Can't Log In!

[Guest]

Hi! I am having a serious problem with my computer. We bought this computer
about a year and a half ago from Hewlet Packard (spelling?).


I have Windows XP Service Pack 2 installed, and it worked just fine until I
turned it on around 5:30 PM CST.

I noticed that it took an abnormally long time for the startup window to
progress to the welcome/ log on screen. Once it did, I selected my account,
an administrator account, and noticed that there was a password bar (I never
used a password, and so, I was perplexed as to how I supposedly had a
password). I typed something in, and I noticed that there was no hint bar
next to the arrow bar. I hit "enter" and the screen turned completely black.
An error window cam up and said in the title "Logon Message" in the text
area, it said, "The system cannot log you on now because the domain <<DOMAIN
NAME>> is not available."

I have tried several things to get this fixed, but all have failed. I tried
system restore, and that didnt work. I checked my network connections, and I
had nothing but the Local Area Connection one.(on a side note, it was managed
by DHCP)

Here is something strange, I am on the very computer I am having problems
with. I am in safe mode at the moment, and that is the only way I am able to
get here.

I am completely baffled with how this happened, since no new programs were
installed, and I did not change a thing when I was on it last.

I saw this on a windows support center, it said that my credentials had
expired. I have no idea how or why this happened, if it has to do with the
credentials of this computer.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Guest]

According to me, you can try these steps:

1. Try changing your computer identity.
2. Create a new user account with administrative rights

First Step:

Right-Click on My Computer choose Properties
Click Computer Name tab and then click Change
Try changing the "Member of..." information
Like if you are not on a network or on a network without any server / domain
then set the option to Workgroup and type a name according to your network or
anything you like (if you are not on a network e.g. MSHOME)
Changes will take effect after restart.

See if these settings help you.

Otherwise you can try creating a new user account with administrative rights
through Control Panel - User Accounts.

Let us know, if any of above helps you.

 

[Sharon F]

Hi! I am having a serious problem with my computer. We bought this computer
about a year and a half ago from Hewlet Packard (spelling?).


I have Windows XP Service Pack 2 installed, and it worked just fine until I
turned it on around 5:30 PM CST.

I noticed that it took an abnormally long time for the startup window to
progress to the welcome/ log on screen. Once it did, I selected my account,
an administrator account, and noticed that there was a password bar (I never
used a password, and so, I was perplexed as to how I supposedly had a
password). I typed something in, and I noticed that there was no hint bar
next to the arrow bar. I hit "enter" and the screen turned completely black.
An error window cam up and said in the title "Logon Message" in the text
area, it said, "The system cannot log you on now because the domain <<DOMAIN
NAME>> is not available."

I have tried several things to get this fixed, but all have failed. I tried
system restore, and that didnt work. I checked my network connections, and I
had nothing but the Local Area Connection one.(on a side note, it was managed
by DHCP)

Here is something strange, I am on the very computer I am having problems
with. I am in safe mode at the moment, and that is the only way I am able to
get here.

I am completely baffled with how this happened, since no new programs were
installed, and I did not change a thing when I was on it last.

I saw this on a windows support center, it said that my credentials had
expired. I have no idea how or why this happened, if it has to do with the
credentials of this computer.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

How to log on to Windows XP if you forget your password or your password
expires
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/321305/en-us

 

[Guest]

Hi, I created a new user account with administrative rights, but it did not
fix the problem. I did not create a password, yet the password bar showed up.
There was no hint, and so I typed something in, hit enter, and I got the same
response as before.

In response to the second post, I did not create a password for either
account, so there should not be a password bar. I checked the user accounts
and it said that there was not a password on the account in the first place.

 

[Sharon F]

Hi, I created a new user account with administrative rights, but it did not
fix the problem. I did not create a password, yet the password bar showed up.
There was no hint, and so I typed something in, hit enter, and I got the same
response as before.

In response to the second post, I did not create a password for either
account, so there should not be a password bar. I checked the user accounts
and it said that there was not a password on the account in the first place.

Did you try not entering anything for password and just clicking the green
arrow?

Also, are you connected to a domain or not?

 

[Guest]

No, I am not on a domain. Here is another little snippet of information, when
I was looking at the accounts, I found out that all the accounts start with
the domain name, then a slash, then the actual name of the user account.

This computer is the only one in the house. I am not really sure what you
meant by domain.

 

[Sharon F]

No, I am not on a domain. Here is another little snippet of information, when
I was looking at the accounts, I found out that all the accounts start with
the domain name, then a slash, then the actual name of the user account.

This computer is the only one in the house. I am not really sure what you
meant by domain.

So far all of your posts say that you "typed something in." Since that
doesn't work, try leaving the password field blank. Asked earlier if you
had tried that and did not see any feedback on that suggestion. Sorry if I
missed it.

Check System Properties> Computer Name. Click the Change button. Is there
anything entered for Domain? The radio button in your case should be on
Workgroup. Domain box should not be marked and the text box for that
section blank. If you find anything here for Domain name, remove it.

Some other suggestions:

-Try a system restore to a point in time before the problem arose.

-Suddenly not being able to log in is a concern. Often caused by malware.
Check system with an up to date antivirus program and a current
anti-spyware program.

Also, a list of links for you at the MS Knowledge Base:
http://support.microsoft.com/search...&kt=ALL&mdt=0&comm=1&ast=1&ast=2&ast=3&mode=a

You'll see that the error message you received usually pops up when the
computer is a member of a domain (a type of network not common in the home)
or other situations where cached credentials are used. From your
description this is not how your computer was configured so the appearance
of the error message is certainly a mystery.


Since many of the articles refer to a hotfix, you may end up calling MS
support for a resolution to this problem.

 

[Guest]

I resolved the issue, thank god. All I did was run a few anti-virus scans,
and that seemed to fix the entire issue.