Password Reset Basics

MSFT Michael C — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 06:12:00 GMT

If you have forgotten your password, there are a couple of online options available to you to regain access to your account. We hope that the information below will help guide you in understanding the basics of resetting your password.

Before you try the reset options, you may want to check these following hints (just in case the password is not the issue):
1. Verify the email address is spelled correctly. You may want to check the spelling on the domain name (hotmail.com or live.com) as well. A simple mistyped letter is a big cause in access problems.
2. Check your domain name: new Hotmail accounts are being created under @live.com domain names. If you recently created your account in Hotmail, you may want to try @live.com as the domain to see if this resolves your problem.
3. Check your CAPS Lock on your keyboard when typing in your password. Our passwords are case sensitive and this simple check has been known to resolve access issues.
4. Try typing your password in another window or application (such as Notepad) to ensure that you are typing the correct password.

The above information has been known to resolve a large number of password reset issues, but if this did not solve your issue, then you may need to try the Forgotten Password options.

On any sign in page, you will see the link "Forgot your password?" under the section where you type in your password. In this case, you can go directly to: https://account.live.com/ResetPassword.aspx

1. Type in your account in the Windows Live ID section.
2. Type in the Characters from the picture.
3. Reset your password: (On this page, you might see two options depending on what you provided when you provided your profile):
a. Use my location information and secret answer to verify my identity.
b. Send password reset instructions to me in e-mail.
4. Depending on what you select, you will be provided options to complete step 3.

I do not see an option to provide my Secret Answer, but I know that I provided this in the past. Why can't I see this option now?
A. You might have provided the information in the past, but additional requirements were added to our online reset process that requires the country/region and postal code. If we do not have this information on record on your account, you will not see the option to provide the Secret Answer.

Why am I given the option to send a password reset to my @hotmail or @live.com account when I am unable to access it?
A. This option is available for those that automatically sign in to their @hotmail or @live.com email accounts. If you are able to log in automatically, then we can send a reset e-mail to your account. Another option is for those who can access their Windows Live Messenger can also access their email through their messenger, but have forgotten the password. This option will not work if you are not automatically signing into your account.

Why can't I see the Alternate E-mail in the list?
A. This is a security and privacy option that is there to protect you. You will not see the Alternate E-mail that you provided to us because only you (the real account owner) would know what the alternate e-mail address is that you provided when you created your account.

I tried the Alternate E-mail, but I am still not seeing any e-mail. What now?
A. If this is the case, and you know what your Alternate E-mail address is, you can try the Windows Live ID Validation Page as another alternative. Also provide in the notes to that e-form page that your alternate e-mail address that you believe is the correct address. If we are able to verify this e-mail and note that there is a problem sending to that e-mail, we can send to another e-mail address after further verifying your identity.

I know my password! I just want to change it!
A. All you need to do in order to change your password is to sign in to https://account.live.com and select the "Change" option next to Password. Or if you want a direct link, you can go directly to the Change Password Page.

The Windows Live ID Validation Page in verifying account ownership:
A. If you've already tried these options, but you still are having issues accessing your account, there is one last alternative to assist you with getting access to your account. The Windows Live ID Validation Page was created to ask key questions about your account (only you would be able to provide to us) when you created or updated your account. The more information you provide to us, the better for our Support Agents to validate your identity. We will not provide you an verification to what answers you have gotten correct or what answers you provided that were incorrect. This is for everyone's security and privacy. We appreciate your understanding in this very sensitive matter. The direct link to the Validation Page is: https://support.live.com/eform.aspx?productKey=wlidvalidation
B. Some key items that will prevent us from assisting in resetting a password would be:
       1. You did not provide accurate information upon creation.
       2. You did not provide any information upon creation.
       3. You are unable to remember any detail on your account.
       4. The information on the account does not match what you have provided.
       5. You did not provide enough information to validate ownership.
              a. Before completing the validation page, you should try to provide as much information before submitting.
              b. Name and email address is never enough for validation purposes.

Please allow up to 24 hours for a response from our support team.

These are the basics of password reset, but to make sure we've covered everything, we want to remind you that you should update your information periodically to ensure that if anything was to go wrong in accessing your account, that we have up to date information to assist you. You can update your account information by accessing: https://account.live.com

We also appreciate any feedback on the content of the solution, but we advise you to post feedback only. Do not provide account information in the feedback as this section is only designed for feedback and no interaction options for us. Use the support options above to resolve issues related to a compromised account. If this Solution did not answer your question, you can ask other users your question in the Accounts and Passwords Community.

I forgot my password

Password Reset Basics