How to reset your Windows administrator password (VDS only)

[Edge100x]

This is the procedure to reset your administrator password when you do not remember the old one. If you do know the old one, you can simply log in and change it normally: http://www.nfoservers.com/forums/viewto ... =46&t=4030

To reset your password, you can use the "Windows_password_recovery.iso" DVD:

1. Insert "Windows_password_recovery.iso" into your virtual DVD drive through the "Server control" page.
2. Make sure that the "Try to boot from drive #1 before the hard disk" option is set.
3. Reboot your VDS, using the menu on the same page.
4. Go to the VNC console page in your control panel and follow the steps on the screen to use the tool to reset your password. Specifically,
   1. It will start with a prompt that says "boot:". Hit enter.
   2. It will give you a list of partitions.
      1. If you have Windows 2003, type "1" and hit enter.
      2. If you have Windows 2008/2012/2016/2019/2022/2025, type "2" and hit enter.
   3. It will ask you for the path to the registry directory. Hit enter.
   4. It will ask for the part of the registry to load. Hit enter.
   5. It will ask the action that you want to perform. Hit enter.
   6. It will ask you for the user to adjust. Hit enter.
   7. It will ask you how you want to edit the user. Type "1" (which means to clear the user password) and hit enter. Do not attempt to set a new password here, as it will corrupt your user account
   8. It will show the menu from 4f. Type "!" and hit enter.
   9. It will show the menu from 4e. Type "q" and hit enter.
   10. It will ask if you want to save. Type "y" and hit enter.
   11. It will ask you if you want to run again. Hit enter.
5. Use the "Server control" page to remove the DVD from the virtual drive again. Then, use the selector to reboot the VDS.
6. After Windows boots, visit the VNC Console page again. On Windows 2003, you will likely have to log in, using "Administrator" and an empty password. On Windows 2008+, you should already be logged in.

Finally, change your Windows administrator password.

There's a longer walkthrough for the procedure here: http://pogostick.net/~pnh/ntpasswd/walkthrough.html

If you think that your password was changed because your machine was compromised by a third party, you should also do the following, after re-obtaining access:

1. Clean up your personal machine (update your Windows install, change your passwords, check for malware, etc).
2. Change your control panel password. Also, change all your passwords on 3rd party sites (such as any email passwords).
3. Back up your VDS' files and settings.
4. Start over fresh with a new OS install.
5. Make sure that your OS is brought up to date right after the reinstall.
6. Re-customize your server. Use the latest, most up-to-date software revesions.

If you don't start over fresh, it is possible that your machine will remain compromised without your knowledge; virus and spyware checkers are fallible and can miss some rootkits.

[Edge100x]

This is an alternate set of steps to try if the original ones do not work.

1. Visit the "Server control" page for your VDS in our control panel.
2. Select install-amd64-minimal-20250518T165514Z.iso from the DVD images selector, and check the box to boot to the CD/DVD.
3. Reboot the VDS by making sure that "Reboot" is selected from the drop-down at the top and clicking "Perform action".
4. Wait 10 seconds, then visit your VNC console page. Click "1024x768" to pop out a separate window. Wait for the VDS to completely boot, leaving you with a command prompt that says livecd ~ # .
5. Mount your Windows partition in read-write mode with these commands:

   Code: Select all

   ntfsfix /dev/xvda2
   mount -o rw /dev/xvda2 /mnt/gentoo
   

6. Rename an accessibility file so that you can use it later to run a command prompt with these commands:

   Code: Select all

   cd /mnt/gentoo/Windows/System32
   mv Utilman.exe Utilman.backup.exe
   mv cmd.exe Utilman.exe
   

7. On the "Server control" page, uncheck "Try to boot from drive #1 before the hard disk" and submit that change.
8. In the console window, type shutdown -h now and press enter. Wait for it to say "Reconnecting...", then close the window.
9. Click the "Server control" page again and make sure that the VDS is "stopped". Click "Perform action" to turn it back on.
10. Click "VNC console" again and open a new "1024x768" window.
11. Wait for the system to boot and show the screen asking you to press Ctrl-Alt-Delete.
12. Press the small wedge on the right-hand side of the VNC window to expand additional options. Then, click the "A" at the top. Finally, click the bottom option with three solid boxes. (This means to send Ctrl+Alt+Delete to the OS.)
13. A login prompt should appear, asking for your password. In the lower right-hand corner of the screen, there will now be the icon of a person. Click it.
14. A command prompt window will pop up, open to "C:\Windows\System32". Enter these commands, replacing YourNewPassword123 with your desired password.

    Code: Select all

    net user Administrator YourNewPassword123
    copy Utilman.exe cmd.exe
    exit
    

15. You should now be able to log in again, using your new password.

Following this procedure, the accessibility option on the login page will continue to open a command prompt . If you'd like to restore the original system, simply follow the steps again to boot from the ISO and mount the partition, then run these commands instead of the original ones in step #6, before shutting down the system and unmounting the ISO again:

Code: Select all

cd /mnt/gentoo/Windows/System32
rm -y cmd.exe
mv Utilman.exe cmd.exe
mv Utilman.backup.exe Utilman.exe