Acer recovery partition password

[Kitten Kong]

Hi all, I have a client with a Acer Aspire 9301AWSMI, running MCE.

Now my client wishes to have a n&p on their own accord.

I have backed up all relevant docs etc, and come to do the recovery using the inbuilt alt F10 combination.

Now there is a password set on this recovery partition. My client cannot remember the password.

Does anyone know, of any software, which will allow me to bypass this password please?

One option is to order recovery media, which is ok, but will take time. As usual, client wishes for the job to be completed asap.

Or would the xp 9-1 combination be of use with this, as it has xp mce built in, ready for installation. The only issue I can think of doing it this way, would be the activation, as I have encountered on another thread.

thanks for your time, and any help offered.

 

[iptech]

I believe Acer uses Ghost image files. I would try a partition manager to unhide the recovery partition and extract the recovery image using a Ghost boot disk.

 

[Kitten Kong]

Thanks for that iptech. I will give it a shot shortly. I've put that system to one side for the moment, to carry on with other jobs. Will come back to it later, and post back the findings.

 

[Styxbound]

Try the xp-something on Hirens, Nige; it's worked for me on recovery partitions.

 

[fixitdaz]

When it asks for the password, you need to type one found in the file aimdrs.dat.
1. Download Partedit32 launch the program and change the type of the partition pqservice from 27 to 7.

2. Restart the computer press F2 on boot to enter the bios, and then disable the option (d2drecovery).

3. Restart and press F8 several times until you reach the Windows recovery menu, choose the option : command prompt. The windows open and now there is a letter for a new drive, x for example.

4. Type "dir" and seek the file "aimdrs.dat". Then type this command at the prompt : "Copy aimdrs.dat C:"

5. Restart your computer normally, open a notepad browse for your file open it and recover your password. Do not forget to restore your partition pqservice in its initial state with partedit32, and to reactivate the D2D recovery option in the bios.


from link

 

[ekrizon]

When it asks for the password, you need to type one found in the file aimdrs.dat.
1. Download Partedit32 launch the program and change the type of the partition pqservice from 27 to 7.

2. Restart the computer press F2 on boot to enter the bios, and then disable the option (d2drecovery).

3. Restart and press F8 several times until you reach the Windows recovery menu, choose the option : command prompt. The windows open and now there is a letter for a new drive, x for example.

4. Type "dir" and seek the file "aimdrs.dat". Then type this command at the prompt : "Copy aimdrs.dat C:"

5. Restart your computer normally, open a notepad browse for your file open it and recover your password. Do not forget to restore your partition pqservice in its initial state with partedit32, and to reactivate the D2D recovery option in the bios.


from link

Yes this is correct, the p/w is written in plain text in that file. However I have done this many times and never needed to go through all those steps. Just launch an explorer or partition program that can browse hidden partitions and open that file with notepad... Thats it.

 

[Kitten Kong]

Thanks for all the advice given guys.

I followed the directions as given by daz to the letter. Attempts to reboot to command prompt failed. System halted.

Rang Acer, to see if there was a back door password, I could use. They gave me 000000 as a factory password. Tried that, password failed.

Rang my client, told him, what issues im having, and to see if he could remember any passwords from the hint given. Client gave me a few choices. Tried all those, all failed.

Told client, the only thing left now, is to order some recovery discs. These would cost approx £40-60, and would take approx 7 days to reach me.

Client does not want to wait that long, and will make do with the laptop as it is.

Just wanted to keep everyone updated with what happened. Thanks again for all the help.

 

[fixitdaz]

Came across this if you wont to give it one moor shot

IN the recovery partion there is a file
\TOOLS\AIMDRS.DAT
which contains the password.

Now you have to get in!
I think a decent partition manager should enable you to browse a partitioon (partitionmagix, acronis disk director,etc.)
otherwise you have to takethe risk and set D2D on in the BIOS,press Alt-F10 just after BIOS screens and press Ctrl-C when the system boots into the recovery partition to break out of the autoexec.bat.
After that is just:
TYPE TOOLS/AIMDRS.DAT

Note that this may be slightly different for your model, but the principle will be the same: there must be a file that stores the password, and since you changed the pwd it must be one of the few most recent files in the partition.

 

[Kitten Kong]

Thanks for the info daz. My client was with me earlier this morning, when I was attempting all the above fixes, and has taken his laptop with him.

He knows I wasn't attempting to BS him, when he saw the amount of work being undertaken in an attempt to get this password.

Now though as I say, he has taken it with him. He is away on business for a few weeks on Mon, hence why he needed it doing rather quickly.

 

[fixitdaz]

OK, shame we will never no, I have put the two processes on file and I will try them when I next get a Acer Aspire in, well it was worth a shot you would think a big company like acer would have a way to recover it, some company's will let you speak to one of there technicians, you get trade secrets of some of them who don't mind sharing the info with other technicians, if you no what I mean.

 

[Kitten Kong]

Ditto mate, I have kept all details in my KB, just in case. I spoke to a tech at Acer, as well as giving me the backdoor password, the only 2 other options he gave me, was to take to a Acer Authorised repair center, for them to reimage the drive. Or to purchase the recovery cd's.

I would love to know how you become a authorised repairer, as I sell a lot of Acer notebooks / desktops.

 

[fixitdaz]

Have a look here and I would contact them and ask the question

 

[vdub12]

Why not just reinstall with OEM MCE2005 disks.

 

[Kitten Kong]

I would of done vdub. Only I dont have a copy of MCE. The only one I do have is on the XP 9-1 cd; and I had major troubles with activation on that one, last time I tried to use it.

Very rarely do I have a client who runs mce, which is why I havent really bothered downloading it, and I cannot purchase it from my suppliers here.

 

[PBComputer]

Sorry to bring this old thread back. But I have just had a computer in which had a password another tech had put on. I have just found a very easy way to see the password and reset it.

• Boot into Ubuntu (or which distro you pick)
• Mount the recovery partition.
• In the drive you will see aimdrs.dat, copy the file to the local machine, so you are not editing the actually file.
• Right click and open in a text editor. and it is displayed.

of this can be done via other guies online via cli

Paul

 

[Larry Sabo]

Yup, exactly what I do...

Booted with Linux Live Cd.
Browsed to PQSERVICE hidden partition. (it's the fist partition, about 10GB)
Open the Acer\Tools directory
Right-click "aimdrs.dat" and click Abiword
See the passowrd and hint
These can be edited and saved.

The default password is six zeros ("000000"), so if that's what you see there, that's what to use.
If you can't run eRecovery from the Start menu, navigate to c:\Program Files\Acer and locate it in a subfolder.