SYMPTOMS

When you upgrade or install Windows XP, passwords may be allocated to user accounts that earlier had no password or you did not allot passwords to any user accounts during the installation process. As a result, you cannot log on to the PC.

CAUSE

This occurs if Windows XP Setup do not complete suitably. Setup gives temporary passwords to user accounts throughout the upgrade procedure, plus is supposed to eliminate the passwords when Setup is finish. The temporary passwords are written to the Setupact.log file that is located in the folder in which Windows is installed.

RESOLUTION

To solve this behavior, regain the password from the Setupact.log file, and then use the password to log on to PC. You should search the Setupact.log file for the following line, where Username is the name of the user account and xxxxxxxx is the password for that account:

Random password for Username is xxxxxxxx
To do this, use one of the following methods, as suitable to your condition.

Windows XP Is Installed on a FAT32 Partition

To regain the password from Setupact.log file if Windows XP is installed on a FAT32 partition, pursue these steps:

1. Insert a Windows (Me) startup disk or else Windows 98 Startup disk into the PC's floppy disk drive, and after that reboot the PC.

2. Type subsequent line at the command prompt, as well as press ENTER key, where drive is the drive on which Windows is installed.
edit drive:\windows\setupact.log

3. Locate the subsequent line, where Username is the given name of the user account as well as xxxxxxxxx is the password for that account:
Random password for Username is xxxxxxxxx

4. Make a note of the password accurately as it shows in the Setupact.log file, and then quit the text editor.

5. Restart the PC, and then log on to PC with the user account by using the password that you recovered.

After you are log in to your account, just reset the password for the user account by the help of the User Accounts in Control Panel.

Windows XP Is Installed on a NTFS Partition

To regain the password from the Setupact.log file if Windows XP is installed on an NTFS partition, follow these steps:

1. Organize the PC to start from the CD-ROM drive or DVD-ROM drive. For more information about how to do this, please see the PC's documentation or contact the PC company.

2. Insert the Windows XP compact disc (CD) into the PC's CD-ROM drive or DVD-ROM drive, and then restart the PC.

3. When the Press any key to boot from CD message is shown on your screen, press a key to start PC from the Windows XP CD.

4. When the Welcome to Setup screen is shown, press the R key to start the Recovery Console.

5. Choose the installation that you need to access from the Recovery Console.

6. You are being provoked for the Administrator password. If the Administrator password is set to make use of a vacant password, currently press ENTER key.

7. At the command prompt, type the subsequent line plus after that press the ENTER key:
type setupact.log

8. Locate the subsequent line, where Username is the name of the user account as well as xxxxxxxxxxxxx is the password for that account:
Random password for Username is xxxxxxxxxxxxx

9. Make a note of the password correctly as it shows in Setupact.log file.

10. Type exit at the command prompt, and press ENTER to stop the Recovery Console and restart the PC.

11. Log on to PC with the user account by using the password that you recovered.

After you are log in to your PC, just reset the password for the user account with the help of User Accounts in Control Panel.