I need to restore to factory settings without knowing admin password.

[vaughnpereira]

Long story short, my brother passed away a few months ago and I'm trying to use his computer. Of course, he is the admin and I cannot figure out the password...

I've been looking at some tutorials online but I'm seriously lost in all of the information I'm seeing. Can someone walk me through this?

 

[bigmck]

We are not allowed to go in depth on this, but Google has your answer for the password. Thanks

 

[gregrocker]

It's not necessary to run Factory Recovery which is an inferior install which throttles Win7 with all of the preinstalled crapware and duplicate utilties that have better versions built into Win7.

Instead I would Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7. Everything you need is in the blue link including tool to copy out any stranded files first.
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/219487-clean-reinstall-factory-oem-windows-7-a.html#post1839164

 

[vaughnpereira]

Well, the thing is, I cannot get online in the Guest Account and when I download things from my computer and put on a USB, his computer will not let me save it to the hard drive without the password...

If you don't want to say anything on here can you PM me? Please.

 

[gregrocker]

Did you miss the advice I just gave you to wipe the HD to Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7?

Is this preinstalled Windows with a factory COA sticker with a readable Product Key?

I'm assuming the computer is yours now, however if there are files to rescue there is a step to get them out first.

 

[vaughnpereira]

Yes, I downloaded what it said but I cannot open it on his computer as it keeps asking for the password... Maybe I'm missing something?

It does have the Windows sticker on bottom.

 

[karlsnooks]

The manufacturer of the computer is ?

 

[vaughnpereira]

It's a Sony Vaio

 

[karlsnooks]

liink to Sony support:
Sony eSupport - VAIO® Laptop Computers - Select Your Model

How to order Sony Recovery disks:
1.Go to http://servicesales.sel.sony.com.
2.Enter your computer's model number (for example, PCV-XXXX), and click List Parts and accessories.
3.Follow the online instructions to order the Recovery Media Kit.
If you are not able to access the Sony Direct Accessories and Parts Center Web site, contact a customer service representative at 1-800-488-7669.

Sony Drivers
Sony eSupport - VAIO® Laptop Computers - Select Your Model

=================================================================

Appears that the computer has a password set for the hard drive itself.

 

[gregrocker]

Yes, I downloaded what it said but I cannot open it on his computer as it keeps asking for the password... Maybe I'm missing something?

It does have the Windows sticker on bottom.

It's asking for a password to boot the disk from the BIOS? Can you enter BIOS setup using the key on the first screen? We need to determine if this is a BIOS password or a Windows password.

Make sure the COA sticker is for Win7 and which is the licensed version. It would also be good to know what bit version was installed or at least if you have 4gb RAM which is the most recommended dividing point between 32- and 64-bit: 32 bit vs 64 bit Comparison - Windows 7 Forums. This is so you can download the correct installer to burn to DVD or write to flash stick.

 

[karlsnooks]

Vaughn,
I think your problem has nothing to do with Win 7 but rather to a password that was set via the bios or a special program from sony.

To test out my theory,
Create a MemTest86+ cd.
Boot from the memtest86+ cd.

Let us know the result.

Memtest86+ - Advanced Memory Diagnostic Tool

 

[vaughnpereira]

I'll check that out. Sorry, I'm Windows illiterate... I've used Mac for a long time so all this stuff is Hebrew to me.

It won't let me do anything. It's 32 bit Windows 7 which originally came on the computer, I guess it's a couple years old... It has to be a hard drive thing because when I try to do anything to the hard drive it asks for the password.

 

[gregrocker]

Can you boot a disk? Yes or No?

How to Boot your Computer from a Bootable CD or DVD

If you can boot a disk without being asked for a password then the BIOS is not passworded so you can copy out any files needed and clean reinstall from booted disk as shown in Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7 .

 

[vaughnpereira]

I have no idea... Everything has so much to read! lol

 

[gregrocker]

With a bootable disk in the drive tap the Sony F2 key at boot to get a BIOS boot menu to choose disk drive to boot.