Display Administrator Account on Windows Login Screen

By default, Windows XP does not show the built-in Administrator account to the login screen even though the account is enabled. You can check the Administrator account status from the Computer Management by right clicking on My Computer and select Manage. Expand System Tools > Local Users and Groups > Users, and double click on the Administrator account to view the properties. The “Account is disabled” checkbox is unticked. The advantage of having an Administrator account enabled but not displayed in the login screen is when the user somehow locked themselves out probably by setting the wrong password, and they have a backup hidden admin account without a password to login to Windows and reset his user account’s password.

In this page you will find instructions on how to login to the hidden Administrator account even if it doesn’t show up on the login screen and also how to add it to the list on Windows 7 and XP.

If you would like to display the Administrator account on the Windows XP login screen, the easiest way is to use a simple tool called Add Administrator/Welcome Screen. Just run the program, tick the “Enable Admin Account on Welcome Screen” checkbox followed by clicking on the Apply button.

Download Add Administrator/Welcome Screen

Here is how to do it manually through the Windows registry. It is the same as the above except it gives you the flexibility of adding user account names other than Administrator.

1. Click on the Start button and select Run

2. Type regedit and press Enter.

3. Navigate to the following registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\SpecialAccounts\UserList

4. Right click on the right pane, go to New and select DWORD value.

5. Enter the name as Administrator and double click on it.

6. Change the value data from 0 to 1 and click OK.

Tip: Here is a useful tip if you would like to keep the administrator account hidden from the Windows XP login screen but would want to login to the admin account. Just press Ctrl+Alt+Del twice and you will get the classic “Logon to Windows” dialog where you can type the username and password. Booting in to Safe Mode also will display the administrator account without making any of the above changes.

Display Administrator Account in Windows 7

When it comes to Windows 7, it is slightly different from Windows XP because the built-in Administrator account is disabled by default. By simply enabling the Administrator account, it will automatically show up in the Windows 7 logon screen. Here are the steps to enable the Administrator account in Windows 7 so that it shows up in the Windows 7 login screen.

1. Click the Start button, right click on Computer and select Manage.

2. Expand System Tools > Local Users and Groups > Users

3. Double click on Administrator and uncheck “Account is disabled” checkbox.

4. Click OK button to save the changes and restart your computer.

Do take note that you cannot enable the Administrator account from the User Accounts shortcut found in Control Panel. It has to be done from the Computer Management.

Didn't find what you want? The links below could help:

How to Hack Into a Windows XP Computer Without Changing PasswordWeaknesses in Windows 7 User Account Control5 Ways to Solve Error While Deleting Key Problem When Editing Restricted RegistrySilently Push Install VNC Server to Remote Computers