Adding Windows XP machine to a workgroup means I can't login :(

[Pc_Madness]

ARGH!

My sister brought home a school laptop to print some stuff, and I was going to add it to the workgroup for it to access the network printer, but now when I log on it doesn't recognise the password for the administrator account?

Is there any legit way to put the computer back onto the domain and save my arse? I know what the administrator password is for when it was logging onto the domain... but apparently there different for workgroups?

HEEEEEEEEEEEEEELP.

[visualAd]

Do you need to add the computer to the domain again? To do this, you need to be connected to the domain and have the username and password of a domain administrators account.

[Pc_Madness]

Yeah, as its the only way I'm going to be able to login.

[dglienna]

Are you using this?

\domain\username

[visualAd]

Yeah, as its the only way I'm going to be able to login.

If you have the domain admin user name and password then you can add the computer to the domain. The PDC needs to hold a trust account for the PC you are adding and the only way to check this is when the computer is connected to the domain.

[dglienna]

I can log into a Web Portal from any machine, but I have to use domain\username in order to get in.

[Ideas Man]

As soon as you remove a computer from a domain and put it back on a workgroup, to reconnect it, you must be connected to the domain. Part of the process of joining a domain is creating the account for the computer in active directory and setting it up for the domain. Simply knowing the domain admin username and password will not work because your computer has nothing to authenticate against. To get it to work, you have to take it back to school, plug it into the network and rejoin from there, you cannot do it from home.