Explorer window, you can get access to all files, so you can easily copy, move, delete, or rename files. You can also transfer data from your PC to a USB flash drive. Insert a flash drive, right-click inside the Explorer window, and click “refresh.” Your C Drive will be D, but the drive letter doesn’t matter. Find the proper Windows folder and look for the “util man” file. If you can’t find it in the system32 folder, you’re on the wrong drive. Rename CMD to “util man,” and finally, close all windows and restart.
Click on the magic Ease of Access button, and you’ll have access to the almighty command prompt. Type “who am I” into the command prompt, and you’ll see that you’re under the system account, which is the most powerful account in Windows.
Next, list all available users by typing “net user” and pressing enter. Then, type “net user account name you want to reset” (in this case, HP). If your account name consists of multiple words or not English letters, put the name in quotation marks, followed by a space and an asterisk. If you want to reset your password, press enter twice. If you want to change your password, type it in and retype it to confirm it. When you type your password, it won’t show up for security reasons.
Now, close the command prompt window and try to log in. It should work. This trick also works for Windows 8 and 10, but requires a bootable USB or DVD to rename those files. I recommend renaming CMD and “util man” back to their original names once you’re done.
Good luck resetting your Windows 7 password!