To accomplish this, we’ll use a tool called Ophcrack that can crack your password so
you can login without having to change it.
you can login without having to change it.
Download Ophcrack
The first thing we will need to do is download the CD image from Ophcrack’s website.
There are two options to download, XP or Vista, so make sure you grab the right one.
The Vista download works with Windows Vista or Windows 7, and the only difference
between XP and Vista is the “tables” Ophcrack uses to determine the password.
There are two options to download, XP or Vista, so make sure you grab the right one.
The Vista download works with Windows Vista or Windows 7, and the only difference
between XP and Vista is the “tables” Ophcrack uses to determine the password.
Once the .iso file is downloaded, burn it to a CD using the guide below.
If you are going to be cracking your password on something that doesn’t have a CD
drive, such as a netbook, download the universal USB creator from PenDrive Linux
(Link Below). A USB drive will not only run faster but you can also use a single USB
drive for Windows XP, Vista, and 7 if you copy the needed tables to the drive.
drive, such as a netbook, download the universal USB creator from PenDrive Linux
(Link Below). A USB drive will not only run faster but you can also use a single USB
drive for Windows XP, Vista, and 7 if you copy the needed tables to the drive.
To create a USB drive that works with all versions of Windows, download the free
password tables from Ophcrack’s website.
password tables from Ophcrack’s website.
Note: There are free tables available on Ophcrack’s website and there are paid tables,
the paid tables will typically get the job done faster and will be able to crack more
complex passwords but the paid tables may not fit on a USB drive because they range
in size from 3 GB to 135 GB.
the paid tables will typically get the job done faster and will be able to crack more
complex passwords but the paid tables may not fit on a USB drive because they range
in size from 3 GB to 135 GB.
Now extract the tables to \tables\vista_free on the USB drive and they will be used automatically by Ophcrack.
Boot from CD/USB
Boot the computer from the CD or USB drive that you created.
Note: On some computers you may have to go into the BIOS settings to change the
boot order or push a key to show the boot menu.
boot order or push a key to show the boot menu.
Once the disk is done booting, Ophcrack should start automatically and will begin cracking
the passwords for all of the users on your computer.
the passwords for all of the users on your computer.
Note: If the computer boots and you only have a blank screen or Ophcrack doesn’t start,
try restarting the computer and selecting manual or low RAM options on the live CD
boot menu.
try restarting the computer and selecting manual or low RAM options on the live CD
boot menu.
If you have a complex password it will take a lot longer than simple passwords, and with
the free tables your password may never be cracked. Once the crack is done you will see
the password in plain text, write it down and reboot the machine to login. If your
password isn’t cracked, you can also log in as one of the other users with admin rights
and then change your password from within Windows.
the free tables your password may never be cracked. Once the crack is done you will see
the password in plain text, write it down and reboot the machine to login. If your
password isn’t cracked, you can also log in as one of the other users with admin rights
and then change your password from within Windows.
With the free tables available you will not be able to crack every password, but the paid
tables range from $100 to $1000 so you may be better off just resetting your password
with on of these tutorials:
tables range from $100 to $1000 so you may be better off just resetting your password
with on of these tutorials:
- Reset password with Ubuntu live CD
- Change password with Linux System Rescue CD
- Reset password with Ultimate Boot CD
- Reset password with password reset disk
You can get all of the software needed for password cracking from these links.
If you aren’t using drive encryption and you’ve got a tough password, it’s usually much
faster to reset the password using one of the tools above, but we like to show you all
the different techniques that you can use.
faster to reset the password using one of the tools above, but we like to show you all
the different techniques that you can use.
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