Learn how to reset the password of the admin account of a Windows Server OS via the OVHcloud rescue mode.
When you install or reinstall a Windows operating system, you are provided with a password for administrative access. We strongly recommend that you change this initial password, as detailed in our guide about securing a dedicated server. In case you have lost your admin password, it needs to be reset using rescue mode.
Windows
customer rescue system. Follow this guide when using the option Windows
customer rescue system (Windows2022-based) in the OVHcloud Control Panel.
Requirements
- a dedicated server with Windows installed in your OVHcloud account
- access to the OVHcloud Control Panel
Instructions
The following steps describe the process of changing the local admin password by using the OVHcloud rescue mode (Linux-based). If you would like to use Windows PE (WinRescue) instead, skip to that section.
Resetting the admin password using OVHcloud rescue mode
- Step 1: Rebooting the server into rescue mode
- Step 2: Mounting the system partition
- Step 3: Clearing the current password
- Step 4: Rebooting the server
Step 1: Rebooting the server into rescue mode
The system has to be started in rescue mode before the admin password can be changed.
For detailed instructions, please refer to the rescue mode guide.
Step 2: Mounting the system partition
Connect to your server via SSH (see our SSH introduction guide if needed). Since it is a Windows server, you will see partitions labeled “Microsoft LDM data”.
Output:
In the example output, “sda4” must be the (file) system partition, as determined by its size. Usually, there is a mirrored second output which in this case would be “/dev/sdbX“. That is because in most cases, the server will have multiple disks with identical partition schemes. For the password reset process, only the first one is important. Next, mount this partition:
Verify the mountpoint:
Output:
In the example above, the operation succeeded. If the mounting failed, you might receive an error message like this:
In this case, use the following command and then try to mount again.
Step 3: Clearing the current password
This step involves manipulating the SAM file with a tool to clear the admin user’s password. Change to the appropriate directory and list the Windows users:
Output:
If the command does not work, install the tool first: apt get install chntpw.
Clear the password for the admin user with the following command. (Choose “Administrator” if “admin” does not exist.)
Output:
Type “1” and press Enter (“↩”). (Make use of option 2 first if there is an “X” next to “Disabled”.)
Type "q" and press Enter to quit the tool. Type "y" when prompted and press Enter.
Step 4: Rebooting the server
First, change the netboot back to Boot from the hard disk in your OVHcloud Control Panel (repeat the instructions in Step 1 but select Boot from the
hard disk).
Back in the CLI, unmount the partition and restart the server with these commands:
Output:
To complete this process, see the Setting a new password (IPMI/KVM) steps below.
Resetting the admin password using WinRescue
- Step 1: Rebooting the server into rescue mode
- Step 2: Clearing the current password
- Step 3: Rebooting the server
Step 1: Rebooting the server into rescue mode
The system has to be started in rescue mode (WinRescue) before the admin password can be changed.
For detailed instructions, please refer to the rescue mode guide.
Step 2: Clearing the current password
In your OVHcloud Control Panel, navigate to the IPMI/KVM tab to open a KVM session.
To reset passwords, the tool NTPWEdit is required. Once you are connected via KVM, open the browser and download the .zip file from the official website. Navigate to the folder with the downloaded ZIP file and extract the contents. Next, open the ntpwedit64 executable to start the application.
In this interface, you can manipulate the SAM file to clear the admin user’s password. The default file path in the WINDOWS directory is pre-filled. Open the file to display the list of users by clicking Open.
The relevant user will either be “admin” or “Administrator”, depending on the Windows version. If both are present, choose “admin”. Then click on Change password.
In the pop-up window, leave the fields blank and click OK.
Finish by clicking on Save changes and Exit.
Step 3: Rebooting the server
First, change the netboot back to Boot from the hard disk in your OVHcloud Control Panel (repeat the instructions in Step 1 but select Boot from the hard disk).
Back in the KVM window, select the shutdown option Restart via the Windows “Start” button on the bottom left.
To complete this process, see the Setting a new password (IPMI/KVM) steps below.
Setting a new password (IPMI/KVM)
In your OVHcloud Control Panel, navigate to the IPMI/KVM tab to open a KVM session.
For a newer version of Windows
There should be a password expiration message in the login interface.
The new password for the admin user must now be entered twice. However, the confirmation field is not yet visible, meaning you need to leave the first field blank, type your new password into the second field, then use the tabulator key ("↹") on the virtual keyboard to switch to the third field ("Confirm password"). Type the password again and click on the arrow to save it.
Click on OK and you will be logged in.
For an older version of Windows
A command line window (cmd) should open when the KVM session is established.
Set the password for the current user (“Administrator”):
Go further
For more information and tutorials, please see our other Dedicated Servers support guides or explore the guides for other OVHcloud products and services.