It’s essential have a strong password in any of your accounts, since you can keep your data and important information safe. With regard to computers, you should establish a password to enter the computer and, if necessary, another for important folders.
In this way, you limit who can have access to your team or to the information stored in certain folders. Each operating system has a specific method for changing the keys.
We will explain you step by step How to change the password for a Windows 7 user account ?. Remember there are accounts (as in the case of the administrator account) which is vital to keep protected, so pay attention to this guide.
Learn step by step to change the password of a user account in Windows 7
There are many reasons that can lead you to take the decision to change the password of a user account. For example, if you forgot or if you have a lot of time, it is best to modify it for a more updated one. The procedure to follow in the case of Windows 7 is faster than it sounds.
Therefore, we show you in detail the step by step:
- Go to Start Menu and select in Control Panel, located in the right sidebar.
- When the window of the Control Panel, click on the option User accounts and child protection.
- Tap on the option User account.
- Select in Change Windows password.
- Below you will see a general summary of the user profile. Within it, you can modify details such as the account name, image or password. In this case, you must click Change Password.
- To verify that you have the authorization to make this modification, Windows it will ask you to enter the current password.
- Finally, you must click on Change Password and the change will have been made successfully.
Another faster way to change the password of a user account in Windows 7, is the following:
- Press Ctrl + Alt + Del.
- Select in Change Password.
- Enter the old password and subsequently, the new password You will be asked to repeat the details of the new password to confirm it.
- Click on Enter.
Discover how to put passwords to other data saved in your Windows 7
Windows too allows its users to protect other types of information or sections such as folders or hard disk, by setting a password to login. This process is not as fast as it seems, but it is possible to achieve it.
Below we will explain what you should do in each case:
To a folder
If you want prevent access to a folder or file, the best solution is to limit the password entry. In Windows 7 you can do it through encryption.
If you want to know how to encrypt a folder, keep reading:
- Press on the start button from Windows and select in the option Pc.
- Double click on the drive letter where locate the folder you want to protect. You will commonly find it in the drive C. Double-click until the directory containing the folder you want to protect opens.
- Right click on the folder and go to Properties.
- Enter the tab general to access the file information. Then click on Advanced to access more options.
- Select in Encrypt content to protect data and later in To accept.
This will encrypt the folder you have chosen. However, keep in mind that the password corresponds to the one you use to access your Windows account. Therefore, in order to enter, users have to enter their username and password.
Once the encryption is ready, we recommend you check if the folder can be opened correctly and that’s it. Likewise, if you want to know other methods to give security to your Windows 7 files or folders, take a look at our post about How to put a password to a folder or file in Windows?.
To a hard drive
The form of power encrypt a hard drive in Windows is by using BitLocker. It is a tool developed by Microsoft that usually comes previously installed in the operating system. But nevertheless, in the case of Windows 7 it is not incorporated, so you can download it directly from their website. BitLocker allows you to encrypt not only the hard drive, but also the USB drives.
To do this you have to follow the procedure that we will indicate:
- Go to the folder This team. In case you don’t know how to get to it, you can write the name in the windows start menu and it will quickly lead you to it.
- Right click on the disk that you want to protect.
- Click on the option Enable BitLocker to start the process.
- Next, a window is displayed with two options for to unlock unit. Activate the Use a password to unlock the drive.
- Enter the password twice whatever you want and click on Next.
- Windows will notify you that you owe create a recovery key in case you forget the password you have set. In addition, it allows you to save it in a Microsoft account, in a file or simply print it. Select the option you want.
- Two encryption options will appear: a fast one that is responsible for encrypting only the space that is used or a slower encryption that completely protects the hard disk. Keep in mind that the slower alternative also encrypts the data that you may have deleted. So select the option that suits you best and click on Next.
- Choose the encryption mode. We suggest you opt for the Compatible Mode, since it allows it to be used on other computers with the same operating system. Click on Follow.
- A window will be displayed where you can see everything you previously selected, and thus ensure that everything is correct. If everything is ok, click on Start encryption.
Finally when put the drive you encrypted on another Windows computer, first it will throw you a read error. Following that, a notification that you are protected with BitLocker, so you have to click on it and a box will open where you must enter the password and that’s it.