Bypass the BIOS password by hacking your CMOS settings

Overview Recover from a CMOS memory-affecting virus or work around a boot-time password by making BIOS forget all it once knew.

A BIOS password can be very effective at controlling access to your personal computer. If the computer won't boot up until a password is entered it is effectively useless to hackers or other intruders. However, there are sometimes legitimate reasons for bypassing this protection; most often it is because the password has been forgotten or otherwise lost. This downloadable hack from PC Hacks: 100 Industrial-Strength Tips & Tools, by Jim Aspinwall, shows you how to bypass the CMOS settings and the BIOS password to allow the system to boot to a useable state.

Title: PC Hacks: 100 Industrial-Strength Tips & Tools
Author: By Jim Aspinwall
Publisher: O'Reilly Media, Inc.
Hack 2: Bypass the BIOS Password
ISBN: 0-596-00748-5; First Edition October 2004; Copyright 2005
Web site

Have you ever had to bypass the BIOS boot password? What other hacks have you had to resort to when troubleshooting a PC problem?