Administrator password?

I'm a total novice in the area of user accounts, etc. The only reason
I'm into it now is that it seems I might need to change some
'permissions' to get my Services Properties working again (separate
post: 'Service Properties - no Dependencies').

As I am a sole XP Home user (no network, apart from my broadband
line), things ought to be as simple as they come. One key initial step
for me is to make sure I can logon as 'Administrator' in Safe mode. I
gather that's the only way MS will let me alter my own PC! This will
unfortunately take rather long for me to describe thoroughly, so
please excuse the length of the post.

I spent many hours last night researching some basics. I wish I could
find a simple tutorial; anyone know one?. Anyway, at a DOS prompt in
XP Home this morning I entered:
C:\net user administrator

and this is what I got:
-----------------------------------------------------------
User name Administrator
Full Name
Comment Built-in account for administering the
computer/dom
ain
User's comment
Country code 000 (System Default)
Account active Yes
Account expires Never

Password last set 9/22/2004 12:38 PM
Password expires Never
Password changeable 9/22/2004 12:38 PM
Password required Yes
User may change password Yes

Workstations allowed All
Logon script
User profile
Home directory
Last logon 3/16/2002 5:59 PM

Logon hours allowed All

Local Group Memberships *Administrators
Global Group memberships *None
The command completed successfully.
-------------------------------------------------------------

This immediately raises some questions:

1). I don't recall entering a password for 'Administrator'. I do
remember phoning the suppliers of this OEM PC, MESH UK, shortly after
buying it a couple of years ago, and they insisted they had not used a
password when they set it up. But the above says it was last set on
22nd Sep! How can that be?

2) If the last logon was 16th March 2002, over two years ago, how can
the password have been set only a couple of weeks ago?

3) How can I now find my password, and if necessary change it to
something I will remember? Note: I do have a PW for my own user name,
which I log onto each time I reboot (rarely).

I'm truly floundering here, so any help would be much appreciated
please.

--
Terry, West Sussex, UK

Terry Pinnell wrote:

[snip]

This immediately raises some questions:

1). I don't recall entering a password for 'Administrator'. I do
remember phoning the suppliers of this OEM PC, MESH UK, shortly after
buying it a couple of years ago, and they insisted they had not used a
password when they set it up. But the above says it was last set on
22nd Sep! How can that be?

2) If the last logon was 16th March 2002, over two years ago, how can
the password have been set only a couple of weeks ago?

3) How can I now find my password, and if necessary change it to
something I will remember? Note: I do have a PW for my own user name,
which I log onto each time I reboot (rarely).

I'm truly floundering here, so any help would be much appreciated
please.
Hi

If you other user is a member of the Administrators group, you
can use this user account to reset the password for the
"Administrator" account.

If not:

You might try to reset the local Administrator
password with one of the methods mentioned he

http://securityadmin.info/noframes/faqget.asp#password

http://www.petri.co.il/forgot_admini...r_password.htm


--
torgeir, Microsoft MVP Scripting and WMI, Porsgrunn Norway
Administration scripting examples and an ONLINE version of
the 1328 page Scripting Guide:
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/scr...r/default.mspx

"Torgeir Bakken \(MVP\)" wrote:

Terry Pinnell wrote:

[snip]

This immediately raises some questions:

1). I don't recall entering a password for 'Administrator'. I do
remember phoning the suppliers of this OEM PC, MESH UK, shortly after
buying it a couple of years ago, and they insisted they had not used a
password when they set it up. But the above says it was last set on
22nd Sep! How can that be?

2) If the last logon was 16th March 2002, over two years ago, how can
the password have been set only a couple of weeks ago?

3) How can I now find my password, and if necessary change it to
something I will remember? Note: I do have a PW for my own user name,
which I log onto each time I reboot (rarely).

I'm truly floundering here, so any help would be much appreciated
please.
Hi

If you other user is a member of the Administrators group, you
can use this user account to reset the password for the
"Administrator" account.

If not:

You might try to reset the local Administrator
password with one of the methods mentioned he

http://securityadmin.info/noframes/faqget.asp#password

http://www.petri.co.il/forgot_admini...r_password.htm

Thanks a lot, Torgeir. Appreciate the fast reply.

--
Terry, West Sussex, UK