Old computer

[donkeydimples]

Hello,
I have gotten a computer from a company and it has their user name and password on it is there a way to change this so i can use the computer

 

[Hawkeye22]

Have you asked for the user name and password? If you know the administrator pasword, you can change the password on the other accounts.

Personally when I get a computer like this I like to format the drive and do a clean install so I know no garbage is left behind.

 

[donkeydimples]

Have you asked for the user name and password? If you know the administrator pasword, you can change the password on the other accounts.

Personally when I get a computer like this I like to format the drive and do a clean install so I know no garbage is left behind.

is this easy to do

 

[Hawkeye22]

Once you've done it a few times, it's simple. If you haven't done it before, I recommend reading up on how to do it or have a friend that has done it before be with you.

Basically, you need to make sure you have all the necessary hardware drivers ahead of time. You also need the OS install disk. Detatch all drives except the one you will be putting the OS on. Set the bios to boot from cd/dvd first. Boot from the install disk and follow the instructions. After the OS and drivers are installed, you can switch the bios to boot from the drive. Once you are sure it's working, attatch any remaining drives.

 

[nhasian]

Ubuntu and Fedora are operating systems based on the Linux kernel. There are many operating systems that use the Linux kernel (sometimes these are called "Linux distros"). I recommend either Fedora 17 or Ubuntu 12.04.

How to install Ubuntu 12.04

How to install Fedora 17

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

This topic has been closed by Area51reopened

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

This topic has been reopen by Area51reopened

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

Tom's Hardware doesn't provide support to bypass passwords as we can't verify you are the owner of the computer.Sorry.