Some of you may not know this but resetting a password is not the same thing as changing a password. Resetting a password can have some adverse effects. For example, if you reset a password instead of changing it, you will lose all passwords saved in Internet Explorer and you will also lose all your encrypted files.

If you need a new password, make sure you are changing it instead of resetting it. You will know if you are changing the password (as opposed to resetting it) because you must provide the old password first.

In Windows XP you can change your password in one of two ways, depending on whether you are functioning in a domain or a workgroup. If you are functioning in domain mode, you can change your password by pressing CTRL + ALT + DEL and selecting the Change Password button. You are then prompted for the old password before you can create a new one. If you are functioning in a workgroup, you can change a password by opening the Control Panel, opening the User Accounts applet, selecting a user account, and clicking Change the password.