6 Ways to Change Password Windows 7 without Knowing Password

It is not absurd to forget your Windows 7 PC password; the human brain isn’t a computer, and it can forget things quite easily. However, when this happens, the next thing is to find a way to change password Windows 7 without knowing password and regain access to your computer. Practically, there are different ways to get around this problem, and this article lists some of the best ways to change password on Windows 7 if locked out.

Method 1.Change Password Windows 7 without Knowing Password Using Command Prompt in Safe Mode

Most advanced PC users have attested that by using command prompt in safe mode, one can regain access into a Windows 7 computer that is locked with a password. This method doesn’t require any third-party application software to change login password Windows 7; however, it is a bit technical, and you have to follow the steps below carefully: 

First Step:

Reboot into “Safe Mode.” To boot into safe mode, all you need do is to press your manufacturer’s key once the “Windows” icon shows when booting up the computer. Usually, the manufacturer’s key is F8, but on some computers it is F12.

Press the F8/F12 key during bootup to launch the “Advanced Boot Options” on Windows 7 PC. Once you see this prompt, use the arrow keys on the keyboard to select Safe Mode with Command Prompt, then hit the Enter key.

Second Step:

Now, your Windows 7 PC is on safe mode – click on “Administrator” to log into the computer. By default, this administrator account doesn’t have a password, but if you had previously set a password to it, then you would have to enter the password to log in.

Third Step:

The Windows Command Prompt will launch automatically in administrator mode. Now, type “net user [username] [new password]” and hit the Enter key on the keyboard.

Note: you should replace “username” and “new password” with the new username and password you want to use.

Last Step:

Close the CMD window and restart the computer. When it gets to the log in screen, bypass Windows 7 password by entering the new username and password.

Method 2.Change Password Windows 7 without Knowing Password Using Windows Password Recovery(Most Recommend)

Windows Password Recovery is a professional software that allows you to recover forgotten administrator/user password on any Windows computer. Interestingly, it also works for recovering Windows Microsoft account password. It is compatible with Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista, XP, and even Windows 2000 for changing login password if forgot. It is a one-stop solution for resetting or recovering Windows passwords. Plus, it features an intuitive user-interface that is very easy to understand.

Key Features

• Intuitive user interface
• Recovers password for all Windows, user accounts, domain administrator password, and domain user passwords
• Helps to create a new administrator account in simple steps
• Removes or resets Windows password seamlessly
• Fast and easy to use
• Supports bootable CD/DVD, as well as bootable USB flash drives
• Creates password recovery with a USB drive
• Works on all desktops and laptops

How to Change Password on Windows Lock Screen with Windows Password Recovery

This software is pretty intuitive and easy to use. Firstly, you need to install the software on another computer because it is not possible to install a program on a locked computer.

First Step:

With Windows Password Recovery downloaded on the 2^nd computer, create a password reset disk. Launch it, click on “USB Device” or “CD/DVD.” If you choose USB, it means your password reset disk will be a USB device, but if you choose CD/DVD, your password disk will be a CD/DVD.

Insert the USB device or CD/DVD to start creating your password disk. The process doesn’t take long. After the burning process is completed, eject the password disk and move to the locked computer.

Second Step:

Insert the password disk (USB device or CD/DVD) to the locked Windows 7 computer and boot the computer from the password disk.

To boot a computer from password reset disk, you need to know your computer’s Boot Menu Key: 

• For HP laptop users, the boot menu key is F9 or Esc, and F12 for HP desktops.
• Acer, Samsung, Lenovo, and MSI computers all have their boot menu key as F12 (for laptops and desktops).
• Dell laptops boot menu key is F12 and Esc for desktops.

Now that you know your computer’s boot menu key, here is how to boot the computer from a password disk.

Reboot the computer – once the Windows icon comes up, continuously press your PC’s boot menu key until the Boot Menu comes up on the screen. Now, select to boot the computer from your newly created password disk (either a USB device or a disc).

Third Step:

When Windows Password Recovery starts up after system boot, select your Windows version, then go down to choose the “user” you want to reset the password. Now, click on the “Reset Password” button to change Windows login password without knowing password .

You can change the password of all available accounts on the computer using Windows Password Recovery. When you’re done with the password reset, click the “Reboot” button to restart the computer.

When Windows boots up, you should be able to log in to the computer at this time.

What more?

The processes to use software to change password on Windows 7 lock screen may look laborious in writing, but in practice, it doesn’t take up to 20 minutes to get everything done. Windows Password Recovery is intuitive, fast, and user-friendly.

Method 3.Change Password Windows 7 without Knowing Password Using Ophcrack

Many people have searched for this particular keyword – “ophcrack Windows 7 USB,” but here’s a detailed guide to using Ophcrack to change computer password in Windows 7 if forgot.

Actually, Ophcrack is a freeware Windows password cracker built with rainbow tables. It has helped a couple of Windows 7 users to log in to their computer even when they don’t know the password. Ophcrack features quite an intuitive GUI and has support for other OSes.

First Step:

Download Ophcrack from the official Ophcrack’s website and install/burn it to a USB drive or CD. This will create a bootable USB drive or CD – depending on the drive you mounted, Ophcrack.

Second Step:

Insert the USB drive or CD to the locked computer and try to boot the computer from the connected drive.

Third Step:

After the computer boots from the drive, the Ophcrack interface will show up automatically soon. When it appears, select “Ophcrack Graphic Mode-Automatic,” and hit the enter key.

Fourth Step:

Ophcrack will process and list all the available accounts on the computer. The software will attempt to recover the password of any account that is password-protected. Once Ophcrack is done “cracking” the password(s), it will display the password(s) beside the account(s). You will need to write down the recovered password(s) so that you don’t forget it anymore.

Fifth Step:

Reboot the computer and use the recovered passwords to log into the respective accounts on the Windows 7 computer.

However, Ophcrack doesn’t support Windows 10 at the moment; so, if your PC is running on Windows 10 OS, you should consider using Windows Password Recovery.

Method 4.Change Password Windows 7 without Knowing Password Using Password Reset Disk

Before you can try this method to change win7 password, you must have previously created a password reset disk. If you didn’t create a password reset disk before you forgot your password, then you should resort to using the surefire Windows Password Recovery. However, if you have a password reset disk, here are the steps of how to change password on Windows 7 if locked out.

First Step:

Connect the password reset disk to the locked computer (a password reset disk can be any removable storage drive) which forgot Windows 7 password.

Second Step:

Boot the computer, and when it gets to the password screen, type any wrong password and hit the enter key. This action will now display a “Reset Password” link just beneath the password bar. Now you should click on the “Reset Password” link to continue.

Third Step:

You’ll be faced with a password reset wizard – all you need do at this point is to follow the on-screen instructions and keep hitting the “Next” button until it gets to the point where you have to enter a new password. Type a new password you’d remember and also add a password hint.

Fourth Step:

Alt-text:

After entering your new password, click on the “Finish” button to save your entries. At this point, your password has been changed to the new you just entered, simply go back to the log in screen and type the new password to access the computer.

Note: If you didn’t previously set up a password reset disk, there’s no way this method would work for you. Also, this is the best method for people looking for how to change password on Windows 7 lock screen.

Method 5.Change Password Windows 7 without Knowing Password Using Installation DVD

Another possible way to change login password on Windows 7 if forget is by using the “installation DVD.” What does this mean? It simply means to get a Windows 7 installation disc and insert it into the locked computer’s CD/DVD drive, and then restart the computer to boot from the disc.

First Step:

Get the computer to boot from your “Installation DVD,” choose your language on the first screen, also, choose a keyboard type, and click “Next.”

Second Step:

On the second page, choose “Repair your computer.” This will launch the “System Recovery Options” dialogue box.

Third Step:

Select the first option, and then click on “Next.”

Fourth Step:

Click on “Command Prompt” on the next screen. If you’re using any version of Windows 8, select Troubleshoot >>> Advanced Options >>> Command Prompt.

Once on the CMD interface, type these commands:

c:\windows\system32\sethc.exe c:\

c:\windows\system32\cmd.exe c:\windows\system32\sethc.exe

There’s no point trying to understand what these commands actually do –just be hopeful that it’d work for you. However, if you get an error message, then change the first letter “c” to “d” while leaving the rest of the command the same. If the commands execute successfully, close CMD, and remove the installation DVD.

Fifth Step:

Reboot the computer normally. When you get to the log in screen, tap the SHIFT key 5 times – it will trigger the CMD box to pop up. Then you should enter the following command into the command prompt to change the password:

net user “User Name” “New Password”

Remember to remove the quotes and replace the words with the actual values; “User Name” is the name of the account, while “New Password” is the new password you wish to be using since you’ve forgotten the old one.

After this process, close the CMD box and enter the “New Password” to log in to the computer. This should work on Windows 7 and Windows 8 PCs.

Method 6.Change Password Windows 7 without Knowing Password Using Hashcat

You will need to have some experience in handling command-line codes for you to be capable of using this method to change login password in Windows 7 if locked effectively. Hashcat is a command-line tool that lets you reset Windows 7 password when you’ve forgotten the previous password you used.

Also, Hashcast requires that you have admin access on the locked computer. The features of Hashcat are quite impressive, and it works with a lot of algorithms. Below are the steps to use this method.

First Step:

Launch the command prompt interface on your computer and run the subsequent commands that are discussed in the steps below.

Second Step:

Install the Hashcat program by typing these codes

Third Step:

Run this command, too:

Fourth Step:

Type “yes‘” and hit the “Enter” key on keyboard. Then run this command: cat winpass1.txt

Fifth Step:

This should work in recovering your lost password on a computer running Windows 7. However, as you can see, Hashcat requires having knowledge about Windows command line and how it works. This is an advanced method, and every step should be carried out with staunch carefulness.

Summary:

These six different methods explain how to change password on Windows 7 computers without login. Different persons would go for different methods depending on how familiar they are with the method’s steps. However, the easiest and most recommendable way to change forgotten Windows 7 computer password is by using Windows Password Recovery (explained in method 2). The software is handy, simple to use, and does not require any technical knowledge. Other methods are quite effective and have worked for some people.