Activating system password

During my absence when traveling, a house-sitter will be staying at my house. I would like to activate a password on my system as soon as it fires up, obviously, to keep my system secure. I still (!) am using Win 98. I recall long ago that such a password was required to even get into the system but I don't remember how it was deactivated. Now I'd like to make use of it again. Any guidelines will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance for your help.

P.S. I asked this same question in the "software" category and received the suggestion that I perhaps am looking for a BIOS password. Which, as it was explained, will require a password right at the begining of turning on the system.....this sound like the ticket.

 

The advice that you were given was correct, in that a BIOS password is what you are looking for. Just enter your BIOS when the computer is booting, it should tell you what key to hit to get there - generally F1, F2, or Delete. Once in the BIOS, scroll across the top menu until you get to boot, and the option to set a power on password should be there. Hope this helps.

 

Dont trust the house sitter?

Bios password is the simplest to get around, for that matter windows password in 98 is a piece of cake too.
Although if someone was to reset or alter you would know.

Bios password should be fine for the sitter, just didnt want ya to be overconfident in your security.

 

ASUS- wouldn't you need to open the case though??


Noah< don't forget the password you set

 

I believe that there are programs that will change the password without the case being opened, or find the password and change it.

 

But, you would need the PC booted to use those right?
Far as I know, you would have to use the CMOS jumpers to wipe a boot password.
If I'm wrong, I would appreciate people sounding off, so I could know if my PC is safe

 

Thanks, ASUS for the suggestions. It worked!

 

scorcer,
There is a way to do this on Toshiba laptops ( older ones that have a LPT port ), as I made a device to clear the power on BIOS password. It took a week of searching the web, but I finally found a site that gave the procedure and the pinout to be used. I made it and it worked on a laptop that my company had gotten from another plant that the parent company had shut down. I've never used the device on another computer, but may try it on the box that I'm using now, when I retire it, to see if it was Toshiba specific.

 

OK, that would take some "skills" and "skills" like that would know how to open my box and fiddle the CMOS jumpers

thanks for the feedback

 

Wow, thats cool. LPT port dongle thing. I never knew you could get those things... seems to be Toshiba specific though.