Command Prompt in windows 8.1

[barwarner55]

I am having problems getting to the command prompt on my Windows 8.1 laptop. After I am redirected to it after pressing Shift-F8 at startup, I get a message saying "You need to sign in as administrator to continue, but there aren't any accounts on this PC". I also can't get into safe mode on this computer. Are not the options for: Safe Mode, Safe Mode with Networking, Command Prompt, etc no longer available in Windows 8? Thanks.

 

[linney]

What do you mean that there are no accounts on this computer? If you have an operating system installed then there must be a user account. Was Windows 8 preinstalled by an OEM or did you install it yourself?


Is your user that you login with an Admin user? Have you tried enabling the Built-in Administrator and signing in with that?

Built-in Administrator Account - Enable or Disable in Windows 8

http://www.eightforums.com/tutorial...rator-account-enable-disable-windows-8-a.html

Most new machines come with a recovery partition allowing you to go back to the time of purchase, you will have to check your user guides (or the manufacturer's Web Site) for instructions. Choosing that path requires you to save all valuable data first. Unfortunately upgrading to Windows 8.1 may lose such Recovery Partition.



These options are built-in to Windows 8 also.



How to restore, refresh, or reset your PC

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-8/restore-refresh-reset-pc

Windows 8.1 Update Leaves OEM Owners With Broken Restore Function

http://www.technologytell.com/gadge...aves-oem-owners-with-broken-restore-function/

Warning! If You Upgrade to Windows 8.1 Through Windows Store, You May Loose The Ability to Refresh and Reset

http://mcakins.com/2013/10/18/warni...u-may-loose-the-ability-to-refresh-and-reset/

Update to Windows 8.1: FAQ

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-in/windows-8/upgrade-to-windows-8

How to create a system image to refresh your Windows 8 PC

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2748351

How to create a custom refresh image in Windows 8

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/tutorials/create-custom-refresh-image-in-windows-8/

You can access the advanced startup options/safe mode menu by:
Depressing the Shift Key while clicking on Restart at the Login Screen (Bottom right corner).


Manually shutting down (forcibly) three times in a row will bring you to the same screen.


On a working Windows 8.1 machine, see Control Panel\All Control Panel Items\Recovery\Create a Recovery Drive.

Create a Recovery Drive and use that to boot from in a faulty machine and try accessing the advanced startup options/safe mode then.








How To Access Advanced Startup Options in Windows 8 or 8.1

http://pcsupport.about.com/od/windows-8/a/open-advanced-startup-options-windows-8.htm

Use this as a guide as to where to find System Restore if you ever make it to the advanced startup options screen.




How to access Recovery, Restore and Reset Options in Windows 8.0 and 8.1

http://www.mytoshiba.com.au/support/items/how-to/776

 

[barwarner55]

This is a laptop that was a victim of a phone scam and I'm trying to retrieve data off of it before I have to reinstall everything. I cannot get into Windows at all because I am getting a message prompting me for a unknown password. My only hope is to boot from an external media and copy data off of it from the command prompt, but I can't to the command prompt because of that "no administrator account" message. Perhaps the scammer has something to do with removing the admin account.

 

[linney]

Avira AntiVir Rescue System
The Avira AntiVir Rescue System a linux-based application that allows accessing computers that cannot be booted anymore. Thus it is possible to repair a damaged system, to rescue data or to scan the system for virus infections. Just double-click on the rescue system package to burn it to a CD/DVD. You can then use this CD/DVD to boot your computer. The Avira AntiVir Rescue System is updated several times a day so that the most recent security updates are always available.

Avira AntiVir Rescue System

http://www.avira.com/en/support/support_downloads.html

click on Utilities for details or use a direct link.

http://www.avira.com/en/download-start/product/avira-antivir-rescue-system?x-origin=web

This one is worth considering too.

What is Windows Defender Offline?

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/what-is-windows-defender-offline

The last two suggestion work outside of the Windows environment and are loaded as a self booting program.



You might like to give this a try first if you are happy with the instructions on site. Don't worry about the Linux side of things, you are only interested in the malware removal offered via the emergency boot CD.

Avira presents a FREE data recovery rescue CD

http://www.avira.com/en/support-download-avira-antivir-rescue-system

If nothing above fixes any malware connected problems then you can look at some Live CD solutions that run an older operating system such as XP from CD, but you are going to need an old XP CD to create such a beast.

You might be able to make use of BartPE (a mini XP self contained on a bootable CD and run from CD).

http://www.nu2.nu/pebuilder/

There are other Live CD's out there.

The same might be possible with a parallel install of XP, Vista, Windows 7 etc. Commonly known as a Dual Boot.


You can do a bit of Googling if you fancy either of those ideas.

 

[barwarner55]

Thank you for all the suggestions. I was able to access the command prompt using a Recovery Drive created from another 8.1 computer. This at least is allowing me to copy data off the computer before I reload it.