PC Troubleshooting Questions and Answers - Forgotten power on (BIOS) password

Paul writes in with a troubleshooting question

Question: I have forgotten my "power-on password"! How do I work around/bypass/reset it?

Answer: If you are referring to your BIOS password that shows up before you even get to Windows then the only real thing you can try is to take out the CMOS battery from the motherboard for a half hour or so and put it back in and see if it resets the password to blank or the default. If that doesn't work and if you are lucky your motherboard will have a clear password jumper on it. It may look something like this

Just set the jumper so it's on clear password and power on the computer and it should clear your saved password.

If you can find out who makes your BIOS you may be able to find a reset utility that they provide on their website or by contacting them.

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