I lost admin password and couldn't fix, now both gone

Okay, I am listing this first. I got excellent instructions the problem is that when I try to follow the directions from Bob, well, my computer is in a Workgroup and at the step to "Load Hives" it is not black, it is not available to choose. So, just looking around I see CertificateAuthority.config.1, the certificateAuthority.Get Config, then 7 othere's. One says CertificateeAuthority.ServerPolicy. Each one of those has like a ServerPolicy and then it says the same thing with a 1 after it. That would kind of make sense since I was trying to make myself have admin authority to change settings and things that got messed up..... Any further help from here? I also have SQL Server 2008 but it's new, or a re-install from two years ago. I am just going to wait so I don't mess anything else up.....


Well, now I've really done it. I was just getting everything running good but along the way I had added an Admin account and for the life of me could not remember the password or where I put it.... Lots going on. Anyways, so I went in to the C prompt as admin and did something in reverse and lost my other password now too. I can't log in. Isn't there a way to boot up to the last good configuration or even a restore without having a systems disc and or my passwords? My DVD/CD driver does not work. I have a Gateway it's Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit. I had to do the upgrade, they sent me the software after I bought it cause it was right before the change if that helps!!!

I almost had everything fixed. I have to go out to a Drs. Appointment and I am praying someone tells me an easy fix today!!! I have a million things to do and getting work is one of them so I need to have access to it. Wanted to add, I have a backup and a Systems image on an external hard drive. Are there any specific files I can load that will just give me my user password back???????

Thanks!!

Of course not, if I was hacking I wouldn't be desperate for help. I would just move on. I had lived in Mexico, big mistake, and a copy of people were on my computer and really messed stuff up. Microsoft treated me different too, different downloads etc.... So when I got here, to AZ someone stayed with us for 5 days and I didn't want him to have any access so I set up the Admin quickly before he knew it and between unpacking, walking dogs, job hunting, getting car tabs etc, etc.... I forgot and lost my passwords. Then when someone tried to help me he erased all my history and messed things up more. So, I will check these out. Thanks for the quick response!

I was getting ready to go and didn't know that I could then choose command prompt so when I got back it had done the recovery and I still could not get in. So, now I will sit and watch. Can I just put it back, mine, not the admin one to what it was. I read that if changed you will loose all passwords etc....????? I luckily have an external drive. I had a Dell Mini 1010 that I bought it for and it just died on me about three months ago!!!

I am still working on fixing this but I wanted to list everything and see if any of you can pin point exactly what is going wrong. I updated my profile to give more systems information. I tried the logging via c prompt and was able to get into the administrator without needing a password, then I went to myself who had full control. And I had inherited controls everywhere without really understanding them or even knowing I had put them there. I was in the middle of trying to create a password restore disk for myself and can't. My internal cd/dvd player doesn't work. Now I can't get my external to work either. So I starting trying to diagnose that. Through the process I kept getting errors like this: See the first uploaded document. external cddvderror.docx (73.0 KB)

So, I went in and tried to re-assign it to another driver thinking maybe that since I had so many things plugged into my computer and two different cd/dvd players, that it might help. Also, they are all Microsoft drivers, very old. Then I got error messages like the 2nd up load. typical error's I get.docx (29.6 KB)

I re-assigned it to F and then I went and took it off the network. Now I noticed that it did open up and I was able to format a disk with it. But, when I go to create a password reset disk it will not allow me to go to that drive letter. Now I am trying to change it back and it doesn't offer that option. Any help there? I have listed things in the event loggs, to try and help. event logs.docx (645.9 KB) And here are all the things that the guy who was supposedly helping me did, not all but some anyways.... Adminevents.docx (1.02 MB)

I am also getting many other errors and two or three that just scared me were about low memory. moreerrormemorymessages.docx (136.9 KB)

All of this happened because I moved back to the US from Mexico and I had not gotten a lot of the Microsoft auto updates because the internet was up and down and there was someone on my computer who I didn't trust but didn't know it til later, that I didn't trust him that is.... So, I started resetting passwords and changing my WEP key etc. Meanwhile I was unable to do backups because my computer wasn't recognizing my external WD drives.

To make a long story short, although not possible now, I got back to the states and I need my computer so I have gone to work trying to fix things. Someone logged on and put a lot of programs on it and deleted a lot of my app/data/roaming and temp files and it caused more things not to work. Then he had told me that there were 9811 trojan's, virus's, etc. Then I got really paranoid and started trying to figure out how to keep everyone out of my system and that is how I ended up locking myself out and forgetting my passwords and now I have locks on my files because of too many attempts at wrong things

I have become obsessed. I need to get to work now that I am back in the states and my phone is through the computer and my work is on the computer so I have done things with not enough sleep. I will stop that. Can some one please diagnose some of this and tell me what, where it all started. One thing I saw was all of microsofts log on's as administrator and I thought it was the guy who had worked on my machine. I will post those and event logs too. And to sum it up here's where I got really paranoid when I saw all these people listed as users and they had changed things in my system and now it looks like it was Microsoft??? What started it all.docx (63.4 KB)

Anyone help, I know it's a lot of issues!

You have listed an entire litany of problems.

If you make a system repair disc,
then boot form the system repair disc,
can you accdess your files.

go to a firend's computer who also has a 32 bit win 7 if you have 32 bit If you have 64 bti then go to a friend with a 64 bit win 7.

Make a system repair disk.

Boot from the system repair disc.

Choose Command prompt and see what you can see.

CREATE A SYSTEM REPAIR DISC

START | type System Repair | Enter key | Create Disc button



GO TO A COMMAND PROMPT USING A SYSTEM REPAIR DISC

1) Insert System Repair Disc into optical reader.
2) Shutdown your computer.
3) Boot up your computer from the System Repair Disc
If your computer doesn’t boot from the optical drive, then
Immediately after pushing your Power ON button,
start tapping the F2 key to get to the BIOS to change the boot order

On some computers, Immediately after pushing the Power ON button, start tapping the F12 key and choose CD/DVD to change the boot order only for this time.
4) Wait while a mini-version of Windows is loaded and finally the SYSTEM RECOVERY OPTIONS dialog appears.
5) NEXT
6) SYSTEM RECOVERY OPTIONS dialog
will search your system for installed versions of Windows.
7) select the Use recovery tools that can help fix problems starting Windows radio button |
NEXT
8) Choose command prompt from the list shown

Run any desired commands and type EXIT when finished.
Remove the System Repair Disc.
Shutdown your computer.
Power on your computer.

Beachinmoney,

The Win 7 Backup and Restore is excellent.
If you still have the win 7 system image backup then we even have a tutorial to help you retrieve your data from the system image.

Disregarding that, let's treat this at first like a normal troubled computer.

Download, install and run MalwareBytes (link in my sig). From the history that you've related then a FULL SCAN will be needed.

Get back after the full scan, which depending upon size and speed can take several hours. However, that full scan is mandantory so that we can be sure that your entire system is clean.

Let's await the results of the full scan by malwarebytes.

We must be 100% sure that there is no more malware left on your computer before we even begin to research further.

Hello Karlsnooks, I finally figured it out I think. I couldn't back up because my user account was locked. It got that way I think when I started changing things incorrectly and when I lost my password....? I think. But I just went into it and set it to show also the hidden attributes as well. I couldn't backup to my hard drive or anything because it kept telling me that I needed write credentials to do this... I finally got both computers on a network and I think I have all security in place. Before I update drivers and do the malware etc. I had to get it backup up after what has happened. I need a systems image too by the way. Oh, a tip, if you care. EaesUS is giving away free software if you upload or email them a picture with their logo on it. It's for marketing promotions. Anyone who does it gets their choice of three different ones. Let me know what you think about them. Now that I think about it maybe Windows didn't do the systems image correctly because my account had the lock on it. Anyways this will take hours about 7 and I have been working on it since about 2pm once again. Thanks for your help and I will post the information probably tomorrow sometime. I am going to spend some time at the pool. I have not relaxed in over a week with these computer problems. But this forum is the best. I am learning so much!!!! Next I will be upgrading my HDX to Windows 7 Professional. Maybe even do a clean install of Windows 7 Professional to my Gateway desktop. Seems like the drivers are starting to upgrade here and there. Do you think Microsoft will pull it off and make this operating system work. Vista was such a nightmare!!!