password protected on ibm aptiva

If the pasword screen is the first screen that you get, your system may have a BIOS password that will not allow you to boot unless you enter the password.

If this is the case, you should be able to clear the password by going through the clear CMOS proceedure for the PC.
There is usually a jumper on the motherboard that needs to be set. For some systems, you need to boot and then shut back down with the jumper in the clear position.

If you get the post screen, and then the password request, one of 2 things is likely;

1. Windows NT is installed on the system.
NT requires that you enter a password to startup the system.
You may be able to use one of the password cracker programs that are posted at various web sites.
2. The previous user installed a utility that requires the user enter a password to gain access to the system.
You may be able to boot from a floppy, and disable this program.
But, you may need a password cracker for this case also.

Chas

If the motherboard does not have a clear
cmos jumper. Unplug it, remove the cmos
battery and leave it out for a while. Reinstall
the battery, boot and go in to cmos and reset
the hard drive settings cause everything will
be default.

good luck Lee