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I need to set up a windows server 2008 in a virtual machine as demo system to show some apps which are only running on ws2008 with Active Directory.

Since this demo is run infrequently, first the one showing the system always needs to remember the logon password, and quite often is greeted with "your password has expired, pick a new one now" dialog.

Both is cumbersome, especially so since the VM is not connected to anything - how can I switch off the required password for windows server 2008 AD?

I changed the security in the AD group policy to no avail, and the local security policy is readonly, I can't change the values there.

3 Answers 3

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The problem with the AutoAdminLogon solutions given by others is that the password still has to be supplied in the registry, and the password will still expire, even with it enabled.

So while doing what I am about to suggest is usually a Bad Idea™ under normal circumstances, in this particular case, being a demo domain controller, you will need to do both of the following to achieve what you are asking:

  1. Change the domain's password policy using Group Policy Management (gpmc.msc)

    • Enforce password history: 0 passwords remembered
    • Maximum password age: 0 days
    • Minimum password age: 0 days
    • Minimum password length: 0 characters
    • Passwords must meet complexity requirements: Disabled
  2. Change the Administrator user's account in Active Directory Users and Computers (dsa.msc)

    • Password never expires: check

After changing the settings noted above, you should be able to change the password of the Administrator to a blank password, and it should not expire (unless there is some other policy (perhaps at a Forest level) that overrides the change (if so, you can use the Resultant Set of Policy console (rsop.msc) to find where the policy is being set.

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  • Ah yes, finally the right place - I had changed this somewhere else in the GP and was wondering why it did not work. Thanks!
    – Sam
    Sep 2, 2009 at 7:40
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There is an option for expiring passwords in the user "profile" options in Local Users of MMC. Let me find a screen shot.

http://www.pcwintech.com/files/password_never_expires_vista.gif

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  • Nice - problem is, there is no "local users and groups" in the computer Management, probably since the server is set up as primary Domain Controller in an Active Directory (see question). I can find the switch in the AD User Directory, but I want to get rid of the password, totally, to be able to start the VM without needing a password.
    – Sam
    Sep 1, 2009 at 14:20
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    Why not augment this with Autologin. technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb963905.aspx Sep 1, 2009 at 14:51
  • if your using a domain account to login, then you have to check the password never expires via active directory users and computers Sep 1, 2009 at 15:00
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  1. Start -> Run and enter "control userpasswords2" without quotes.
  2. Clear the checkbox for "Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer". Click OK.
  3. Enter the user name and password that will be used for Autologon. Click OK.

if you do not see the checkbox in step 2

  1. Start -> Run and enter

    reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon" /v AutoAdminLogon /t REG_SZ /d "1" /f

Let me know if this works for you.

Source

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  • The userpasswords2 control panel is not available on domain controllers. That said, you can set the username and password in the same Winlogon registry key as the AutoAdminLogon value, by also creating / setting the DefaultUsername and DefaultPassword values. Sep 1, 2009 at 15:44
  • according to the site I sourced the information from, it does work on DC's.
    – Keith
    Sep 1, 2009 at 16:59
  • That site specifically refers to member servers and member workstations, and not domain controllers. Sep 1, 2009 at 18:10
  • the author of the article mentions it works on DC's in the comments section. 5th comment.
    – Keith
    Sep 1, 2009 at 18:56
  • the "control userpasswords2" is there, but there is no checkbox "Users must enter..." in there. Seems this thing is different on my WS2008 DC.
    – Sam
    Sep 2, 2009 at 7:39

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