How to Use Net User Command to Change/Reset Windows Password

This quick tutorial will tell you about the net user on Windows and how to use the net user command to change or reset the Windows password of your PC. We have also covered alternative methods while also answering a few common queries you may have about the whole password-resetting ordeal.

Part 1. What Is Net User?

Net user is one of the many utilities you can use via Command Prompt on Windows. It can help you manage different aspects of user accounts on your PC.

For instance, you can create, enable, disable, delete, and modify Windows user accounts by using the net user command. It is an excellent option if you want to change or reset your Windows password.

Part 2. Net User Command to Change Windows Password with Administrator Privileges

Suppose you forgot the password to one of the user accounts but still have another admin account; you can use the net user command to change the Windows password. The steps you have to follow are:

Step 1. Log into the Windows user account that has administrative privileges.

Step 2. Search for Command Prompt.

Run Command Prompt as administrator on Windows 10

Step 3. Click Run as administrator from the right-click menu.

Step 4. Once you have opened the Command Prompt, enter the following command and press Enter.

net user

Step 5. Now, the Command Prompt will list all the user accounts on the PC.

Step 6. To change the password of your old account, enter the following command and press Enter. Ensure you change the variables, username and newpassword, to the existing username and the new password you want to set.

net user username newpassword

Step 7. Wait for a second, and Command Prompt will show a message saying the command was completed successfully.

Now, you can restart your Windows PC and log in using the old username and the new password.

Part 3. Net User Command to Reset Windows Password without Administrator Privileges

If you do not have an account with administrative privileges, you need to use a Windows installation disk to reset your Windows password with the net user command. You have to keep in mind that the process may take more than a few minutes. To make this possible, you have to follow the steps given below.

Step 1. In this step, you have to create a bootable Windows setup disk. You can either use the media creation tool or a third-party app to do it.

Step 2. You have to connect the bootable USB stick to the computer and boot from it. Once the Windows setup has been loaded from the stick, you can press Shift + F10 to launch the Command Prompt.

Enter the following command, followed by the Enter key:

move d:\windows\system32\utilman.exe d:\

copy d:\windows\system32\cmd.exe d:\windows\system32\utilman.exe

This command will replace the utility manager with the command prompt. After that, you can remove the bootable disk from your computer and restart the system.

Step 3. When the system restarts, you have to wait until you see the Ease of Access button on the right portion of the screen. Click the icon, and you can launch Command Prompt with admin privileges.

Now, enter the following command where you replace the variables with the existing username and the new password that you want to set up.

Net user username newpassword

Press the Enter key and wait for the Command Prompt to execute the request. Once it has been done, you can see a message on the screen.

Step 4. In this step, we have to reverse what we did in the second step. That is, you have to put utility manager back on your Windows file system. To do it,

Connect the bootable USB drive and load the setup
Press Shift + F10 to launch Command Prompt
Enter the following command and wait for it to execute

copy d:\utilman.exe d:\windows\system32\utilman.exe

When you are asked to confirm, type Yes, followed by the Enter key
Now, you can close the Command Prompt and let the system restart

Now, you have changed the password of the existing user account on Windows. So, you can remove the bootable drive and start your Windows PC as you normally would. Make sure you sign into the old user account using the new password.

Part 4. Alternative Way to Reset Windows Password

If you think the previous method was too much, you may try alternative ways to reset your Windows password. It does not involve the use of the net user function, either. Instead, you can use a trusted tool like PassFab 4WinKey. The tool is designed to help you create a password-resetting USB/DVD drive for the PC whose password you forgot. Here is how you can use it:

>> Get PassFab 4WinKey <<

In this step, you have to download and install PassFab 4WinKey on your PC or Mac. During the setup, you will have to connect a USB drive or an empty CD/DVD drive. The app will help burn the utility into a disc/USB drive.
You can connect the bootable drive to your computer and boot from it. Once you have done it, the bootable disk will show you a couple of options to modify existing user accounts on the PC.
At this point, you can select one of those accounts and remove/reset the password

Now that PassFab 4WinKey has reset/removed the Windows password, you can follow the on-screen steps to reboot your computer.

So, we recommend this method if you cannot use the net user command to change/reset the password for the Windows user account.

FAQs About Net User Command

Which command is used to change the password of Windows?

You can use the net user command to change the password of a Windows account from the command line. This process needs administrative privileges for the command prompt, though. So, if you cannot access another account with admin privileges, you cannot use net user command to change or reset Windows passwords.

What is net user administrator command?

The net user command is one of the many commands you can run on Command Prompt, which is built into Windows. It is called an administrator command only when you launch Command Prompt with admin privileges. You can do it by right-clicking on the Command Prompt icon and choosing ‘Run as administrator’ from the menu.

How to change your Windows password?

You should have access to an admin-level user account to change the Windows password, but you will have to enter the existing password first. So, if you have forgotten your Windows password, you may need a tool like Command Prompt or a third-party Windows password resetting tool to get the job done.

Final Thoughts

We believe this guide helped you understand how to use the net user command to change your Windows password. We have also recommended some easier solutions that you can follow even if you do not have a secondary user account on the computer.