How to unlock a computer without knowing the password

Symptoms

After you restart a computer running Windows and no one has logged on, you may be unable to log on to the computer either locally or to the domain.

Table of Contents Show

Resolution
Method 1: When the Error Message States the Computer Is Locked by domain\username
Method 2: When the Error Message Does Not State Who Locked the Computer
Need more help?
Method 1. Unlock a Locked Computer with Another Admin Account
Method 2. Unlock Computer Password with Created Password Reset Disk
Method 3. Unlock a Computer with Professional PC Unlocker

The following error message may be displayed at logon:

This computer is in use and has been locked.
Only or an administrator can unlock this computer.
Press Ctrl + Alt + Del to unlock this computer.

If you try to unlock the computer, the following error message may be displayed:

This computer is locked. Only or an administrator can unlock this computer.

If a user has logged on and logged off, you may be unable to log on to the computer (locally or to the domain) and the following error message may be displayed:

This computer is in use and has been locked.
Only domain\username or an administrator can unlock this computer.
Press Ctrl + Alt + Del to unlock this computer.

If you try to unlock the computer, the following error message may be displayed:

This computer is locked. Only domain\username or an administrator can unlock this computer.

NOTES

In the error messages above, domain is the domain name of the last user who logged on to the server and username is the name of the user who last logged on to the server.

Cause

This behavior can occur for either of the following reasons:

When the default screen saver is set to use a non-existent screen saver program.
When you use a corrupted screen saver that is password protected.

Resolution

Important This section, method, or task contains steps that tell you how to modify the registry. However, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For added protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

322756 How to back up and restore the registry in Windows
To resolve this problem, use another screen saver program (such as Logon.scr) that is installed locally on the system or that is not corrupted.

Start Registry Editor (Regedt32.exe).
Locate the Scrnsave.exe value under the following registry key:
HKEY_USERS\.Default\Control Panel\Desktop
On the Edit menu, click String, type logon.scr, and then click OK.
Locate the ScreenSaverIsSecure value.
On the Edit menu, click String, type 0, and then click OK.
Quit Registry Editor.

WORKAROUND

To work around this problem, use the appropriate method.

Method 1: When the Error Message States the Computer Is Locked by domain\username

Press CTRL+ALT+DELETE to unlock the computer.
Type the logon information for the last logged on user, and then click OK.
When the Unlock Computer dialog box disappears, press CTRL+ALT+DELETE and log on normally.

Method 2: When the Error Message Does Not State Who Locked the Computer

Use the Shutdown tool in the Microsoft Windows Resource Kit and attempt to shut down the locked computer. The System Shutdown dialog box is displayed on the locked computer, but the computer does not restart.
When the shutdown timer expires, the Welcome to Windows dialog box is displayed.
Before the screen saver becomes active, press CTRL+ALT+DELETE, and log on normally.

NOTE: If you do not use one of these methods to log on, you must restart the computer and log on before the screen saver program starts.

Status

This behavior is by design.

Need more help?

One of the most troubling situations you can ever face is getting yourself locked out of your computer. When you are locked out, you cannot use any of the features or files on your computer as it is simply locked for you. To get access to your files, you will need to learn how to unlock a computer so that the computer is unlocked, and you can access all files.

There are several ways to unlock your computer and get access to its files. While some of the methods require you to install a software to unlock your computer, others let you do the task without installing anything. Let's find out how to unlock a locked computer using various ways:

Method 1. Unlock a Locked Computer with Another Admin Account
Method 2. Unlock Computer Password with Created Password Reset Disk
Method 3. Unlock a Computer with Professional PC Unlocker

Method 1. Unlock a Locked Computer with Another Admin Account

People usually have multiple admin user accounts on their computers, so they can perform many of the tasks requiring administrative privileges using multiple accounts. If you have more than one admin accounts on your computer, you can use the unlocked account to reset the password for the locked account.

The following shows how you can go about unlocking a locked computer using another admin account:

Step 1: Log-in to your computer using another admin account. Right-click on My Computer and choose Manage. It will launch the Computer Management utility.

Step 2: When the utility opens, click on Local Users and Groups in the left sidebar. Find the locked account, right-click on it, and select Set Password.

On the following screen, you should be able to define a new password for the chosen account. Once a new password is set, you can log-out of your account and then log back in using your locked account. This time make sure to use the newly created password and you will be in.

That is how to unlock computer without password using another account.

Method 2. Unlock Computer Password with Created Password Reset Disk

If you created a Windows password reset disk before your computer got locked, you can use the password reset disk to reset the password for your user account. Once the password is reset, you will be able to access your computer. The following is how to unlock computer password using a reset disk:

Step 1: Plug the password reset disk that you have into your computer and boot your computer from it. You may press the F12 key on the BIOS screen to do it.

Step 2: When the reset disk loads, find and click on the option that says Reset password to start the password reset procedure on your computer.

Step 3: On the following screen, click on the button that says Next to move forward in the reset wizard on your screen.

Step 4: A dropdown menu will appear letting you select your reset disk from the available disks. Choose a disk and then click on the button that says Next.

Step 5: The screen that follows will let you set a new password for your user account. Enter in a new password you want to use for your account and click on the Next button.

You are all set. The new password you entered above has been applied to your account and you may enter it the next time you log-in to your computer. That is how a password reset disk is used to reset the password and unlock your computer.

Method 3. Unlock a Computer with Professional PC Unlocker

If you find it difficult to use the built-in options to unlock your computer, there is a professional and easy to use software that allows you to easily unlock your computer with a few clicks. Enter Windows Password Key, a software that allows users like you to reset passwords and unlock your computers with ease. It comes preloaded with several features to help you regain access to your computer.

The following are some of the features you might be interested in:

Unlock password for admin and user accounts.
Create a professional Windows password reset USB to reset your locked account.
Unlock Microsoft account password offline.
Create a new admin account to unlock your locker computer
Fully compatible with Windows Vista/XP/7/8/8.1/10 and all computer brands like HP, Dell, Lenovo, etc.

Free Download Buy Now($39.95)

All of the above-mentioned features are packed nicely in a compact tool and the following shows how you can use it to unlock your computer:

Step 1: First of all, download and install the software on any computer you can access. Now, run Windows Password key and insert a removable media such as a blank CD/DVD/USB flash drive into your computer, choose it in the software, and click on the Burn button.

Step 2: Insert the removable media to your locked computer and boot your computer from it. You may press the F12 key to do so.

Step 3: When the software loads, choose your Windows installation and click on the Next button.

Step 4: Select your user account on the following screen, tick-mark Remove Windows Password, and click on the Next button.

That's all. The password from your locked computer should be removed. Your computer is now unlocked, and you can access all the files stored on it.

Video Tutorial to Unlock Locked Computer without Password

If you have been wondering "how to unlock my computer if I forgot the password", our guide above should help you unlock your computer in multiple ways. If you want to make the task a little bit convenient, you are highly recommended to use Windows Password Key.

Free Download Buy Now($39.95)Related ArticlesHow to Create Windows 10 Password Reset USB/CD with ISO3 Best Ophcrack Alternatives for Windows 10Forgot Windows 10 Password

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