Re: administrator password

Ricoy-Chicago wrote:

My cousin's computer has Win XP professional, (she is computer illeterate)
my nephew set himself as the administrator (he is only 12). My cousin
wants me to install a new printer however when I log in with her password
the installation process stops because she does not have administrator's
rights. The problem is that my nephew forgot his password, his is being
logging in
with his mom's password. Is there a way to reset the password for the
administrator?


At the Welcome Screen, do Ctrl-Alt-Del twice to get the classic Windows
logon box. Type in "Administrator" and whatever password you assigned when
you set up Windows.

If you reset the built-in Administrator account's password and don't
remember it, use NTpasswd to change the built-in Administrator account's
password to a blank.

http://home.eunet.no/~pnordahl/ntpasswd/

Then go to the User Accounts applet in Control Panel and set passwords that
you will remember and make other desired changes.

I would suggest you make your nephew a regular (limited) user and set proper
passwords on the machine so that he can't do this again. Here are some
suggestions for securing the computer although you must understand that any
computer running any operating system can be accessed by someone with 1)
physical access; 2) time; 3) skill; 4) tools.

1. Set a password in the BIOS that must be entered before booting the
operating system. Also set the Supervisor password in the BIOS so BIOS
Setup can't be entered without it.
2. From the BIOS, change the boot order to hard drive first.
3. Set strong passwords on all accounts, including the built-in
Administrator account.
4. If you leave your own account logged in, use the Windows Key + L to lock
the computer (and/or set the screensaver/power saving) when you step away
from the computer and require a password to resume.
5. Make other users Limited accounts.

Please understand that these are technical responses to what is basically a
non-technical problem. This is a family/interpersonal issue that can't be
solved by technical means. It might be fine to allow a responsible
12-year-old to have a user account with administrative privileges, but his
actions suggest your nephew isn't ready for this.

Malke
--
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User
Elephant Boy Computers
www.elephantboycomputers.com
"Don't Panic"
.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: logging into windows
    ... > after allowing her nephew on computer.the box used to come ... > up with administrator and she didnt put in password just ... You might try to reset the local Administrator password ... Microsoft MVP Scripting and WMI, ...
    (microsoft.public.win2000.cmdprompt.admin)
  • Change user
    ... the sole user. ... I am the only user account ... my nephew (administrator) and then ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.security_admin)
  • Re: help needed bad
    ... nate wrote: ... > And my nephew came and switched me to limited user while ... You are not the only administrator. ... the welcome screen (assuming you have a welcome screen logon) and use the ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.security_admin)
  • logging into windows
    ... after allowing her nephew on computer.the box used to come ... up with administrator and she didnt put in password just ... she had never logged into windows before with a user name ...
    (microsoft.public.win2000.cmdprompt.admin)
  • Re: ADMINISTRATOR vs Administrator User
    ... when run on an administrator account. ... As to getting past the limitations imposed by WindowsXP ... There are very few - very very few - modern applications that require ... user accounts. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.general)