This review is sponsored and made possible by PCUnlocker. However, the writer’s thoughts and experiences about PCUnlocker software are unaffected and unbiased.
I had a couple of instances where I forgot Windows login password and locked out from using it. Obviously, I didn’t want to reinstall my entire system as that would mean too much work considering the number of software I need to install and configure. To get access, I’ve been forced to use some complicated software to reset the password.
Sure, if I had a password reset disk the resetting process could’ve been much faster. However, let’s face it, almost no Windows user ever creates a password reset disk. In fact, most don’t even know they can create a password reset disk.
Related: How to change security questions in Windows 10
So, with that experience, if you ever forget Windows password and out of recovery options, you don’t have to use complicated software like me. You can use PCUnlocker. It makes things easier with its easy to use user interface and no-nonsense options. Let’s see what PCUnlocker actually is and how to use it to reset Windows password.
PCUnlocker Features
PCUnlocker is a very minimal and to the point software that lets you reset Windows password with just a few clicks. Below are some of the important and interesting features of PCUnlocker.
- Reset any user account password in Windows
- Bypass any user account in Windows
- Access command prompt from the recovery environment
- Backup Windows Registry
- Enable or disable user accounts in Windows
- Ability to retrieve product keys of Windows, Office, and any other compatible software
- Support for Active Directory accounts
- For Active Directory accounts and local accounts, you can remove login time restrictions
- Ability to promote limited or standard accounts to administrator accounts
- Support a wide range of Windows versions like 10, 8, 7, XP, Server 2016, Server 2012, Server 2008, etc.
Using PCUnlocker to Reset Windows Password
To reset Windows password, you first need to boot into PCUnlocker. However, right of the bat, the best thing about PCUnlocker is that you don’t have to install it on your system to create a bootable drive. Since PCUnlocker is in ISO format, you can either burn it into a CD/DVD disc or to a USB drive using software like Rufus.
Once you have the bootable drive, insert it, restart your system and boot into PCUnlocker recovery environment.
PCUnlocker is very minimal and gets right into helping you reset the password. From the home screen, select the recovery mode, your user account, and click on the “Reset password” button.
You will be prompted to enter a new password. Enter the password and click on the “Ok” button to change the password.
That is it. You are done resetting Windows password. Just restart the system and you should be able to log into your machine with the new password.
Using PCUnlocker to Bypass Windows Password
Now, there might be situations where you might not want to reset the password but still, want to log into the machine. In those situations, you can bypass Windows authentication temporarily. i.e, PCUnlocker will disable Windows authentication system for the next reboot to let you log in. After that, Windows password authentication works as usual. You can bypass the password authentication system with just a couple of clicks.
To bypass Windows password, click on the “Options” button and select the option “Bypass Windows Password.”
Now, click on the “Ok” button. What this prompt basically saying is that the bypass will only for the next reboot. After that, Windows password authentication will be automatically activated.
Click on the “Ok” button again and reboot your system to log in.
Conclusion
That’s all there is to do. It is that simple to use PCUnlocker to reset or bypass Windows password regardless of whether you are using a local account or Microsoft account to login.
Though you won’t be using PCUnlocker daily or even frequently, it is one of those software that you should have for emergency situations. After all resetting the password is way easier than completely reinstalling Windows.
When it comes to PCUnlocker features, I would like to see the ability to create new normal and administrator user accounts directly from the recovery environment. Also, it would be nice to see a bit modern user interface as the current one looks like it is from the XP era with a pinch of Windows 7 to it. That being said, it gets the job done with both speed and efficiency.
Since there is a free trial, give it try and see how it works for you.
Hope that helps.
