Hello
The following is from the Microsoft Knowledge Base article 315231:
INTRODUCTION
============
This article describes how to configure Microsoft Windows
XP to automate the logon process by storing your password and other pertinent
information in the registry database. This feature permits other users to start
your computer and to use the account that you establish to automatically log
on.
Important If you turn on autologon, using Windows XP becomes more
convenient. However, using this feature can pose a security risk.
MORE INFORMATION
================
Warning If you use Registry Editor incorrectly, you may cause serious
problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft
cannot guarantee that you can solve problems that result from using Registry
Editor incorrectly. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.
If
you set a computer for automatic logon, anyone who can physically gain access
to the computer can also gain access to everything that is on the computer,
including any network or networks that the computer is connected to.
Additionally, if you turn on automatic logon, the password is stored in the
registry in plain text. The specific registry key that stores this value is
remotely readable by the Authenticated Users group. Therefore, only use this
setting if the computer is physically secured and if you make sure that users
who you do not trust cannot remotely see the registry.
You can use
Registry Editor to add your log on information. To do this, follow these steps:
1. Click "Start", click "Run", type "regedit" (without the quotation
marks), and then click "OK" to start Registry Editor.
2. Locate the following registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\WindowsNT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon
3. Using your account name and password, double-click the
"DefaultUserName" entry, type your user name, and then click "OK".
4. Double-click the "DefaultPassword" entry,
type your password under the value data box, and then click
"OK".
If there is no DefaultPassword value, create the value. To do this, follow these steps:
a. In Registry Editor, click "Edit", click
"New", and then click "String Value".
b. Type "DefaultPassword" (without the quotation marks) as the
value name, and then press ENTER.
c. Double-click the newly created key, and then type your
password in the "Value Data" box. If no
DefaultPassword string is specified, Windows XP
automatically changes the value of the
AutoAdminLogon registry key from 1 (true) to 0 (false) to turn off the AutoAdminLogon feature.
5. Double-click the "AutoAdminLogon" entry,
type "1" (without the quotation marks) in the "Value Data" box, and
then
click "OK".
If there is no AutoAdminLogon entry,
create the entry. To do this, follow these steps:
a. In Registry Editor, click "Edit", click
"New", and then click "String Value".
b. Type "AutoAdminLogon" (without the quotation marks) as the value
name, and then press ENTER.
c. Double-click the newly created key, and then type
"1" (without the quotation marks) in the "Value
Data" box.
6. Quit Registry Editor.
7. Click "Start", click "Restart", and then click "OK".
After your computer restarts and Windows XP starts, you can log
on automatically.
If you want to bypass the automatic logon to log on
as a different user, hold down the SHIFT key after you log off or after Windows
XP restarts. Note that this procedure applies only to the first logon. To
enforce this setting for future logoffs, the administrator must set the
following registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\WindowsNT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon
Value:ForceAutoLogon
Type: REG_SZ
Data: 1
You can also use turn on automatic logon without
editing the registry in Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition and in Microsoft
Windows XP Professional (not joined to a domain). To do this, follow these
steps:
1. Click "Start", and then click "Run".
2. In the "Open" box, type "control userpasswords2" (without the
quotation marks), and then click "OK".
3. In the dialog box that appears, click to clear the "Users must enter
a user name and password to use this computer" check box, and then
click "OK".
Hope this helps
*****************************************************************************
David Hancock
Microsoft Server Setup Team
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See the Windows NT Homepage at
http://www.microsoft.com/ntserver/
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