Logging in as Administrator

If you want to log in as Administrator, but it is not showing up on the Welcome screen,

Hold the Ctrl-Alt key and press Del twice. This will bring up the normal login and you can log on as Administrator To unhide the Administrator account so it does show up:

Start Regedit Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows NT \ CurrentVersion \ Winlogon \ SpecialAccounts \ UserList Unhide the Administrator key by giving it a value of 1
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Turning Off the Guest Account

For security purposes, you might want to turn off the Guest account

Open up the Control Panel Click on User Accounts Click on Change an account Click on the Guest account Click Turn off the guest account
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Creating a Password Recovery Disk

In case you forget your password, you should create a password recovery floppy disk.

Single-click Start menu Go to the Control Panel / User Accounts Click the User Account On the left hand side, click on Prevent forgotten password You will need to know your password to create the disk. If you don't remember your password sometime in the future, click on the green arrow like normal at the login and you will be prompted to insert the password recover disk.
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Stop Password Expiration

If you are getting an error message that your password is about to expire:

Right click on the My Computer icon Select Manage Go to Local Users and Groups / Users Right-click on the user you want to change Select Properties On the General tab, check Password never expires Click OK
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Allowing Network Access with Blank Passwords

Although you can log in locally without a password, by default, WindowsXP Pro does not allow network users to access the computer without a password. Typically you will receive an Unknown error 31 if this is the case.

To change this setting:

Run gpedit.msc Go to Computer Configuration / Windows Settings / Security Settings / Local Policies / Security Options Double click on Accounts: Limit local account use of blank passwords to console login only Disable this option
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How to Configure Windows XP to Automatically Log On a User Account

For Windows to automatically log on a user account during the startup process, the following must be met:

- The Welcome screen must be available
- Guest account access must be turned off
- There must be only one user account on the computer
- The user account must not have a password

To make the Welcome screen available:

1. Click Start, click Control Panel, and then double-click User Accounts.
2. Click "Change the way users log on or off".
3. Click to select the "Use the Welcome screen for fast and easy logon" check box.
4. Click OK.

To turn off Guest account access:

1. Click Start, click Control Panel, and then double-click User Accounts.
2. Click the Guest account.
3. Click "Turn off Guest access".

To remove the password from the user account:

1. Click Start, click Control Panel, and then double-click User Accounts.
2. Click the user account.
3. Click "Remove my password".
4. Type the password in the "Type your current password" box, and then click Remove Password.