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Arshia001
Asked: 2017-09-06 02:24:50 +0800 CST

How to log on to Windows Server 2012 if password has expired

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I have a Windows Server 2012 instance on which there is only one administrator account (which is not the default admin account) and the password for this account has expired. The default admin account is disabled. How can I (remotely) regain access to the server? I currently have no access whatsoever.

I tried the enablecredsspsupport:i:0 option in RD client, but it tells me that the server requires NLA which is disabled on my system.

windows

3 Answers

  1. It cannot be done via RDP itself!

    In the protocol specification for CredSSP, there is no reference to the ability to change the user's password while NLA is running. Therefore, the observed behavior can be considered "by design."

    CredSSP is the underlying technology that enables NLA, and it does not support password changes. Therefore, password changes are not enabled in MSTSC. Other RD clients that support NLA should be unable to change the user’s password.

    Source: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/2648402/you-cannot-change-an-expired-user-account-password-in-a-remote-desktop

    As they suggest, enable changing the password via RDWeb is an option. Another option i have seen is changing the password via Exchange webmail.

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  2. You could use a local administrator password reset boot USB. That would also allow you to enable the built in administrator account. A lot of people like Hiren's BootCD

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  3. You can try to change the password with pspasswd:

    pspasswd \\server -u user -p oldpsswd user newpsswd
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