Forgotten password, locked out of computer

Guybot1001 said:

I recently made a dumb move by attempting to change my picture password without giving any regard to the fact I don't remember what my local text-based password was. It wasn't until I deleted my picture password when realized what I had done and ended up ultimately locking myself out of my computer. I am not a clever man. :/
I would like to know if there is a way of resetting my password safely outside of a user accounts, or even if there is a way to reset my OS without it affecting my data. Unfortunately my college materials are in that computer. Now I am paying for the consequences of my actions.

Any useful input would be appreciated. I will try to provide additional information if possible upon request. Thanks.

Helping users to reset / crack Windows sign-in credentials is a difficult and controversial topic. We wouldn't want to, and it wouldn't be right to assist people to get into other users accounts.

In your case the first thing I noticed when reading your post was the highlighted part in above quote. It simply can't be true that you set up a picture password without knowing your password; to set up a picture password you must first verify you are the account owner by entering your password:

My suggestion is that to sign in to Windows you use the same password you had to know and use when you created the picture password.

Kari