My mother is "locked out" of her computer

[Jyeshta]

Last night, my elderly mother mentioned that she hasn't been able
to use her computer for months. She said she's "locked out" and
that her password isn't recognized.

I think she has XP Home, but I'm not sure. Are there any very
simple steps I can tell her to try, to get back into her
computer?

It needs to be super simple because she doesn't even know how to
use email.

Many thanks for any suggestions.

 

[JS]

Note: The default password for the built in Windows Administrator account is
normally blank (none).

For XP Home users:
Boot the computer into Safe Mode
Do this by pressing the F8 key several times after the Power On Self Test is
finished and until the Start menu appears.
This will get you to the correct menu window.
Once in Safe Mode, you will see the normally hidden Administrator account
and any other accounts.
(Note: Accounts are displayed alphabetically).
Use the Up/down arrow keys to highlight the 'Adminstrator' account;
Remember as mentioned above: The default password is a blank (no password
required).

Also See: Forgotten your Windows XP Home password
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/894902/en-us
and: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/894901/

For XP Pro users:
You do not need to go into Safe Mode.
At the Welcome Screen, do/press the Ctrl-Alt-Del keys twice to display the
Windows logon box.
Type in "Administrator" (without the quotes) and 'if' you assigned a
password when you set up Windows, then enter it. (Note: by default the
password is blank, no password need be entered)

Once your in, then:
Click Start/Run/and type in: Control Userpasswords2 and then press OK
Next click on the Advanced tab and then click Manage Passwords.

Also see: How to log on to Windows XP if you forget your password or if your
password expires
(This Microsoft article applies to both XP Home and Pro)
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/321305/en-us

JS

 

[Jyeshta]

Note: The default password for the built in Windows Administrator account is
normally blank (none).

For XP Home users:
Boot the computer into Safe Mode
Do this by pressing the F8 key several times after the Power On Self Test is
finished and until the Start menu appears.
This will get you to the correct menu window.
Once in Safe Mode, you will see the normally hidden Administrator account
and any other accounts.
(Note: Accounts are displayed alphabetically).
Use the Up/down arrow keys to highlight the 'Adminstrator' account;
Remember as mentioned above: The default password is a blank (no password
required).

Also See: Forgotten your Windows XP Home password
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/894902/en-us
and: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/894901/

For XP Pro users:
You do not need to go into Safe Mode.
At the Welcome Screen, do/press the Ctrl-Alt-Del keys twice to display the
Windows logon box.
Type in "Administrator" (without the quotes) and 'if' you assigned a
password when you set up Windows, then enter it. (Note: by default the
password is blank, no password need be entered)

Once your in, then:
Click Start/Run/and type in: Control Userpasswords2 and then press OK
Next click on the Advanced tab and then click Manage Passwords.

Also see: How to log on to Windows XP if you forget your password or if your
password expires
(This Microsoft article applies to both XP Home and Pro)
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/321305/en-us

JS

Thank you very much, JS. I'll try to see if I can help my
mother.

J.

 

[JS]

You're welcome, hope you have success.

JS

Thank you very much, JS. I'll try to see if I can help my
mother.

J.

 

[Guest]

Is "CAPs Lock" on? There may be a light on the keyboard near the top, if it
is. Or, just push "Caps Lock" button once, and then try her password.

Luck!

 

[Elmo]

Last night, my elderly mother mentioned that she hasn't been able
to use her computer for months. She said she's "locked out" and
that her password isn't recognized.

I think she has XP Home, but I'm not sure. Are there any very
simple steps I can tell her to try, to get back into her
computer?

It needs to be super simple because she doesn't even know how to
use email.

Many thanks for any suggestions.

Have her turn off the Caps Lock key so the password will be correct.

 

[Jyeshta]

Is "CAPs Lock" on? There may be a light on the keyboard near the top, if it
is. Or, just push "Caps Lock" button once, and then try her password.

I don't know because I can't get to where she lives (no car), and
I really doubt if she'd be able to understand what I was trying
to tell her, either.

Luck!

Thank you, and thank you for your advice. I'm afraid my mother
is phobic about dealing with her computer (as well as having to
call her so-called ISP, AOL, because of their intimidating
recorded voice loop that makes it hard (for her) to get a human
on the line).

But thanks very much.

J.

 

[Jyeshta]

Have her turn off the Caps Lock key so the password will be correct.

Thank you very much. If I could get over there I could probably
fix the problem, but trying to explain to her what to do over the
phone, I find now, is probably going to be impossible.

J.

 

[Elmo]

Thank you very much. If I could get over there I could probably
fix the problem, but trying to explain to her what to do over the
phone, I find now, is probably going to be impossible.

She can look at the keyboard to see if the Caps Lock LED is lit.

 

[Jyeshta]

She can look at the keyboard to see if the Caps Lock LED is lit.

Joe, my mother doesn't even want to try. She said it makes her
nervous and she starts sweating. She won't listen to me when I
try to tell her it won't be hard; she starts talking over me
about how the recorded message on AOL said "click this and click
that, and they're talking so fast!". At this point I'm not sure
if the problem is with her AOL password, or her computer password
and she was getting double-billed by AOL on top of all this.

I called AOL yesterday and it was disgustingly hard trying to get
a human on the line but eventually I did. He gave me the direct
number for their billing department, which I told her to call
first, from her cell phone, in case it's an AOL password problem
(she has their cheap dial-up service). And she just kept saying,
no, no, no.

So thank you very much anyway. Helping my mom's sort of a lost
cause, I guess.

 

[peter]

I work in a seniors complex and have helped many a senior setup/fix their
computer.
The "loss" of a password is a common problem.
AOL is a seperate major problem.It also seems that she lives far from you so
you cannot just go and fix.
So here are a few suggestions.
Contact the local "geek squad" or reputable Computer repair person where she
lives and explain the problem and have them go to her house.
The best solution would be have her system boot without a password....and
have Internet access without a pasword...I dont know if this possible with
AOL but then AOL is not very customer oriented when you already a client.
Cancel her AOL Account and sign her up with the local telcom/cable company
where access does not require a password
peter

 

[Jyeshta]

I work in a seniors complex and have helped many a senior setup/fix their
computer.
The "loss" of a password is a common problem.
AOL is a seperate major problem.It also seems that she lives far from you so
you cannot just go and fix.
So here are a few suggestions.
Contact the local "geek squad" or reputable Computer repair person where she
lives and explain the problem and have them go to her house.

She doesn't want that - they charge too much. She's happy to
wait until my brother in law can get over there, so there's
nothing more I can do in this case.

The best solution would be have her system boot without a password....and
have Internet access without a pasword...I dont know if this possible with
AOL but then AOL is not very customer oriented when you already a client.
Cancel her AOL Account and sign her up with the local telcom/cable company
where access does not require a password

I'd love to do that, but she won't switch (yet, at least), plus
she doesn't want more than about a 10 dollar internet fee per
month. She's completely intimidated by AOL and I think she's
only going to trust my brother in law and sister to help her out
with any of this.

But thank you very much for all your suggestions. I appreciate
them, and everyone else's help with this question.

I should have found out more about my mother's attitude toward
her computer before posting.

J.

 

[Harry Ohrn]

But thank you very much for all your suggestions. I appreciate

them, and everyone else's help with this question.

I should have found out more about my mother's attitude toward
her computer before posting.

J.

Hey you learned quite abit about your mother's attitude and that will help
in the future. Next time she calls with a problem you can simply let her
vent her frustration and then tell her that whenever you or your
brother-in-law have time to get over you'll see if it can be fixed. It is
likely she will survive until that happens ;-)

 

[Jyeshta]

Hey you learned quite abit about your mother's attitude and that will help
in the future. Next time she calls with a problem you can simply let her
vent her frustration and then tell her that whenever you or your
brother-in-law have time to get over you'll see if it can be fixed. It is
likely she will survive until that happens ;-)

Yes... or I just won't say anything.

 

[Guest]

I didn't quite catch this, but I think you have to press CTRL+ALT+DEL when
you see the logon screen. If somebody can prove me wrong please tell me.

John.

 

[Gordon]

I didn't quite catch this, but I think you have to press CTRL+ALT+DEL when
you see the logon screen. If somebody can prove me wrong please tell me.

Doesn't work in XP Home, which apparently is what is on the machine in
question...

 

[Guest]

Start your computer and immediately start tapping the F8 key until your PC
beeps.
When you see a menu with Safe Mode, Last Known Good Configuration and all
that, choose Safe Mode. Select the operating system to start safe mode with
and press Enter. Now, you should see another account called "Administrator".
Click on that account. Now, click on Start, go to Run, and type in "control
userpasswords2" without quotas. Press Enter. Choose the account you with the
problem and click on "Reset Password...", now set your password. Click OK
twice, reboot into normal mode, choose your username, type your password and
that's it! You're done!

Good Luck!

John.

 

[Jyeshta]

Thank you, John. At least with what everyone has advised I can
pass the info along to my brother in law since my mother refuses
to touch her computer.

J.

 

[Guest]

You are welcome.

Thank you, John. At least with what everyone has advised I can
pass the info along to my brother in law since my mother refuses
to touch her computer.

J.

 

[Guest]

Oh, and thank you to everyone who helped Jyeshta.