Lost Gmail password

diamond_dave

Hi, All, my brother has been automatically upgraded from W7 to W10 and because he can't remember his gmail password he can't access his emails. How is it possible for MS to FORCE this w10 on people AND more importantly how can he recover his password? He's been through the security details but it asks him for another email address to send the password. Could he get Google to send it to my hotmail address?(Pretty unlikely)

grumbler

diamond_dave wrote: »

...He's been through the security details but it asks him for another email address to send the password. Could he get Google to send it to my hotmail address?

It could be your hotmail address, but it had to be pre-registered as a recovery e-mail in the account recovery options of the account settings.

diamond_dave

Thought so - otherwise anyone could get the password sent to them. Any other ideas?

paddyrg

Google don't know his password, they keep a hash. Best he can do is to go through the 'i forgot my password' options via google and they can verify him in other ways, assuming he bothered with the recovery options

libra10

Just wondering whether your brother would have his GMail email address set up on his smartphone or tablet. He could possibly go into settings and check his password.

debitcardmayhem

You don't say how he accesses it but his old browser's settings will probably be in the windows.old folder c:\windows.old\\users\hisname\etc......

ukmike

my brother has been automatically upgraded from W7 to W10

Doesn't happen automatically.

diamond_dave

Hi ukmike, he said that the w10 icon kept showing then suddenly started to install, saying " installing windows 10 -do not log off or switch off".
I have see several people saying that MS are starting to "force" the download on users. Anyone any ideas on this?

Swipe

ukmike wrote: »

Doesn't happen automatically.

Apparently it does if you have 'install recommended updates' checked in windows updates settings now it has been classed as 'recommended'

macman

You can reverse the update once it has installed W10. Just tick 'decline' when you get to the acceptance of the legal terms and conditions page. It should then reinstall W7 with your data intact.

paddyrg

W10 is a perfectly decent OS, trying to revert to W7 for the sake of a password is a backwards move. Instead, Google do offer password recovery options, exhaust them first!