W7 & XP : Forgot the administrator’s password?

One method of gaining access to the system is by trying hard to remember the forgotten password, or a password of another user which has the same level of administrative rights. However I don't think this approach will help you, otherwise you wouldn't be sitting here reading article, would you?

Another method is by trying to restore a backed up System State (in Windows 2000/XP/2003) or a ERD (in NT 4.0) in which you do remember the password. The problem with doing so is that you'll probably lose all of the recently add users and groups, and all the changed passwords for all of your users since the last backup was made.

Password Recovery Tools

Free Windows password-cracking tools are usually Linux boot disks that have NT file system (NTFS) drivers and software that will read the registry and rewrite the password hashes for any account including the Administrators. This process requires physical access to the console and an available floppy drive but it works like a charm! I've done it myself several times with no glitch or problem whatsoever.

Resetting a user's or administrator's password on some systems (like Windows XP) might cause data loss, especially EFS-encrypted files and saved passwords from within Internet Explorer. To protect yourself against EFS-encrypted files loss you should always export your Private and Public key, along with the keys for the Recovery Agent user

Here are 5 of these tools:

1. Stellar Phoenix Password Recovery - Simple startup utility resets a forgotten admin or users' password using a familiar Windows-like program interface instead of command-line.
2. Password Kit - Top rated version of Passware's Password recovery app, supports Windows Vista and RAID/SCSI/SATA drives.
3. Petter Nordahl-Hagen's Offline NT Password & Registry Editor - A great boot CD/Floppy that can reset the local administrator's password.
4. Openwall's John the Ripper - Good boot floppy with cracking capabilities.
5. EBCD – Emergency Boot CD - Bootable CD, intended for system recovery in the case of software or hardware faults.

Windows Password recovery

www.loginrecovery.com This site provides a tool to recover lost Windows XP passwords. It works for administrator and user accounts, it doesn't change the password just tells you the old one. It works with encrypted files (EFS) and password hashes. It even works if no passwords at all are known for the machine (as long as you have another computer with internet access to view this website with).