MCSA/MCSE Self-Paced Training Kit (Exam 70-270): Installing ...

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If a user logs on to a domain, Windows XP Professional contacts a domain controller
in the domain. The domain controller compares the logon credentials with the user
information that is stored in Active Directory. If the credentials are valid, the domain
controller creates an access token for the user. The security settings contained in the
access token allow the user to gain access to the appropriate resources in the domain.
How to Use a Password Reset Disk
Lesson 4 Logging On and Off Windows XP Professional
A password reset disk allows a user to recover a user account when the user forgets
his or her password. You create a password reset disk using the Forgotten Password
Wizard, which you can start in the following ways:
■ If your computer is a member of a domain, press CTRL+ALT+DELETE to open the
Windows Security dialog box. Click Change Password, and then click Backup to
start the wizard.
■ If your computer is in a workgroup, and you are using a computer administrator
account, open the User Accounts tool in Control Panel, click your account name,
and then click Prevent A Forgotten Password.
■ If your computer is in a workgroup, and you are using a limited account, open the
User Accounts tool in Control Panel, and in the Relate Tasks section on the left
side of the window, click Prevent A Forgotten Password.
No matter which way you start the Forgotten Password Wizard, the wizard walks you
through the steps necessary to create a password reset disk. You can store your password
reset key on any removable disk, including floppy (in which case you will need
one, blank, formatted 1.44 MB floppy disk) and universal serial bus (USB) flash drives.
Warning You can have only one password reset disk at a time. If you create a new disk,
any previous disk becomes invalid.
If you forget your logon password, you can use a password reset disk in one of the following
ways:
■ If your computer is a member of a domain, simply try to log on to Windows by
using an invalid password. In the Logon Failed dialog box that appears, click
Reset to start the Password Reset Wizard, which will walk you through the
recovery process.
■ If your computer is a member of a workgroup, on the Windows XP logon
screen, click the user name that you want to use to make the Type Your Password
box appear. Press ENTER or click the right arrow button. In the pop-up
error message that appears, click Use Your Password Reset Disk to start the
Password Reset Wizard.