How to Reset Your Windows 10 Password If You've Forgotten It
Alex Griffith Updated on May 18, 2022 4:17 PM
Few things are more frustrating than forgetting password for Windows 10 and locking out of your computer. After a moment of panic, you're probably wondering if you can reset the forgotten Windows 10 password and regain access to the desktop.
Fortunately, Microsoft knows that forgetting login password on Windows is a personal hell that many of users may experience, and offers several different options to remedy this situation. In this article, we're going to show you how to reset Windows 10 password, to ensure you recover access to your account as quickly as possible.
The approach you take to unlock your Windows 10 without a password could depend on what account you are using. First, let's find out the differences: Microsoft Account vs Local Account.
Part 1: Recover a Microsoft Account on Windows 10
If you forgot the Microsoft account password you use to sign in to your Windows 10 computer and can't remember, you can recover the account by resetting your password to something new. The whole process is simple enough, here's how to do.
- On the sign-in screen, type your Microsoft account name.
- Under the password text box, select "I forgot my password" option.
- Choose how you wish to receive your security code to verify your identity.
- Enter the last four digits of your phone number or your complete email address.
- Type the security code in the appropriate box.
- Enter your new password, confirm your new password, click Next.
- Click Sign in button and log in to your Microsoft account using the new password.
This way, you can reset the password and regain access to your Microsoft account on the Windows 10 computer.
Part 2: Reset a local account on Windows 10
If you sign in to your computer using a traditional local account just like you do that with the older Windows 7, in that case, you have several different ways to reset passwords in Windows 10. Let's get started.
Option 1: Log in with another Admin account
Assuming you have another account with administrator privileges or you can log into the account with PIN, you can open a Command Prompt to reset a forgotten password in your Windows 10 laptop or desktop.
Replace USERNAME and NEWPASS with your username and desired password for the account.
If this doesn't work, that's OK, keep on reading.
Option 2: Use Windows 10 installation disc
Using a Windows 10 installation disk or flash drive is another method you can go about hacking into your Windows 10 computer and resetting a password for local account.
- Boot from a Windows 10 installation disc or USB drive
- When Setup screen appears, press Shift + F10 to open Command Prompt.
- Type the following two lines of commands and then press Enter:
move d:\windows\system32\utilman.exe d:\windows\system32\utilman.exe.bak
copy d:\windows\system32\cmd.exe d:\windows\system32\utilman.exe
- Remove the installation disk and execute the command to restart the locked Windows 10.
wpeutil reboot
- On the Windows 10 sign-in screen, click the Utility Manager.
- If everything goes well, a cmd.exe command prompt should open now.
- Type in the following commands to create a new administrative user, replacing username with the new account name of your choice.
net user username /add
net localgroup administrators username /add
- Close the Command Prompt and restart your computer.
- On the login screen, click in the new account that shows up to sign in without password.
- From desktop, right click the Start menu and select Computer Management.
- Navigate to Local Users and Groups, then right click your local account.
- Select Set Password.
- In the pop-up dialog, enter new password, then press OK.
Now you are able to log into your Windows 10 with the new password.
Option 3: Answer security questions (version 1803 and later)
Since the version 1803, Microsoft Windows 10 introduces a mechanism — set security questions for local user accounts — to ease the process of regaining access to your account from Lock screen if you forget the password.
Did you add security questions when you set up your local account for Windows 10? If so, you have at least version 1803 and you can quickly reset your lost password and sign back in by answering security questions.
After you've entered an incorrect password:
- Click the link labeled "Reset password" on the sign-in screen.
- Answer your security questions.
- Type a new password.
- Sign in to Windows 10 as usual with the new password.
It should be noted that you can't use this useful feature to reset your Windows 10 local account password for versions of Windows 10 earlier than 1803.
Option 4: Use a password reset utility
Answering security questions is a really convenient and quick way for you to bypass the Windows 10 local password. If your Windows 10 is before version 1803 or you've disabled security question for local account, you still have luck to access the system by using a Windows 10 password reset tool like Spower Windows Password Reset, which has earned its popularity among users as being one of the most efficient and easy-to-use password resetting tools on the web.
The utility is intended for use on any version of Windows operating system and is designed to reset the local account password if you have forgotten. It's even capable of creating a new Admin account. Here's how you can reset a Windows 10 password with it.
Step 1: Create a bootable password reset disk
Download the program and install on an accessible Windows computer.
Fire up the application, and plug a blank USB drive into computer. Then click the blue USB device button to create a bootable USB drive. The whole process will be finished in about one minute.
Step 2: Boot the computer from USB drive
Since the problematic computer boots from the Windows normally every time you power on it, you will have to change the boot order option in Boot Menu or BIOS to boot from the USB drive.
Step 3: Reset Windows 10 admin or regular user password
Save your settings you set up in Step 2, it will automatically boot your locked PC from the bootable Windows 10 password reset USB drive. The program starts working to detect users and their attributes, and then display information on the screen. You should eventually see the screen like something shown below.
Next, select Windows 10 system, and an target account you want to reset password, and click on the Reset button. Wait a few seconds and the password will be set to blank (no password) finally.
After that, press the Reboot button on the screen, and then remove the USB drive from the USB port of computer (important!). The computer will restart.
It's that simple! Now you have full access to your Windows 10 computer again without password.
Part 3: Reset your Windows Pin
If you forgot or lost your PIN used to access your Windows account, you also have way to reset it. The process invovlves using your Microsoft account password.
Go to the login screen:
- Click "I forgot my PIN" link under the sign-in box.
- Enter the password for your Microsoft account.
- Choose how you want to be sent a security code.
- Type the security code on your PC.
- Choose a new PIN and re-enter it to confirm.
Part 4: Factory reset
If none of reset methods above work in Windows 10 password reset, you'll have to completely reset your computer to choose a new password. Let me be clear on this last point: resetting the Windows 10 will permanently delete everything on your computer, including your personal data, programs, and settings. If you've backed up your files, you'll be able to restore your deleted files exactly as they were.
- Press the Shift key while selecting the Power button > Restart in the lower-right corner of the screen.
- Select Troubleshoot > Reset this PC.
- Choose Remove everything.
