Bypass the Windows XP Password Login Screen

Oscar Sodani is a founder of Help2Go and owner of Help2Go Networks, an IT consulting firm in the Washington D.C. area. Oscar holds the CISSP certification as well as industry certifications from Microsoft, Cisco and Novell.

If you are the only one who uses your computer, it can be a real pain to type in your password everytime you logon. You can set Windows to boot directly to your desktop and bypass the password screen with a simple checkbox. However, password security is a good thing, so we only recommend this option if your PC is a desktop and nobody but you has access to it (i.e., it's in your home).

To set Windows XP so that it doesn't ask you for your password when it starts up, click on the Start button and choose Run. In the box, type control userpasswords2 and then hit OK.

Next, you'll see the "User Accounts" screen. Uncheck the option for Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer. Then hit OK.

The next time you restart Windows, it will go directly to your desktop - no intervention required! If you ever want to re-enable the password screen, just go back and check that box.

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