What to do depends entirely on the type of account. First look at whether the sign-in screen shows an email address.
Windows knows two kinds of account, and they are recovered in completely different ways. If an email address appears under your name on the sign-in screen, it is a Microsoft account. If not, it is a local account, held only on that machine.
This is the simplest case, because the password is not stored in the computer but at Microsoft.
One important point : the machine has to be online to receive the change. On the sign-in screen, the network icon at the bottom right lets you join the Wi-Fi before typing the password.
The PIN belongs to that machine ; the password belongs to the account. If you have only forgotten the PIN, the I forgot my PIN link under the entry field lets you set a new one after verifying the account password. Conversely, if the PIN still works, you can get in that way and change the password calmly once you are in the session.
A local account has no online recovery mechanism at all. Two possibilities exist :
Without either, there is no simple solution, and that is deliberate : this mechanism protects your data from anyone who gets hold of the machine.
Even with no access to the session, the documents are still on the drive and can be recovered by connecting it to another machine - unless BitLocker encryption is active, in which case the recovery key is essential. That key is generally saved in your Microsoft account : this is the moment to make sure you can reach it.
We deal with this kind of situation on condition that we can verify the machine is yours - an invoice, proof of purchase, or access to the associated Microsoft account. Depending on the case, we restore access to the session or, where that is not possible, recover all your documents and install a clean system.
To avoid it next time : write down the BitLocker recovery key, set a recovery address on your Microsoft account, and use a password manager, as explained in securing your computer.
No, the documents stay intact. One caution though : on a local account, a reset forced by certain tools can lose access to encrypted files and to passwords saved in the browser.
Microsoft offers a longer account recovery form, which asks you to prove your identity through a series of details about the account. It generally takes a few days.
No, and rightly so. A serious technician will ask for proof of ownership, and a drive protected by BitLocker stays inaccessible without its recovery key.
Would you rather we took care of it ? See our computer repair at home service, in Lyon and across the Rhone.
We restore access or recover your documents, on proof of ownership.
Automatic assistant: it can make mistakes. Never share a password or a card number.
