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A client forgot his wondows 10 password and doesn't mind loosing his files. I was wondering if using the reset this PC option and choosing to remove all files will remove all user accounts. I have never used this option before and a complete format would waste a lot of time.

Sibusiso Shongwe
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    Reset will reinstall Windows 10, if you choose to keep nothing, all files from the old Windows installation will be transfered to the `Windows.old` folder. The user profile will be transfered, so the user would still need to know, the password to that profile. Use the built-in Administrator to reset the password to the account in question, if it's currently disabled, you should enable it. I am choosing to flag this as a duplicate, due to the fact, the proper solution to this problem is to use the built-in Administrator. What Reset does exactly would be a different duplicate though. – Ramhound Aug 07 '19 at 19:46
  • Possible duplicate of [How to get rights of admin after I disabled all admin accounts in my computer](https://superuser.com/questions/1024203/how-to-get-rights-of-admin-after-i-disabled-all-admin-accounts-in-my-computer) – Ramhound Aug 07 '19 at 19:47

3 Answers3

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This was a perfect example of an XY problem.

You asked how to remove all Windows user accounts, when really, all you were trying to do was allow a user to use their PC again after they forgot their password.

So the real question here was simply, "How can I reset a user's password in Windows 10?"

It's actually very straightforward:

  1. Download ophcrack
  2. Create a bootable ophcrack optical disc or USB drive
  3. Reboot the target PC and select the bootable media as the boot drive
  4. Use ophcrack to perform an offline attack (i.e. outside of Windows) and reset the user's password stored in the SAM file
  5. Reboot and confirm the user is now able to log in to his account using his new password

Once you have the disc created, the actual password reset procedure only takes around five minutes.

enter image description here

Mr Ethernet
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Win + R brings up run box then type netplwiz when it pops up uncheck users must enter password when signing in and you will be able to access the desktop and update whatever info I know it's a few years after this posting but I had a similar issue this option worked in less then 7 mins, I figured I'd share in case someone else runs into the same problem

DarkDiamond
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Kristindb88
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  • Your answer could be improved with additional supporting information. Please [edit] to add further details, such as citations or documentation, so that others can confirm that your answer is correct. You can find more information on how to write good answers [in the help center](/help/how-to-answer). – Community May 16 '22 at 20:44
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I used the option... It completely wiped the system clean and I had to create a completely new user account, passwords and find all drivers from scratch. Nothing from the old OS was left.

Sibusiso Shongwe
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  • You could have reset his Windows password in about 10 minutes, using a bootable DVD. Blowing everything away was a terrible way to handle a forgotten password. Talk about throwing the baby out with the bathwater. This was an "XY problem". The real issue was resetting his password. – Mr Ethernet Aug 21 '19 at 17:59
  • I have no idea how I could have done that. If you could point me in the right direction so that I could investigate and hopefully not have to got the long next time – Sibusiso Shongwe Aug 22 '19 at 18:10
  • Absolutely. I'll post an answer for you now. – Mr Ethernet Aug 28 '19 at 20:42