For some strange reason, I am unable to change the password for my Windows 7.
I have only one user in my system. The user has admin privileges. I am pretty sure that I know the password. If I lock my computer via "Start → Shut down: Lock", I can unlock with my current password.
First, I have the following issues with locking/unlocking my OS:
- If I try to unlock with empty password or invalid password, I get "The user name or password is incorrect." message. Then, if I enter the correct password, I still get that message. I need to click "Switch user" and enter the correct password to unlock.
- Sometimes when I lock my computer via "Start → Shut down: Lock" and enter the correct password, I still get that message and need to "Switch user".
Further, I have the following issues when I try to change the password:
- I tried to change the password via "Ctrl+Alt+Del → Change a password...", but I still get the "The user name or password is incorrect." message.
- I also tried to change the password via "Control Panel\User Accounts and Family Safety\User Accounts\Manage Accounts\Change an Account\Change Password", but I get "The password you typed is incorrect. Please retype your current password." message.
I tried the following workarounds:
- Created a new admin account with a new password. But I get that error message when I try to log into that account.
- Tried to remove the password via "Control Panel\User Accounts and Family Safety\User Accounts" and got "Windows cannot remove the password. Password and/or account policies require the account to have a password" message.
- Update. As per @InterLinked advice, I tried to change the password with
net user
, but I was unable to log in after rebooting, and needed to remove the password withchntpw
from Ubuntu live CD. After setting a new password from within Windows, I was unable to log in after rebooting again.
Some background information:
- I observe this behavior for several days across multiple reboots
- I tried the on-screen keyboard to enter the password, and that did not help
- The keyboard language layout is correct; no CapsLock, NumLock issues
- I believe, that is not a virus issue, because I have a well-known antivirus software installed along with the recent virus signatures updates.
- The system has all Windows updates installed
- I tried Windows built-in disk checking tool, and that did not report errors
- The system runs in a virtual machine (VirtualBox); the host is Ubuntu 14.04.4 LTS
Any ideas?