Dell OptiPlex XE (Early 2010) - Manual (Page 8)

Administrator Password
Option Settings
You cannot change or enter a new administrator password if either of the following two options is displayed:
l Set — An administrator password is assigned.
l Disabled — The administrator password is disabled by a jumper setting on the system board.
You can only assign an administrator password when the following option is displayed:
l Not Set — No administrator password is assigned and the password jumper on the system board is in the enabled position (the default setting).
Assigning an Administrator Password
The administrator password can be the same as the system password.
1. Enter system setup (see Entering System Setup ) and verify that Admin Password is set to Not Set.
2. Select Admin Password and press .
3. Type your new administrator password.
You can use up to 32 characters. To erase a character when entering your password, press . The password is case sensitive.
Certain key combinations are not valid. If you enter one of these invalid combinations, the speaker emits a beep.
As you press each character key (or the spacebar for a blank space), a placeholder appears.
4. Type your new password a second time to confirm and press OK button. The password setting changes to Set.
5. Exit system setup.
A change to Admin Password becomes effective immediately (no need to restart the computer).
Operating Your Computer With an Administrator Password Enabled
When you enter system setup, the Admin Password option is highlighted, prompting you to type the password.
If you do not type the correct password, the computer lets you view, but not modify, system setup options.
Deleting or Changing an Existing Administrator Password
To change an existing administrator password, you must know the administrator password.
1. Enter system setup (see Entering System Setup ).
2. Type the administrator password at the prompt.
3. Highlight Admin Password and press the left- or right-arrow key to delete the existing administrator password.
The setting changes to Not Set.
To assign a new administrator password, perform the steps in Assigning an Administrator Password .
4. Exit system setup.
Disabling a Forgotten Password and Setting a New Password
NOTE: If the two passwords are different, the administrator password can be used as an alternate system password. However, the system password
cannot be used in place of the administrator password.
NOTE: You can use Password Status in conjunction with Admin Password to protect the system password from unauthorized changes.