up vote 1 down vote favorite
1
share [g+] share [fb]

When you repair Windows XP if you press SHIFT+F10 while Installing Devices is displayed on the screen it will take you to the Control Panel, where you can easily reconfigure the system. Is it a loophole or Windows developers intentionally did this for some purpose.
I have tried this using Virtual PC and it works with SP1 and SP2.
How do people find these sort of things? I mean how will anyone know which key to press to break into the system? I am not a hacker, just a normal user. I read it somewhere and tried. It works.

link|improve this question
88% accept rate
feedback

migrated from stackoverflow.com Aug 26 '10 at 10:26

This question came from our site for professional and enthusiast programmers.

2 Answers

up vote 1 down vote accepted

This is by design for troubleshooting and other purposes. For some it is a way to play solitaire during the install process after the exe is copied.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/242380

(Edit) Also look at http://support.microsoft.com/kb/295116 for info on XP

link|improve this answer
AKA the $100 XP Trick forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies.cfm?t=498320&p=6 – Moab Aug 26 '10 at 15:34
Windows Microsoft XP is not listed in the Applies to list. – Default Aug 26 '10 at 15:48
While XP might not be listed this is the article that explains the purpose to Shift+F10. Here is a link that applies to XP and mentions to functionality support.microsoft.com/kb/295116 – David Remy Aug 26 '10 at 16:43
feedback
up vote 0 down vote

Shift+F10 can also be used to reset account passwords if they are forgotten, see the second technique.

http://www.clazh.com/recover-lost-forgotten-windows-xp-administrator-password/

link|improve this answer
feedback

Your Answer

 
or
required, but never shown
discard

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.