First try typing in just a space and hit return. I don't use passwords on my computers and every so often I'm asked for one. This is the solution for no password.

I trust the website and use a lot of his software utilities. https://www.nirsoft.net/password_recovery_tools.html
Some may be a bit dated, you can only try.

Failing that, I have a Win Pass Remover here but haven't used it in years so it's hard to say if it works now or not.

Never apologise for not wanting a password on your computer. I'm the only person who uses my gear and refuse to be locked out of my own equipment.

I really hope using space as the old password does it. Sounds like it should.

It would never in a million years have occurred to me that it would want me to change the non-existent password and lock me out.

Thanks for the link as well.

Last edited Sun Nov 2, 2025, 02:52 PM - Edit history (1)

It was variation of your suggestion about hitting the spacebar. I put the cursor in the old password field and hit enter, and it started right up. Didn't even give me an opportunity to enter a new password. But that's fine, because now I can actually use my computer.

Now I've got to figure out how to turn off that automatic password expiration thing, which I was able to find more information on than on my initial problem. I've been saying for years that defaults matter. I really don't need my own computer forcing me to change my password.

And I'm glad you could get into it.

Sorry - can't help you with the expiration thing.

My brother, the least techie person in the universe got tired of every update breaking his drivers and having to reinstall them, so he ended up with a Dell ordered online, with Ubuntu Linux, installed and supported. After helping him find substitutes for office and photo apps, he hasn't asked me anything in many years. It's that usable.

Here are some helpers

1. Linux online tutorial:

https://www.guru99.com/unix-linux-tutorial.html. (nice!)

2. 20 Best Linux Books You Can Download For Free Legally
https://itsfoss.com/learn-linux-for-free/

3. 14 Free Training Courses to Learn Linux Online
https://itsfoss.com/free-linux-training-courses/

People seem to love Linux Mint the most.
There are also slim distributions that run on very old and low-memory hardware.
I recall Xubuntu and Puppy Linux (extremely light)
https://itsfoss.com/lightweight-linux-beginners/

I still love my now outdated Knoppix. I keep pleading with Klaus Knopper to update it, but I guess he's making a living instead. I used to boot computers off a CD/DVD to see if they'd run linux (store people were not amused), and used it to repair hosed PC's

(1). I booted a windows system off Knoppix or System Rescue CD (now, it's USB stick) https://www.system-rescue.org/ and mounted the windows partition and edited the registry. Kinda complex, but I had no budget to do that stuff.I was the IT dept, so it was "legal" to do.

I haven't liked Windows in any way, shape, or form since Windows 7, and even then, the first thing I did was make it look like Windows XP. The only reason I got the Windows 11 dual boot computer, that then caused me to get a Windows 10 computer, which I don't like much better, was doing my taxes.

No password?

Click on the line asking for the password, then just hit enter.

I was in your situation a few times over the years. I got flustered by it asking for a pwd, but all I had to do was hit enter.

I find it ridiculous that the default is set to require me to change my password periodically on my own computer. First thing I'm going to do after I get it set up the way I want it is find out how to change that.