Solved Forgotten password - How do I tell what version of Windows is installed? Key?


Calab

Calab

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Location
Alberta, Canada
OS
Windows 11 / Linux Mint
A friend has forgotten her Windows password, even with a decent hint, so can't log in. She wants me to just reset Windows and she will start over. I can download the Media Creation Tool and reinstall Windows, but I have a couple of questions...

1. How can I tell which version of Windows she is running if I can't log in?
2. If her activation is linked to a Microsoft account (which she has no idea about) will Windows still activate properly after being reinstalled?
3. Is there any way to tell how Windows was activated without logging into the computer?
4. Is there a way to start the Windows "reset" procedure from the hard drive without logging in?

I just don't want to wipe the machine and it not be able to activate.

Thanks!
 
Windows Build/Version
Unknown

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 / Linux Mint
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    C.S.D.
    CPU
    i9-12900k
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte Z690 UD AX DDR4
    Memory
    32 GB DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    Strix RTX 3060
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG QNED75URA 43" TV
    Screen Resolution
    3840x2160
    Hard Drives
    One 1tb M.2 for Windows, one 500gb M.2 for Linux, and a 8 TB HDD for data
    PSU
    850 watt
    Case
    Cougar
    Cooling
    upHere D6SEC CPU Cooler
    Keyboard
    Logitech G213
    Mouse
    Logitech G305
    Internet Speed
    1Gbit/100mb
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Microsoft
    Other Info
    Bluray optical writer drive
  • Operating System
    SpartaDOS
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Atari 600XL
    CPU
    6502C
    Memory
    Ultimate 1MB
    Graphics card(s)
    Sophia 2
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Sony MFM-HT95
    Screen Resolution
    320x200
    Hard Drives
    SIDE3
    PSU
    USB

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win 11 Home ♦♦♦26200.8457 ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦25H2
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® [May 2020]
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3700X
    Motherboard
    Asus Pro WS X570-ACE (BIOS 5302)
    Memory
    G.Skill (F4-3200C14D-16GTZKW)
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA RTX 2070 (08G-P4-2171-KR)
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC1220P / ALC S1220A
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell U3011 30"
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1600
    Hard Drives
    2x Samsung 860 EVO 500GB,
    WD 4TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    WD 8TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    DRW-24B1ST CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling 750W Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Cooler Master ATCS 840 Tower
    Cooling
    CM Hyper 212 EVO (push/pull)
    Keyboard
    Ducky DK9008 Shine II Blue LED
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-100
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox (latest)
    Antivirus
    Bitdefender Total Security
    Other Info
    Speakers: Klipsch Pro Media 2.1
  • Operating System
    Windows XP Pro 32bit w/SP3
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® (not in use)
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ (OC'd @ 3.2Ghz)
    Motherboard
    ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition
    Memory
    TWIN2X2048-6400C4DHX (2 x 1GB, DDR2 800)
    Graphics card(s)
    EVGA 256-P2-N758-TR GeForce 8600GT SSC
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ViewSonic G90FB Black 19" Professional (CRT)
    Screen Resolution
    up to 2048 x 1536
    Hard Drives
    WD 36GB 10,000rpm Raptor SATA
    Seagate 80GB 7200rpm SATA
    Lite-On LTR-52246S CD/RW
    Lite-On LH-18A1P CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Generic Beige case, 80mm fans
    Cooling
    ZALMAN 9500A 92mm CPU Cooler
    Keyboard
    Logitech Classic Keybooard 200
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-BT96a
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox 3.x ??
    Antivirus
    Symantec (Norton)
    Other Info
    Still assembled, still runs. Haven't turned it on for 15 years?
Extra question... If I boot from a Live CD (Windows PE, Linux, etc.) and bitlocker is not active, I should be able to see the files, shouldn't I? Would there be a way to find the Microsoft account (not password) that was used to activate Windows, if the activation is linked to an Microsoft account?
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 / Linux Mint
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    C.S.D.
    CPU
    i9-12900k
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte Z690 UD AX DDR4
    Memory
    32 GB DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    Strix RTX 3060
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG QNED75URA 43" TV
    Screen Resolution
    3840x2160
    Hard Drives
    One 1tb M.2 for Windows, one 500gb M.2 for Linux, and a 8 TB HDD for data
    PSU
    850 watt
    Case
    Cougar
    Cooling
    upHere D6SEC CPU Cooler
    Keyboard
    Logitech G213
    Mouse
    Logitech G305
    Internet Speed
    1Gbit/100mb
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Microsoft
    Other Info
    Bluray optical writer drive
  • Operating System
    SpartaDOS
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Atari 600XL
    CPU
    6502C
    Memory
    Ultimate 1MB
    Graphics card(s)
    Sophia 2
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Sony MFM-HT95
    Screen Resolution
    320x200
    Hard Drives
    SIDE3
    PSU
    USB
Calab said:
A friend has forgotten her Windows password, even with a decent hint, so can't log in. She wants me to just reset Windows and she will start over. I can download the Media Creation Tool and reinstall Windows, but I have a couple of questions...

1. How can I tell which version of Windows she is running if I can't log in?
Click to expand...


WMIC was deprecated and could have been added.

Try:

wmic datafile where name='c:\\windows\\explorer.exe' get version
wmic os get caption

or

Boot to Windows RE > command prompt > type:

notepad
notepad

bcdedit | find "osdevice"
(Identify the assigned Windows drive letter)

(change the letter W: to the applicable drive letter)

dism /image:W:\ /get-packages /format:list

cd W:\Windows\INF

Save the setupapi.dev.log to notepad or a flash drive > post a share link


Calab said:
2. If her activation is linked to a Microsoft account (which she has no idea about) will Windows still activate properly after being reinstalled?
Click to expand...

When a clean install is activated its licensing data is entered into Microsoft servers.

Having a Microsoft account is not required for a clean install reactivation.


Calab said:
3. Is there any way to tell how Windows was activated without logging into the computer?
Click to expand...



Calab said:
4. Is there a way to start the Windows "reset" procedure from the hard drive without logging in?
Click to expand...

A reset may be unavailable.

A custom install is performed via Windows RE.

It has similarities to reset save files.

Drivers and applications need to be reinstalled.

Files are saved to a new Windows.old > important files are restored from Windows.old after the clean install.

A custom install may require a password.


www.elevenforum.com

Custom Install Windows 11

This tutorial will show you how to do a custom clean install of Windows 11 on your PC. When you perform a custom install of Windows 11, a clean install of Windows 11 is performed only on the same partition as the current installation of Windows to replace it. The previous installation is moved...
www.elevenforum.com www.elevenforum.com

www.elevenforum.com

Restore Files from Windows.old Folder in Windows 11

This tutorial will show you how to manually restore files from the Windows.old folder in Windows 11. When you upgrade to Windows 11 from Windows 10, repair install Windows 11, custom install Windows 11, or update to a new version of Windows 11 (ex: Windows Update), a copy of the previous...
www.elevenforum.com www.elevenforum.com
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP
    CPU
    Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-4800MQ CPU @ 2.70GHz
    Motherboard
    Product : 190A Version : KBC Version 94.56
    Memory
    16 GB Total: Manufacturer : Samsung MemoryType : DDR3 FormFactor : SODIMM Capacity : 8GB Speed : 1600
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Quadro K3100M; Intel(R) HD Graphics 4600
    Sound Card
    IDT High Definition Audio CODEC; PNP Device ID HDAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_111D&DEV_76E0
    Hard Drives
    Model Hitachi HTS727575A9E364
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Defender
    Other Info
    Mobile Workstation
If you are not averse to a dual boot you can just pop in a fresh drive, install Windows on it, and download BelArc Advisor for free. You don't have to activate the Windows license on the new drive. Bel Arc will tell you what operating systems are on the PC so you can go from there. After you are done you can just pull the new drive. This is just one of many approaches. If you're familiar with using CMD I would recommend following what zbook posted here.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    WIN 11, WIN 10, WIN 8.1, WIN 7 U, WIN 7 PRO, WIN 7 HOME (32 Bit), LINUX MINT
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    DIY, ASUS, and DELL
    CPU
    Intel i7 6900K and i9-7960X / AMD 3800X (8 core)
    Motherboard
    ASUS X99E-WS USB 3.1 and ASUS X299 SAGE
    Memory
    128 GB CORSAIR DOMINATOR PLATINUM (B DIE)
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA 1070 and RTX 3070
    Sound Card
    Crystal Sound (onboard)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    single Samsung 30" 4K and 8" aux monitor
    Screen Resolution
    4K and something equally attrocious. I'll be working on this.
    Hard Drives
    A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W

    Ports X, Y, and Z are reserved for USB access and removable drives.

    Drive types consist of the following: Various mechanical hard drives bearing the brand names, Seagate, Toshiba, and Western Digital. Various NVMe drives bearing the brand names Kingston, Intel, Silicon Power, Crucial, Western Digital, and Team Group. Various SATA SSDs bearing various different brand names.

    RAID arrays included:

    LSI RAID 10 (WD Velociraptors) 1115.72 GB
    LSI RAID 10 (WD SSDS) 463.80 GB

    INTEL RAID 0 (KINGSTON HYPER X) System 447.14 GB
    INTEL RAID 1 TOSHIBA ENTERPRIZE class Data 2794.52 GB
    INTEL RAID 1 SEAGATE HYBRID 931.51 GB
    PSU
    SEVERAL. I prefer my Corsair Platinum HX1000i but I also like EVGA power supplies
    Case
    ThermalTake Level 10 GT (among others)
    Cooling
    Noctua is my favorite and I use it in my main. I also own various other coolers.
    Keyboard
    all kinds.
    Mouse
    all kinds
    Internet Speed
    360 mbps - 1 gbps (depending)
    Browser
    FIREFOX
    Antivirus
    KASPERSKY (no apologies)
    Other Info
    Gave Dell touch screen with Windows 11 to daughter and got me an OTVOC. Being a PC builder I own many desktop PCs as well. I am a father of five providing PCs, laptops, and tablets for all my family, most of which I have modified, rebuilt, or simply built from scratch. I do not own a cell phone, never have, never will.
Calab said:
Extra question... If I boot from a Live CD (Windows PE, Linux, etc.) and bitlocker is not active, I should be able to see the files, shouldn't I? Would there be a way to find the Microsoft account (not password) that was used to activate Windows, if the activation is linked to an Microsoft account?
Click to expand...
Ideally, with a fresh installation you can prompt Windows to search your PC for the activation key when you attempt to activate. It is also possible to access the user files on the old OS if bit-locker is not active via Windows Manager or Explorer when you install your OS on a fresh drive. This method will allow you to copy over the personal data to the new drive. It is an option.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    WIN 11, WIN 10, WIN 8.1, WIN 7 U, WIN 7 PRO, WIN 7 HOME (32 Bit), LINUX MINT
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    DIY, ASUS, and DELL
    CPU
    Intel i7 6900K and i9-7960X / AMD 3800X (8 core)
    Motherboard
    ASUS X99E-WS USB 3.1 and ASUS X299 SAGE
    Memory
    128 GB CORSAIR DOMINATOR PLATINUM (B DIE)
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA 1070 and RTX 3070
    Sound Card
    Crystal Sound (onboard)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    single Samsung 30" 4K and 8" aux monitor
    Screen Resolution
    4K and something equally attrocious. I'll be working on this.
    Hard Drives
    A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W

    Ports X, Y, and Z are reserved for USB access and removable drives.

    Drive types consist of the following: Various mechanical hard drives bearing the brand names, Seagate, Toshiba, and Western Digital. Various NVMe drives bearing the brand names Kingston, Intel, Silicon Power, Crucial, Western Digital, and Team Group. Various SATA SSDs bearing various different brand names.

    RAID arrays included:

    LSI RAID 10 (WD Velociraptors) 1115.72 GB
    LSI RAID 10 (WD SSDS) 463.80 GB

    INTEL RAID 0 (KINGSTON HYPER X) System 447.14 GB
    INTEL RAID 1 TOSHIBA ENTERPRIZE class Data 2794.52 GB
    INTEL RAID 1 SEAGATE HYBRID 931.51 GB
    PSU
    SEVERAL. I prefer my Corsair Platinum HX1000i but I also like EVGA power supplies
    Case
    ThermalTake Level 10 GT (among others)
    Cooling
    Noctua is my favorite and I use it in my main. I also own various other coolers.
    Keyboard
    all kinds.
    Mouse
    all kinds
    Internet Speed
    360 mbps - 1 gbps (depending)
    Browser
    FIREFOX
    Antivirus
    KASPERSKY (no apologies)
    Other Info
    Gave Dell touch screen with Windows 11 to daughter and got me an OTVOC. Being a PC builder I own many desktop PCs as well. I am a father of five providing PCs, laptops, and tablets for all my family, most of which I have modified, rebuilt, or simply built from scratch. I do not own a cell phone, never have, never will.
Your initial question /problem doesn't seem to have been addressed.
A friend has forgotten her Windows password, even with a decent hint, so can't log in.
Click to expand...
It is possible to reset a password when it has been lost/forgotten. How depends on whether the account in question is a local account or a MS account.
The procedure may make use of the built-in hidden administrator account, or a MS account password can be reset on line.

www.elevenforum.com

Reset Password for Account in Windows 11

This tutorial will show you how to reset the password of a local account and Microsoft account in Windows 11. If you forgot or lost your account password for Windows 11, you may be able to change or reset it. References: Change or reset your Windows password Reset your Windows local account...
www.elevenforum.com www.elevenforum.com

Note: blue links in text are clickable and may open another tutorial.

This does not require knowing the Windows build.
A similar tutorial exists for Windows 10 - see tenforums.com tutorials.

Activation: as the digital entitlement to Windows is held against a hash of a form of the hardware id of the device (excluding RAM and disk) this should not be an issue, although certain problems can arise.

Bitlocker: If this is enabled (not available on Home editions) this would be a problem.

Reset Windows:
Given the lost password, if you don't succeed in resetting it, your only option (using this procedure) would be to reset Windows losing everything including accounts. Rather a last resort.
And yes, can be done even if you can't log in - see:
www.elevenforum.com

Reset Windows 11 PC

This tutorial will show you how to reset Windows 11 and Remove everything or Keep my files. You can reset Windows 11 when your PC isn’t working well and it’s been a while since you installed an app, driver, or update. Resetting reinstalls Windows 11, but lets you choose whether to keep your...
www.elevenforum.com www.elevenforum.com
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo t480s
    CPU
    i7-8650U
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel UHD 620
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    C SN810 SDCPNRY-512G-1006
    Browser
    Edge, Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender
Just to follow up... She told me just to wipe everything as it was "acting funny" anyhow. Had no issues installing and Windows activated without any issues. She's happy.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 / Linux Mint
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    C.S.D.
    CPU
    i9-12900k
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte Z690 UD AX DDR4
    Memory
    32 GB DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    Strix RTX 3060
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG QNED75URA 43" TV
    Screen Resolution
    3840x2160
    Hard Drives
    One 1tb M.2 for Windows, one 500gb M.2 for Linux, and a 8 TB HDD for data
    PSU
    850 watt
    Case
    Cougar
    Cooling
    upHere D6SEC CPU Cooler
    Keyboard
    Logitech G213
    Mouse
    Logitech G305
    Internet Speed
    1Gbit/100mb
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Microsoft
    Other Info
    Bluray optical writer drive
  • Operating System
    SpartaDOS
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Atari 600XL
    CPU
    6502C
    Memory
    Ultimate 1MB
    Graphics card(s)
    Sophia 2
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Sony MFM-HT95
    Screen Resolution
    320x200
    Hard Drives
    SIDE3
    PSU
    USB
And thank you for your reply.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo t480s
    CPU
    i7-8650U
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel UHD 620
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    C SN810 SDCPNRY-512G-1006
    Browser
    Edge, Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender
Please mark this thread as Solved
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro - Windows 7 HP 64 - Lubuntu
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    custom build
    CPU
    i5 6600K - 800MHz to 4400MHz
    Motherboard
    GA-Z170-HD3P
    Memory
    4+4G GSkill DDR4 3000
    Graphics Card(s)
    IG - Intel 530
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung 226BW
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    (1) -1 SM951 – 128GB M.2 AHCI PCIe SSD drive for Win 11
    (2) -1 WD SATA 3 - 1T for Data
    (3) -1 WD SATA 3 - 1T for backup
    (4) -1 BX500 SSD - 256G for Windows 7 and Lubuntu
    PSU
    Thermaltake 450W TR2 gold
    Keyboard
    Old and good Chicony mechanical keyboard
    Mouse
    Logitech mX performance - 9 buttons (had to disable some)
    Internet Speed
    500 Mb/s
    Browser
    Firefox 64
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Asus Q550LF
    CPU
    i7-4500U 800- 3000MHz
    Motherboard
    Asus Q550LF
    Memory
    (4+4)G DDR3 1600
    Graphics card(s)
    IG intel 4400 + NVIDIA GeForce GT 745M
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG Display LP156WF4-SPH1
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    BX500 120G SSD for Windows and programs
    & 1T HDD for data
    Internet Speed
    500 Mb/s
    Browser
    Firefox 64
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