How to Get the Password to a File

While passwords are meant to prevent unauthorized users from gaining access to files, sometimes they keep authorized users out as well. Whether a password has been lost, forgotten or the person who set the password is no longer present, sometimes it is necessary to recover the password for a protected file. Luckily, there are a number of programs that allow you to recover the password for an encrypted file with little to no effort.

Instructions

1. Open the computer's Web browser and navigate to a website that offers a password recovery program for download. Passware, ElcomSoft and Atomic Password Cracker are a few of the programs that perform this task.

2. Download and install the program onto the computer.

3. Double-click the program to run it on the computer.

4. Locate the file you wish to recover the password for and double-click it.

5. Click the "Run Wizard" option and follow the on-screen instructions to enter any details you may know about the password. If you do not know any details about the password, skip this step.

6. Click the "Start" button to start the recovery process. Allow several hours for the recovery process to finish. When the recovery process finishes, the correct password will be displayed in the application window.

Tips & Warnings

• Do not use these programs to access files you are not authorized to access.

References

• Lost Password: Passware Tutorial

Resources

• Lost Password: Passware
• Atomic Password Cracker: Download
• ElcomSoft: Password Recovery