HP Laptop won't recognize password

Hi Leonie

My name is Andre Da Costa; an Independent Consultant, Windows Insider MVP and Windows & Devices for IT MVP. I'm here to help you with your problem.

Try restarting a few times then try again.

Try disconnecting from the Internet and try again.

If that does not work, reboot in Safe Mode then try signing in.

At the sign in screen:
Hold down the shift key on your keyboard while clicking the Power button on the screen.
Continue to hold down the shift key while clicking Restart.
Continue to hold down the shift key until the Advanced Recovery Options menu appears.
Click Troubleshoot
Click Advanced options
Click Startup Settings
Click Restart
Press (4) to Enable Safe Mode
Wait while Windows 10 starts in safe mode.
Log in

If you are still unable to log in, see the following:
http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wiki...

Other things you can try - enable to built in Administrator account:

Hold down the shift key on your keyboard while clicking the Power button on the screen.
Continue to hold down the shift key while clicking Restart.
Continue to hold down the shift key until the Advanced Recovery Options menu appears.
Click Troubleshoot
Click Advanced options
Click Command Prompt

At the command prompt, type:
net user administrator /active:yes

Hit Enter

Close command prompt, restart, then try signing into the Administrator account.

Try signing in again.

Hold down the shift key on your keyboard while clicking the Power button on the screen.
Continue to hold down the shift key while clicking Restart.
Continue to hold down the shift key until the Advanced Recovery Options menu appears.
Click Troubleshoot
Click Advanced options
Click Startup repair the follow the on screen instructions.
When complete, restart.
Try signing in again.

Change password
Open Control Panel - see how to find control panel:
https://www.groovypost.com/howto/open-control-p...

Open User Accounts
Click Manage another account
Select the other account
CLick Change the password

Enter the password
Confirm the new password

Type a hint

Click Change password

or

Open Start, type: CMD
Right click CMD
Click Run as administrator

Type: net user
Hit Enter

This should reveal your account name

Type: net user YOURACCOUNTNAME *

Hit Enter

Type a new password for the account then hit Enter.

If the above steps don't work, then I recommend you reinstall Windows 10 using the following steps:

Step 1: How to download official Windows 10 ISO files
http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wiki...

Step 2 How to Prepare Bootable Install Media for Windows 10 - DVD, USB or SD Card
https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wik...

Review the following guide for instructions and details about configuring your BIOS or UEFI boot settings for DVD, CD, USB or SD Card.

BIOS/UEFI Setup Guide: Boot from a CD, DVD, USB Drive or SD Card
https://www.groovypost.com/howto/bios-uefi-setu...

Once your computer is set to boot from the DVD or USB, you should see this option.

The Windows logo will appear on screen, this might be here for a while, as long as you see the indicater, everything should be ok.

Select your Language, Time and Keyboard method then click Next.

Click Install now

Wait while Setup starts.

Accept the license terms and click Next

Click Custom

Select the Primary Partition then click Next

You will receive the following warning:


The partition you selected might contain files from a previous Windows Installation. If it does, these files and folders will be moved to a folder named Windows.old. You will be able to access the information in Windows.old, but you will be able to use your previous version of Windows.

Click OK

Wait while Windows installs

When this phase of setup is complete, Windows will automatically restart and reboot into setup again.

Windows is detecting and installing your hardware. After this is complete, Windows will restart one last time.

Out of Box Experience

The Out of Box Experience page is where you get to configure detailed settings in Windows, which includes creating a user account, privacy, sync PC settings and install modern applications.

Windows will check if there is an active Internet connection. If it does not find one, you will be presented with the following screen.

Create a Local Account and click Next

Wait while Windows finalizes your settings

Continue to wait while Windows installs modern applications.

When setup is complete you can retrieve any personal files from the Windows.old

Browse to C:\ Local Disk and open the Windows.old folder

how to recover your files from Windows.old:
https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/for...

Hi
I am Vijay, an Independent Advisor. I am here to work with you on this problem.

A. Try to boot into safe mode

Power ON your computer and as Windows / manufacturer's Logo appears, Power OFF - Repeat 3 times
Now your computer will go into Advanced Recovery Environment
Advanced Options > Troubleshoot > Advanced Options > Startup Settings > Restart
Press 4 or F4 to enable Safe Mode (5 or F5 to enable Safe Mode with Networking)
Log in once Windows starts in safe mode
See whether you able to login. If yes, come out of this and start normally.

If you are not able to boot like above, You will need to boot through a Bootable USB drive. You will need to create this on another computer which is working - https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/2376-create...

How to Boot from a USB Flash Drive in Windows 10 - https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/21756-boot-...

B. Another option when you are in Advanced Options in previous step is to choose (Note - You won't lose any files in this step)
1. System Restore - This will restore your system to a point when things were working fine.
OR
2. Startup Repair - Startup Repair upgrade fixes all Windows errors and retains all files, applications and settings.

C. Penultimate option could be Reset this PC.
In Step A > Troubleshoot > Reset this PC - Keep my files and Remove everything. Choose this carefully as most likely you would like to keep your files.
All apps will be removed and windows will be reinstalled.

D. Last option could be a clean Install. This is the best method to perform a clean install of Windows 10. (If you want to rescue your files, there is a section Rescue Files when Windows Won't Start)

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/for...

If you want a very lightweight guide - Start fresh with a clean installation of Windows 10

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-downlo...

Disclaimer - This is a non-Microsoft website. The page appears to be providing accurate, safe information. Watch out for ads on the site that may advertise products frequently classified as a PUP (Potentially Unwanted Products). Thoroughly research any product advertised on the site before you decide to download and install it.

Thank you for replying. Safe mode requires a password. Tried to add administrator in command prompt but on restart still only had the one user login that wouldn't work. Tried to check user name in command prompt and got this: 

Thank you for replying Vijay. Does the USB option keep or lose my data? It will be a few days before I can borrow another computer to try it. I have tried everything else you suggested and every option took me to a password request. 

If you are talking about option A where booting through USB is mentioned - This is only for booting and doesn't touch your data or programs.

Hence why I provided the additional options for you to follow and perform a custom install. We can't provide information here about hacking accounts, it against forum rules and Microsoft privacy policies.

Perform the custom install, yes, its a chore, but it get your files back and you will be able to start using your computer again.

Just do so basics like have a backup account, create a few system restore points and system images that you can easily restore from if this happens again.

Thank you again for your time. I thought showing the image of the command prompt box would identify the problem which might have a specific solution . The net user command was supposed to show all users but my account name is not there and it shows an error message. I have already searched the forums and tried every solution I found, including those you suggested, except for a factory reset which would delete all my data, and the install from usb because I'm having trouble accessing a second computer. Every attempt either asked for a password which was rejected, or returned me to the login page after a restart which still would not recognise the correct password. I'm hoping to borrow a computer in the next week or two, but in the meantime was hoping the photo might provide additional information that could solve this issue. All the options seem to pertain to forgotten password. I have not forgotten my password, it is not recognising either the correct password or the account itself. I was just hoping that identifying the real problem would help.

The likely problem is, your user profile is corrupt, hence why its not even showing up in the command prompt.

If you enable the default Administrator account, you should be able to log in without entering a password.

You can then create another user account, browser C:\Users then copy over your files.