Local Accounts Forgotten Passwords

Tony,

In file explorer C:\Users There is a bunch of stuff and several Default and Temp

I know what the Default subfolder is and it is perfectly normal.
Since there is a Temp subfolder but no Tony_2 I'll be suggesting having a nose around inside it for any files to keep so that is not a particular concern.

I am a bit worried by "several". It can wait until the important issues are resolved but I will want to check that in more detail.

Tony_2 says you have never logged in to it.

I know what needs to be done - resolve user account passwords, rescue files that might be dotted around different user folders, discuss issues of concern that may or may not need any action taken

I will be off to bed very soon but I can get you started with one preparatory action that will insure against any problems later on. I would like you to create two password-protected Admin local accounts and write their passwords down. I've included links to the relevant tutorials below but, if any of it is awkward, we can discuss it tomorrow.

I'll post the rest of my guidance during the morning while you are still asleep.

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Create two additional [spare] local, password-protected Admin accounts so you can recover from any corruption that afflicts your day-to-day user account.
Add Local Account or Microsoft Account - TenForumsTutorials - you want to make local accounts
Change to Admin account type- TenForumsTutorials - you want to make them Admin account types

Reduce the chances of your accounts being afflicted with user profile corruption by never forcefully powering off the computer unless the thing freezes up completely leaving you with no choice.

• Never turn it off forcefully by holding down the power button for several seconds [as opposed to just pressing it for a moment then letting go], and
• Never turn it off by removing its power supply, and
• Never turn it off while Windows update is trying to install updates.

Write their passwords down somewhere secure yet readily accessible. Writing down their passwords is as effective as & is a lot cheaper than making 'Password reset disks' [which are only for local accounts anyway]. I always write user account passwords down on a piece of paper that I keep inside one of those dog nametag cylinder things attached to my main keyring -

Here's a [UK] link for some example ID tags https://www.amazon.co.uk/Pet-Barrel-.../dp/B00DEB1JVQ There are lots of available choices but I bought ones that, like these, have a slot in the bottom for me to swing off so I can be confident they won't come apart accidentally while I'm out & about.

I get the impression that people who take this precaution just create one additional account.
- I created one and I use it routinely for fault investigation. This means that my day-to-day account does not have any unnecessary additional access permissions and this limits how far malware could spread if I was infected.
- I created the second because it occurred to me that, since I was using the first spare one sometimes, I might mess it up. I appreciate that this is probably overkill. I have never used the second one so its profile should never be corrupted.

Best of luck,
Denis

Tony,

That's good. I was going to ask you to look in those folders.

What does Aspire mean to you?
What does Aspire2011 mean to you?

There's no rush to delete them if they are empty [there'd be hardly any benefit] so you can leave them alone for now.

Have you created those two additional [spare] local, password-protected Admin accounts?

Denis

Tony,

I have attached this very long post as a pdf file as well. Corrected again [the second correction was just to correct an embarrassing spelling mistake]. Tony guide - The way ahead.pdf

Denis

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If any of these instructions do not proceed in the way I suggest then stop and tell me.
0 Summary of current situation - Relevant accounts on the computer


The last login dates are extraordinary. I have not seen such dates before and do not know what to say about them.
- Tony [user2, the MSAccount] was logged in to on 25^th July 2016 and has never been logged out of [also implying that the computer has never been rebooted]?
- Tony_2 [user 1, the local account] has never been logged into? I suspect that there is a fault with this user account and Windows has been logging you in to a temporary user profile when you have tried to log in to Tony_2.

1 Create two spare password-protected, local Admin accounts
I posted the instructions for this yesterday [post #12].

2 Choose one account to use & test it
You seem to be happy with the user 2, Tony user account.
My main reservation about it is that it is an MSAccount-linked user account and you know that you will have to reset the password for - see below. However, since you have Admin accounts ready to take over to get you back in should there be a problem, I think you might as well proceed with this.
I think you are routinely logged in to this account already. Please check this by rebooting, using your PIN as you normally do then opening the Powershell window and entering the command whoami as you have done before. You should get the response tony-office\tony
If you do not get the expected response then stop and tell me.

3 Do a file backup 1
I do not know what your backup habits are. At this stage I suggest a backup because you are about to start moving files around the place so there is some potential for error & the loss of files.

4 Rescue [consolidate] user files
You wrote that “for the last few days my files have been updated in either user 2 or administrator”.
If you had accidentally saved a file within the wrong user’s folders then subsequent updates to those files will be saved by default in the same wrong place.
I suggest that you use File explorer to browse around these folders to see what is where.
C:\Users\Administrator
C:\Users\Tony
C:\Users\Temp [the temp folders you told me were also there.

When following these instructions to browse to folders, do not use any of the [apparent] folders that appear to be directly within ThisPC. They can be misleading and, if they happen to have a fault, the whole thing could get confused. They are not actually folders but glorified shortcuts that are made to appear as folders. We can discuss that later if you want to but, for now, just ignore them completely.

The way I would do this is to use File explorer. First of all, you need to set it to display normally [your current settings allow the display of items that will only confuse matters and potentially cause mistakes to be made].
- Click on the File explorer View menu
- Look at the right-hand end on the same level as View and you’ll see a Help button. Immediately to its left you will see either a ^ symbol [good] or a symbol for a pin. If it is a pin then click on it and it will turn into a ^ symbol which just means that you’ll be able to see the whole of the View menu or any other menu you select later on.
- Now look at the icons in the View menu itself.
- At the right-hand end is an Options icon, click on it.
- In the dialog that appears, it has a View tab, click on it.
- You'll see an entry for Hidden files and folders within which you have set Show hidden files, folders and drives. Click in the circle for Don't show hidden files, folders and drives.
- Scroll down once. You'll see an entry for Hide protected operating system files (Recommended). If it is clear then click on its checkbox to set it.
- Click on the OK button at the bottom of the dialog.

Now, in File explorer, browse to C:\Users\Administrator then press the WinKey & right-arrow key together to position the window on the right hand side of the screen.

You will still be able to see the folder C:\Users\Tony. Right-click on it in the Navigation pane & select Open in new window then press the WinKey & left-arrow key together to position the window on the left hand side of the screen. This left-hand window will be your ‘target’ window.
Looking back at C:\Users\Administrator -
- open up its Documents subfolder and browse around it and any subfolders it contains. If there are files there that you want to keep then drag them across into a corresponding subfolder of C:\Users\Tony on the left-hand side of your screen.
- - If you get asked if you want to overwrite anything then I suggest you click on Compare info for both files then set both checkboxes at the top Files from … and Files already in …] then click on the Continue button at the bottom.
- - It is better to have unnecessary additional copies that need to be checked later on than it is to accidentally overwrite a file that might be the latest version.
- open up its Pictures, Videos, Music, Contacts, 3D objects subfolders and do the same for each of them.
Now, look in each of the folders starting with Temp in their names that you told me about because you might have saved a file there as well. So browse to each C:\Users\Temp then nose about in their subfolders to copy them across as well. [Your last post said you had already started looking around these folders]
The end result should be that C:\Users\Tony has a complete set of all the files you want to keep [whichever account made them or edited them]. I don’t know if there will be many - I realise you use DropBox for most of your files.

5 Do a file backup 2
I do not know what your backup habits are.
At this stage I suggest, at the very least, connecting a external disk that you use for backups, re-arrange File explorer so that the external disk is on the left and C:\Users\Tony is on the right then drag the whole of C:\Users\Tony onto any convenient folder on the external disk.
We can discuss better backup arrangements later but a simple copy now will get he job done.

6 Check that your applications can save files to the Tony account.
Part of the reason you might have had files scattered about in different places is that most applications remember the last folder you saved in so if you had made a mistake it would point you to that wrong place the next time.
So I suggest that you open each of your commonly-used applications -
- write some rubbish, save it using its SaveAs procedure so you definitely get a folder diagram [a mini-File explorer]then browse to a subfolder within C:\Users\Tony then save it with a name that includes Dummy [so you can quickly identify them then delete them later]
- - Now use the application’s open file procedure and browse to where you saved the dummy and open it.
- - This should make it use the folder dummy was in the next time you use that application.

7 Delete the Tony_2 user account
The similarity of its username & its Full name are liable to cause future confusion & mistakes.
There’s no rush but you have copied out any files its Temp folders contained [if there were any].
To delete an account, log in to Tony [it is an Admin account & that’s what you need] and use the procedure in Delete User Account - TenForumsTutorials
You will asked whether or not you want to delete any of its files. I suggest you say Yes and then look back in C:\Users to see if any of those Temp folders in your recent diagram have disappeared. I don’t actually think any will have.

8 Reset Tony [user 2, MSAccount password]
You do not know Tony’s password. That is risky.
Your first decision must be whether or not to keep Tony as an MSAccount-linked user account. Either decision would be fine. If you really only wanted a local account then the procedure to convert from one to the other is in Switch to Local Account - TenForumsTutorials
You cannot recover passwords. All you can do is reset them. That’s why I advised writing them down on a piece of paper.
If you stick with Tony as an MSAccount then you’ll need to go to Reset MSAccount password and this tutorial talks you through the procedure Reset Password of Local Account or Microsoft Account - TenForumsTutorials
Write the new password down.

9 Disable the Built-In Administrator
Its lack of a password is normal.
It is normally disabled and Windows enables it for a particular fault condition.
Some people believe, on the basis of faith alone, that it is useful to have it enabled normally. They are wrong. Any Admin account you create yourself can do anything that the Built-In Administrator account can do.
Disable it.
Built-In Administrator account - Enable or Disable - TenForumsTutorials

10 Enable UAC, set it to maximum
UAC causes dialogs that seek your confirmation before doing tasks that affect other [real or potential] computer users.
- Without giving that permission to proceed, all you can do is mess up the user account you are currently logged in to.
- If you give that permission to proceed, the task would run even if it was soemthign that messed up the system. So you should always read the dialog [see post #2 for samples] including its Show more details part to check that he task seeking your permission is the one you wanted to run and not some piece of malware that has interrupted matters.
Change User Account Control level - TenForumsTutorials
I always have UAC set to its maximum level rather than its default.
[The Built-In Administrator account has bypasses UAC so has serious potential for getting hijacked by malware without any dialog being generated to tell you anything is happening. That risk is avoided by keeping the Built-In Administrator account disabled].

11 Remaining issues of concern
11.1 Why was the Built-In Administrator account enabled? Did somebody else do it?
11.2 Why has UAC been turned off? Some of your comments made me think you did not know what UAC was so I cannot see you having turned it off. Did somebody else do it?
11.3 Why have you set File explorer to display hidden files [and possibly system files]? Did somebody else do it?
11.4 Why does Tony_2 have a Full name entry? That is not set by default for a local account so somebody did it deliberately. Did somebody else do it?
11.5 Why do you have a user called LogMeIn? For all I know, it is something to do with the Zoom you mentioned but LogMeIn is often associated with remote access having been given to your computer. Has somebody else had control of your computer? Who were they and how did you verify their identity? Did you approach them or did they approach you?
11.6 Unless there are benign answers to these concerns, in additional to changing these settings I also suggest running a full anti-malware scan including a Microsoft Defender [aka Windows Defender] ‘Offline scan’.

Junker said:

GM Denis
I have 2 ACER computers. I don't know which model is which but at least one of them is an Aspire and I guess it was bought in 2011.
Additional accounts not yet set up. The method outlined in the tutorial is not available in my version of windows and when I try it it refers me to the control panel. I am still researchng how to add accounts using the control panel.

OK, I'll look at that within a couple of minutes. This is concerning.

I somehow deleted a para from my pdf file [already added back to the long post itself]. I'll just correct & re-post the pdf then look at the create accounts procedure.

Denis

Junker said:

GM Denis
I have 2 ACER computers. I don't know which model is which but at least one of them is an Aspire and I guess it was bought in 2011.
Additional accounts not yet set up. The method outlined in the tutorial is not available in my version of windows and when I try it it refers me to the control panel. I am still researchng how to add accounts using the control panel.

Other people complain that adding an account in Control panel is no longer possible and that trying to do it there just refers them to Settings.

Add Local Account or Microsoft Account - TenForumsTutorials

Do you not have Option 1, Step 2 "Family & other users" dialog with the choice to "Add someone else to this PC"?
If you don't then you should look in Option 6 for the commands to create one with a password. Your command will be something like

Code:

net user "AdminPrimary" "A-Za-z1-9!$" /add

When you have created it, don't forget to look back to post #12 so you can change its type to Admin.

Denis

Junker said:

Denis you have inadvertently given me my chuckle of the day. I have started to read the long guide you sent me and the first few instructions put me in mind of an entertainer standing on one leg spinning small hoola loops with the other leg, balancing spinning plates on the ends of sticks in each hand, balancing a ball on his head and playing the national anthem on a kazoo all at the same time. So I am going to put on another pot of coffee. Print out the pdf so I can check off steps as I do them. Thanks for the chuckle. BTW where is Sarth of the water? I am originally from the UK.

Make sure you have downloaded the corrected pdf - I added the word corrected before the link.

'Sarth' is just a joke about how proper people pronounce the word south. Unlike those other [terrible] people who say the word Norff.

Denis