How We Can Help:

More Information:

under 30 minutes if things go smoothly

"Is regaining access to my computer worth £39?" (a bit more if it's a server)

Answer these questions:-

We always reply to password recovery request emails. If you haven't received a reply after 8 hrs then either your email or our reply may have got lost or trapped by a spam filter.

Try again, phone us or see if we're logged on to Instant Messaging

Active Directory Domain Controller?

We charge £39 for:
Windows NT Workstation
Windows 2000 Professional
Windows XP Home
Windows XP Professional

We charge £59 for:
NT Server - all types,
2000/2003 Standalone & Member Servers

We charge £79 for:
Active Directory Domain Controllers

Approximate US$ and Euro equivalent amounts:
£39 =  $74 =  €57
£59 =  $113 =  €86
£79 = $151 = €115
Click here for up-to-date exchange rates

All creditcards will be charged only the £39, £59 or £79 fee however, for creditcards issued outside the UK, the exact amount charged in your local currency will depend on your creditcard company's rules.

Payment can be made using Creditcard, Debitcard or PayPal

(If you're a UK registered company or institution we'll accept purchase orders and company cheaues - details here.)

At this point we may also require some assurances that you are legitimately entitled to access the computer such as a fax on company paper or a phone number where we can actually contact you. We charge a fee of £39, £59 or £79 depending on the operating system, as detailed opposite. You pay the fee up front before we start and we promise to make a full and prompt refund if we fail to get you Administrator-level access to your computer or Windows Domain.

Given Human Nature and the anonymity of the Internet, we believe that paying upfront is the only way the scheme will work.

1 - Details of the files you need to download.

3 - Our phone number, in case you need help.

It's entirely up to you whether you want to attempt the recovery process yourself or have us guide you through it over the phone.

If things go smoothly you should be logged back into your computer in around 30 minutes.

Server computers can take a little longer as the initial attempt may run into hardware-related problems such as no floppy disk drive, a missing SCSI driver, the wrong boot-device order, a password-protected CMOS setup etc.

On rare occasions the recovery process can extend over several days to allow for adjournments for you to obtain any tools or equipment required, for us do some research or analysis of the problem or for both of us to just fit the time required into our schedules.

As part of our service we'll guide you through restoring your previous Desktop.

(+44 7876 616685 from outside the UK where "+" represents the code needed to access international numbers.)

If the call goes to VoiceMail, leave your number and email address.

Check that it's not between midnight and 7.30am in the UK and then try another call after 5 minutes.

Also send an email, as soon as you can, to recovery@rhebus.com because time can be lost if your email address or details of files you need to download are misheard over the phone.

07876 616685 is a standard UK mobile/cell phone number.
Calls are charged at standard rates.
Rhebus receives no income from calls made to this number.

You can see if we're on-line with Instant Messaging.

If we are, you're welcome to discuss your problem or start the recovery process.

AIM:

rhebushelp

MSN:

helpdesk@rhebus.com

Yahoo:

rhebushelp

ICQ:

230710786

(PayPal now accept creditcard payments from non-members.)

Making a payment reserves your place in the queue and we promise to refund any payments made in error.

When things go smoothly it can take as little as 30 minutes from initially contacting us to you getting logged back in.

If you're not ready to start straightaway, you don't have access to the Internet from another computer or you need further information then please don't telephone, start with an email as outlined in Steps 1,2 and 3  above.

Rhebus Networks is based in south-central England.

The times shown on the left are UK times.

The UK is on GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) from October to March and GMT +1 from March to October.

These times are:

 5 hours ahead of

New York,

 8 hours ahead of California

and 10 hours behind Sydney, Australia.

Weekdays:

08.00am to 11.00pm

Weekends:

10.00am to 10.00pm

Outside of these times you might get lucky but don't expect a response between midnight and 07.30am.

During our operating hours your call can still go to VoiceMail (maybe we're out-of-range, on another call, or any one of the other reasons calls to mobile phones fail).

We normally hear VoiceMail messages within an hour, but maybe wait 5 minutes and try a second call.

A blank password for the administrator account is not unusual

Try abc, then abcd etc

Try 123, then 1234 etc

a sporting interest, hobby or obsession.

To avoid this happening again delete all files with the filename extension PWL in the c:\windows folder.

Many newer computer don't have a floppy drive. No problem, we'll send you an ISO CD Image file from which you can make a bootable CD.

We'll also send you a set of instructions so you can decide to:-

Either:-

Carry out the procedure yourself and, if necessary, exchange emails to sort out any difficulties or misunderstandings,

Or:-
Phone us and we'll guide you through the whole recovery process.

The choice is yours.

We're in the UK and if you are too then phone call costs are negligible, so you'll probably want to phone us.

If you're outside the UK the cost of international phone calls becomes a factor as does the number of hours time difference between us. If it's not urgent that you regain access to your computer you'll probably try the email route - you can still phone us if you get stuck or things are progressing too slowly. Instant Messaging is a free alternative to a phone call - see above for our account details.

We have several different procedures for password recovery, each suited to different circumstances and none of which works in all cases, so if "Plan A" fails we've usually got a "Plan B" or even "Plan C" to try.

We can handle all flavours of Windows - workstation and server - and we're used to dealing with obstacles such as SCSI drives, RAID arrays, password-protected CMOS or no floppy drive.

Although you pay us the recovery fee before we start:

We guarantee success or your money back.

If any such problems arise we'll help you sort them out for no extra charge.

If you've lost access to a computer, you're already looking at a reinstallation of the operating system with many additional hours to set-up all the programs you use  - how much of a risk of data loss is that? (Do you know where all the installation discs are?)

The good news is that your data is still intact on the hard drive - you just can't get at it at the moment. If this data is so important you can't bear the thought of life without it then seek a second opinion before going ahead with our recovery service and perhaps try connecting the hard disk to another PC, as a secondary drive, and make a copy of the data first.

Read our Disclaimer here.

Risk 1 - Revealing your passwords to us

Most of the time we're replacing a lost password and when it comes to the part where you enter the new password we don't need to know what you choose and we can't see what you type in.

Sometimes we do need to know the new password in order for us to insert it into a registry file which we then send you to copy to your computer. However, as soon as you're logged in as the administrator you can change it again from within Windows.

Risk 2 - Revealing other details about your organisation

Sometimes the only solution is to discover the lost password and this involves you sending us some registry files or maybe just reading some long number over the phone. Either way we'll end up knowing what the original password was.

You will, of course, change it straight away but the original password may reveal more than you'd like about your password choosing strategy.

For an extra fee, and a longer and more involved process, we can get you to find the lost password without sending us anything or revealing any of your secrets.

Risk 3 - Downloading our software

You may be worried that the files we send you contain a virus, a trojan, spyware, a key logger or other assorted evils. They don't, of course, but to play safe you might want to isolate the computer we're working on from your network and the Internet and, after you're logged back in, scan it with everything you've got before allowing it to be reconnected.

If a lost password is preventing you from accessing one of your computers and you're still puzzling over that question:-

"Is regaining access to my computer worth £39?"

or perhaps you've moved on to:-

"Can I trust this mob?"

then the following Frequently Asked Questions section is included as an encouragement to you.

Here's a summary of your situation: -

(this really is the best advice if you can manage it!).

Sometimes they whisper "Look on the Internet". You have, and here we are!

You might have to admit to your boss or colleagues you've lost the password.

Q1 - I've heard that it's impossible to access Windows NT/2000/XP/2003 systems when all logon passwords have been lost, giving no choice except to re-install the operating system from scratch - I even think it was someone from Microsoft who said it! Yet you claim to be able to do it. What's the catch?

A1 - No catch. You don't need to have made any backups of your system, have an Emergency Repair Disk, Password Disk or any account that can still log on. Our techniques work with NTFS and FAT32 partitions and, only in extreme cases, involve a second installation of the operating system on the same drive.

The most accurate statement we've heard from Microsoft on the subject is their law number 3 of  "The Ten Immutable Laws of Security" which states:-

"If a bad guy has unrestricted physical access to your computer, it's not your computer anymore". Read the other 9 laws here.

With our service it's you who has the unrestricted physical access and we're not the bad guys, we're the cavalry!

It's prudent that Microsoft should remain tight-lipped about the existence of ways to defeat its security systems - even to members of its own staff.

Q2 - Microsoft are quick to remove any weaknesses that are discovered in the security components of their products by producing software patches and service packs. Why haven't they defeated the techniques you use?

A2 - They might do at any time. The emphasis, with the security vulnerabilities we hear about, is remote attacks on computers coming from over the Internet, a LAN or phone line and not people breaking into the computer they're sat right in front of. All our techniques require at least 15 minutes of unrestricted access to the computer itself. Perhaps the methods we use are too difficult to defeat or perhaps Microsoft accepts that, as long as people forget passwords, all security systems need a backdoor means of access.

Over time we expect some of our techniques will cease to work - XP and 2003 have already closed a few doors - however as recently as February 2003 a new method of password recovery was uncovered for Windows XP which we've added to our arsenal.

If security systems were invulnerable we'd find people living in their gardens because their house keys were lost and cars, with their keys locked inside, would have to be scrapped.

Q3 - Do you always succeed in regaining access to computers?

A3 - No but our success rate is well over 90%. The main reasons for failing are:-

a) SCSI Hard Drives. We have drivers for most SCSI adaptors but sometimes it's difficult to identify the correct model.

If your computer isn't a server it's unlikely to have SCSI drives.

b) Communication Difficulties. Occasionally we fail and the reason's unclear but the likely cause is the difficulty of communicating instructions and observations via email and over the phone.

Q4 - Should you be doing this? Is it moral?

A4 - Real-life locksmiths practise a trade considered worthwhile and honourable in our society. In some areas they need to be licensed or police-checked but are not considered to be the allies of criminals.

While not yet regulated, we strive to operate a confidential yet responsible service and check, as best we can, the validity of people wanting to use it. The biggest disincentives against us being exploited for dishonest ends are:-

a) You have to pay to use us.

b) You have to provide a valid email address and use a credit card.

More organised or professional criminals, not worried about a) or b) would already know the methods we use.

This page gets 7 times more hits than any other on this website, indicating that there are plenty of people out there suffering password problems.

Q5 - My company takes computer security very seriously. Should we be concerned that there are people out there who can get round all our security measures?

A5 - Not if you have good physical security. If your Domain Controllers are in a locked room or inside a locked (and well ventilated!) cabinet with, perhaps, intrusion alarms and video monitoring, it's going to make it hard for someone to get time alone with your servers. Other, simpler precautions you can take are to disable, or better still remove, the floppy and CDROM drives and use a couple of security screws, that need a special tool to remove them, to stop the case being opened.

All of these things will at least delay any would-be intruder.

Q6 - What do you mean, exactly, by Password Recovery?

A6 - When you're locked out from your computer there are 3 things we can achieve to get you back in.

These are summarised in the following table:-

Q7 - Why do you charge extra to gain access to servers?

A7 - Servers often have SCSI hard drives and other factors which take longer to deal with.

Server passwords are more valuable than workstation ones.

Password Recovery, Rhebus Networks on 0870 0940102

and include something like the following (omitting the parts that don't apply):-

"I hereby request to use your Password Recovery Service to regain access to my Windows NT/2000/XP/2003  Workstation/Server/Active Directory Domain Controller. I understand this costs £39/£59/£79 + VAT which is only payable when a username and password combination has been obtained which gives me Administrator-level access to the local computer or Windows Domain."

This is fine until you forget it, or the person who chose it has left your company - maybe on unfriendly terms.

We have a collection of techniques for discovering lost passwords that work in the majority of cases.

You don't pay anything until we've sent you proof that we've successfully opened your file.

There's no need to check with us beforehand, unless the file size is greater than 5 megabytes.

We charge £35 to open a Password-Protected Document

Approximate US$ and Euro equivalent amounts:
£35 =  $63 =  €49
Click here for up-to-date exchange rates

All creditcards will be charged only the £35 fee however, for creditcards issued outside the UK, the exact amount charged in your local currency will depend on your creditcard company's rules.

Payment can be made using Visa or MasterCard or PayPal

We'll also send you instructions on how to pay us.

"Thanks for cracking this file for me. Nice to know that you guys are as good as you are."

Jerry G, Tipp City, Ohio

"it's a French word".

For ZIP files, if you happen to have one of the files which are trapped in the ZIP archive also available in unzipped form then please send this file as well, as it can help to unlock the whole ZIP archive.

If you have paid us and for some reason the password doesn't work and we can't subsequently supply you with the correct password or send you the file itself with password protection removed, we promise to give you a full and prompt refund.

If you have any of these special requirements, email us and we can negotiate terms.

We will need to open each file in the course of confirming the password and will briefly examine its contents. If the contents appear suspicious we may need some further assurances from you before revealing the password.

Some Other Password Problem?

If you have a password-related problem, not specifically mentioned on this page, send an email explaining the problem to recovery@rhebus.com and we'll see if we can help.

We can't recover lost Web Mail or Instant Messenger passwords and, in general, we can only help when the object or resource needing a password is located on your local machine or network.