Because of a problem with a hard disk utility that got
stuck and that I had to close, I had to repair my windows
installation. Once completed, after the final reboot
Windows XP Pro loaded normally, my 3 original user
accounts appeared on the welcome screen, but to log on
any account I would be asked for a password. Whatever I
enter,(and even if I just press Enter), I get the logon
message:" The system cannot log you on due to the
following error: The specified domain either does not
exist or could not be contacted. Please try again or
consult your system administrator"

This is strange because these accounts didn't require a
password prior to the re-install, and also because I have
never been asked to enter passwords during the setup
process for this reinstall.

Using a password changing software I have tried to erase
the passwords for the user accounts, but they were
already blank; and using recovery console I erased the
file with the accounts, relaunching Setup after that. It
recreated 2 user accounts instead (1
called "administrator" and 1 called "guest") but as
before they ask for a password I don't know and display
the same message whatever I enter.

Any idea why this is and what I could do to log on?

Many thanks in advance.

Hi Gil,

The above issue can be resolved by following the detailed instructions in
the KB article given below:

SYMPTOMS
When you upgrade or install Microsoft Windows XP, passwords may be assigned
to user accounts that previously had no password or you did not assign
passwords to any user accounts during the installation process. As a
result, you cannot log on to the computer.

CAUSE
This behavior occurs if Windows XP Setup does not complete properly. Setup
assigns temporary passwords to user accounts during the upgrade process,
and is supposed to remove the passwords when Setup is complete. The
temporary passwords are written to the Setupact.log file that is located in
the folder in which Windows is installed.

RESOLUTION
To resolve this behavior, retrieve the password from the Setupact.log file,
and then use the password to log on to the computer. You must search the
Setupact.log file for the following line, where Username is the name of the
user account and xxxxxxxxxxxxx is the password for that account:
Random password for Username is xxxxxxxxxxxxx

To do this, use one of the following methods, as appropriate to your
situation.
Windows XP Is Installed on a FAT32 Partition
To retrieve the password from the Setupact.log file if Windows XP is
installed on a FAT32 partition, follow these steps:
Insert a Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Me) startup disk or a
Microsoft Windows 98 Startup disk into the computer's floppy disk drive,
and then restart the computer.

NOTE: If you do not have a Windows Me or Windows 98 Startup disk, click the
article numbers below to view the articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
186300 How to Create a Windows 98 Startup Disk from MS-DOS

267287 How to Create a Startup Disk in Windows Me

Type the following line at the command prompt, and then press ENTER, where
drive is the drive on which Windows is installed.
edit drive:\windows\setupact.log

Locate the following line, where Username is the name of the user account
and xxxxxxxxxxxxx is the password for that account:
Random password for Username is xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Make a note of the password exactly as it appears in the Setupact.log file,
and then quit the text editor.
Restart the computer, and then log on to the computer with the user account
by using the password that you retrieved.

After you are logged on to the computer, reset the password for the user
account by using User Accounts in Control Panel.
Windows XP Is Installed on a NTFS Partition
To retrieve the password from the Setupact.log file if Windows XP is
installed on an NTFS partition, follow these steps:
Configure the computer to start from the CD-ROM drive or DVD-ROM drive. For
more information about how to do this, please see the computer's
documentation or contact the computer manufacturer.
Insert the Windows XP compact disc (CD) into the computer's CD-ROM drive or
DVD-ROM drive, and then restart the computer.
When the Press any key to boot from CD message is displayed on your screen,
press a key to start the computer from the Windows XP CD.
When the Welcome to Setup screen is displayed, press the R key to start the
Recovery Console.
Select the installation that you need to access from the Recovery Console.
You are prompted for the Administrator password. If the Administrator
password is set to use a blank password, just press ENTER.
At the command prompt, type the following line and then press ENTER:
type setupact.log

Locate the following line, where Username is the name of the user account
and xxxxxxxxxxxxx is the password for that account:
Random password for Username is xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Make a note of the password exactly as it appears in the Setupact.log file.
Type exit at the command prompt, and then press ENTER to quit the Recovery
Console and restart the computer.
Log on to the computer with the user account by using the password that you
retrieved.

After you are logged on to the computer, reset the password for the user
account by using User Accounts in Control Panel.
MORE INFORMATION
For additional information about the Windows XP Recovery Console, click the
article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
314058 Description of the Windows XP Recovery Console

307654 HOW TO: Install and Use the Recovery Console in Windows XP

I hope the above information helps you.

S.Vijay

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights