Windows Question

N

numbersman

Joined
Nov 28, 2010
Messages
596
OK, so my user account in Windows 7 is corrupted, and I have to login to my own laptop using my daughters account. I've gone into the Control Panel and clicked on Manage User Accounts, or whatever it was. I get asked if I want to allow this program to modify stuff, and my own name comes up on the box. I enter my password, and....nothing. The dialog box closes, and I am not offered anything to modify. Can anyone help me out?

There is a lesson here, that I want to point out. You should always set up two Administrator accounts in Windows. Your regular one, plus a spare, just in case this happens. If I had done this, I could simply login under the other Administrator account and fix up my regular account. As it is, I'm scratching my head.

Cheers, numbersman
 
No idea what could have caused it. Best bet would be to back everything up, and then do a reset. There should be a hidden partition on your HDD that has a stock factory image. This is accessible when booting by hitting a specific F key (which key depends on the brand - look it up). Depending on the brand and computer, there may be an option to reset to factory specs and retain data. If so, try that first, but if your problem still persists, try a full restore.
 
System restore will not wipe out any files like documents or pictures. The only thing it typically modified is software loaded between restore points as they are created. What I do is always create a password protected admin account on the machine, don't use the only account that is offered on a new PC. When things go sideways, you have the option to go in with the admin account and work on the corrupted account.
 
numbersman said:
Yeah, apparently I can do a restore, but hoping to avoid that.
Click to expand...

There's a difference between a restore and a factory reset. The System Restore function undoes changes you may have made (or were made by malware/viruses/etc). Doing a factory reset (essentially a reformat) puts everything back to the way it was when you first bought it. No accounts, no system updates, etc (although some brands' software might give you the option to retain certain things).
 
If you are computer savvy....

1. Set your BIOS to use the DVD drive as the primary boot device.
2. Boot with a Windows Repair CD.
3. Press a key when the message indicating "Press any key to boot from CD or DVD …" appears.
4. Select a language, a time and currency, and a keyboard or input method, and then click Next. You are now in Repair Mode.
5. Select an Operating System, then click Next.
6. Select the Command Prompt.
7. Identify the correct drive letter for your Windows installation. It could be a drive other than C: but it won't be X:. You do it by typing the commands
dir C:\Win* {Enter}
dir D:\Win* {Enter}
dir E:\Win* {Enter}
etc.
until you find the Windows folder.
I will call that drive "Q:".
8. Type these commands:
cd /d Q:\windows\System32 {Enter}
move sethc.exe \ {Enter}
copy cmd.exe sethc.exe {Enter}
9. Reboot normally.
10. When challenged for a password, tap the Shift key five times. You will see a small black screen.
11. Type these commands:
net user {Enter}
(To see a list of all accounts that exist on your machine)
net user Administrator {Enter}
(To see if the Administrator account is active)
12. Type these commands:
net user "xxx" ppp {Enter}
(Replace xxx with the account for which you wish to set a new password, and ppp with the new password)
net user Administrator /active:yes {Enter}
(To activate the Administrator account if desired)
13. Log on under this account, using the new password.
14. Reboot the machine into Repair Mode as per Steps 1..6 above.
15. Type these commands:
cd /d Q:\windows\System32 {Enter}
copy \sethc.exe {Enter}
16. Reboot into Windows.
Instead using a Windows Repair CD in Step 2, you can use your Windows 7 Installation DVD. The steps are similar to the ones above.

If you do not have a restore CD/DVD

Everything on that hard drive is accessible if the drive is removed and put in a USB box etc. You could back up all the data to another drive, put the old one back in the computer and then do a wipe and reinstall the OS from the restore partition. If you made a backup disk set, you could just buy another HD, install it in the comp run the backup set, put the old drive in a USB box and transfer the files back across.
 
That's what sucks now Screwdriver, I think most PCs now come with a restore partition on the HDD, not a physical restore CD. As such, you end up having to reinstall all the bloatware crap!
I can't speak to the specific administrator and additional user accounts issue, but if I may, I'd definitely recommend you create a partition on your main HDD, leaving at least 120Gb of space for your C drive for your OS, programs, etc, and using the rest of HDD space, create a D drive to store all your data, music, pics, etc.
You can do this in the Disk Management section in your Control Panel. I think Windows 7 allows you to easily partition your HDD but I had issues taking more space back from my D partition to re-add to my C drive so I had to install a free program called "MiniTool Partition Wizard Home Edition" so I could add back about 15Gb of space to my C drive.
In the event of a future OS corruption or what have you, your data should be safe and sound in the D drive.
 
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