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How to Bypass Windows Passwords using Kali
Linux
Frost · Follow
Published in System Weakness
3 min read · Oct 12
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In this tutorial, you’re going to learn how to reset/remove forgotten passwords on
any Windows computer.
Using this method you can unlock any Windows device without knowing the user
password and without formatting the hard disk.
To perform this experiment I will use a little program called chntpw. This chntpw
can remove the password of a user in Windows SAM files, even this program can
edit the Windows registry. The tool comes pre-installed by default in Kali Linux.
Make Bootable USB of Kali Linux
When you’re locked out of Windows, you need to use another computer to make a
Kali bootable USB. Please follow the steps listed below.
Download the ISO image of Kali Linux here. It’s free.
Next, you’ll need a program to install Kali on your USB drive and make it
bootable. I will use Rufus. Just download and install it on your local PC.
Start the Rufus utility and browse to locate your Kali Linux image.
Click Start to create a Kali Live USB drive.
After successfully creating a bootable USB, plug it into the USB port of your
Windows computer and boot from the USB.
You may have to press a special key (e.g., Esc, F2, F12, Del, etc.) during bootup to get
the computer to boot from the USB instead of the hard drive.
Remove Windows Password
Here I have entered into the Kali Linux operating system.
Click on the “File System” and open it. After opening it, select the drive of the
window machine where the windows is installed.
Open in app
After that right-click on a blank space in this location, and select open terminal
here, then go Search
to “/Windows /System32/config/” using the cd command. Now you
have reached the place where the Windows password file is kept.
List Users
Use the following command to find all existing users on the Windows machine.
chntpw -l SAM
Select the user whose password you want to remove. In my case is “Workgroup”. Just
replace the username and execute the following command.
chntpw -u Workgroup SAM
After executing the command it shows you different options. All you have to do is
proceed by selecting option 1 “Clear (blank) user password” to remove the Windows
password.
Then press “q” and “y” to save the changes.
At this point, you can reboot your computer and unplug the USB drive, you’ll see
there’s no password required to log in. I hope this will be helpful if you ever need to
reset/remove a Windows password.
Thank you!
Windows 10 Password Reset Passwords Hacking Kali Linux
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Written by Frost
941 Followers · Writer for System Weakness
I love computers and technology, particularly in the areas of wireless encryption protocols, web
development, network security, and blockchain.
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