What Is the Windows Administrator Default Password?

Administer permissions is one of those features on Windows that you don’t think much of until you need it. And not having your administrator password can make life a little complicated. You’ll be locked out of things like uninstalling programs, performing administrative activities, or making system modifications on your computer.

However, there is a way to fix this. This article will talk about different ways to recover the default administrator password on various Windows versions.

What Is the Windows 7 Administrator Default Password?

In newer versions of Windows, there is no “default” administrator password that you can just find and use. The Windows 7 operating system includes an admin account with no password. That account has been there since the Windows installation, and it was deactivated by default. So now you simply need to allow that default admin account to reset the passwords of the other administrator accounts via a command prompt.

To do so, you first need to check if your default admin account is enabled. The steps for doing this are:

1. Start your computer in Safe Mode and wait for the welcome screen to display.
   
2. See if you are asked to sign in using your administrator account or your local user account.
   
3. Log in to the Administrator account (if it appears on the screen) and switch your local user account to an admin account.
4. If the Administrator account doesn’t appear, insert the Windows installation disc into your computer and reboot it.
5. Choose “Repair your computer.”
   
6. Select “Command Prompt.”
   
7. Type in “net user administrator /active:yes“.
   
8. Restart your PC and eject the disc.

If you don’t have a disc, you can try the following steps:

1. Log out of your computer and proceed to the login page.
2. Long press the “Power” button, then the “Shift” key.
3. Select “Restart” while still pressing “Shift” for the Windows Recovery Boot Screen to appear.
4. Select “Troubleshoot” and then “Advanced Options.”
   
5. Choose “Command Prompt.”
   
6. In the Command window, enter the following commands, pressing “Enter” after each line:
   
   D:
cd Windows
cd System32
ren Utilman.exe Utilman.exe.old
copy cmd.exe Utilman.exe
7. Now you have to restart your PC. Once on the login page, click the “Utility Manager” button.
   
8. Type “net user Administrator Welcome@123” in the command prompt.
   

If you no longer need the Windows 7 default admin password and account, just set up your own Local Admin account to replace the default one. You will no longer need to remember the Windows 7 default admin password. Follow these steps:

1. Press the “Windows” key and “I” at the same time.
2. The Settings window will appear. Select “Accounts.”
3. Go to “Family and other users” and then choose “Add someone else to this PC.”
4. Select “I don’t have this person’s sign-in information.”
5. Choose “Add a user without Microsoft account.”
6. Type in a username and password.
7. Click on the newly created user account and then select “Change account type.”
8. Select the Administrator option and press “OK.”

What Is the Windows 10 Default Administrator Password?

As mentioned before, there are no default passwords for newer versions of Windows. However, there are different ways to solve the forgotten default admin password issue on Windows 10.

Use the Forgot Password Link

 If you don’t know the default administrator password for Windows 10 and are stuck on the sign-in page, this solution will come in handy. You only need the recovery email or phone number if you were the administrator of your account.

1. Click on “I forgot my password.”
2. On the next screen, you must first choose the admin account and then enter the text shown in the field. After that, press the “Next” button.
3. Choose your email or phone number to get the verification code.
4. After receiving it and verifying your identity, reset your password.

Use Command Prompt

If you do not have a way to verify yourself, you can use the Command Prompt instead. Here are the steps to get started:

1. Restart your computer after inserting the installation disk.
2. The setup page will open. Hold the Shift + F10 buttons to open the command prompt.
3. Put the following commands in and press “Enter.”
   copy c:\windows\system32\sethc.exe c:\
copy /y c:\windows\system32\cmd.exe
c:\windows\system32\sethc.exe
4. Close the cmd window and cancel the Windows 10 installation. Restart your computer, but this time without the Windows installation disk.
5. Press the Shift key five times in a row on the login screen to force the command prompt to be opened in administrator mode.
6. Type in “net user“.
7. Now change the password by typing in “net user user_name new_password“.

Factory Reset Windows 10 Operating System

Resetting your operating system can be a way to fix the issue but keep in mind that you can lose files. You have the option to save important files or to erase everything.

1. Open “Settings.”
   
2. Go to “Update & Security.”
   
3. Find the “Recovery” option.
   
4. Click on “Get Started” under “Reset this PC.”
   
5. Choose if you want to save some files or erase everything.
6. The PC will begin reinstalling Windows, and you will then be able to access the computer.

What Is Windows XP Administrator Default Password?

There are a few different options to recover the Windows administrator password on Windows XP as well. Take a look at your options below:

Use Command Prompt

1. To open Command Prompt, go to “Start,” “All Programs,” “Accessories,” and then “Command Prompt.”
2. Type in the command:
   net user user_name new_password
3. Press “Enter.”

Reset Password in Safe Mode

1. Start the computer in Safe Mode.
2. Press the F8 key repeatedly when turning on your computer until the Advanced Boot Options screen appears.
3. Press “Enter” to enter Safe Mode. The default Administrator account will then appear on the login screen.
4. Restart your computer as usual.
5. Press Ctrl + Alt + Del twice when you reach the Windows XP Welcome screen.
6. Type “Administrator” into the username field.
7. Click “OK” after.
8. Open the Control Panel after logging in to the default Administrator account.
9. Change the password.

Reset Password With Boot CD

If the last method didn’t work for you, you could try using the Boot CD. You will need a program like PCUnlocker, which can run from a CD or USB. To do this, follow the next steps:

1. Download PCUnlocker.
   
2. UnZip the file.
   
3. Burn the ISO file on a blank CD or USB flash device.
   
4. Use the CD or USB to start your Windows XP PC.
5. When the restarting process is completed, you’ll see the PCUnlocker utility’s main window.
6. Click the Reset Password option after selecting the administrator account from the list.
7. You can now log in without a password if you reboot your PC without the CD.

Getting Back Access

Being locked out of many features that Windows 10, 7, and XP offer can be a real hassle sometimes, but luckily there many ways to overcome this. Additionally, using these methods, you can also recover passwords from local accounts. It is recommended to use a password manager to keep all of your passwords safely secured under one master password to avoid this from happening again in the future.

Have you ever forgotten your Windows Administrator Default Password? Have you tried one of these methods? Let us know in the comment section!