Resetting a Windows 10 Local Administrator Password

Many end clients will use Windows 8.1 or Windows 10 as agent hardware. Most usual ISO-based password retrieval tools such as NTPassword or KonBoot will fail (mostly with 64bit versions of the OS). A simple and secure way of resetting a local administrator password:

Boot the computer in Windows install using removable media (Windows install disk). You might have to turn off secure boot and/or enable legacy or setup mode in BIOS, depending on your hardware and BIOS .

Press Shift + F10 to load the command prompt

In the command prompt, type the following command:

move c:\windows\system32\utilman.exe c:\windows\system32\utilman.exe.bak

…afterwards:

copy C:\windows\system32\cmd.exe c:\windows\system32\utilman.exe

…and then finally:

wpeutil reboot

System will reboot and load Windows normally. Click on the Utility Manager icon (lower left corner), and command prompt will open. Type in the following commands:

net user TempAdmin /add

net localgroup administrators TempAdmin /add

Log on with your new user called TempAdmin and change the password for any other local account.

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