subject: Recover Windows 7 Home Group Password [print this page] Recover Windows 7 Home Group Password Recover Windows 7 Home Group Password
So you're about to setup your new Windows 7 PC into your Homegroup when you realized that you have no idea what the password is. How do you find it? It's actually pretty simple, if you know where to look.
What is HomeGroup
Homegroup is a new feature in Windows 7. Only I personally don't really think its new at all, it just another way to map your local network, and this time they add an additional password for remember the mapped drive for future access.
Ever wanted to share your music, pictures and documents within your home computers and found the task to be difficult? HomeGroup in Windows 7 will simplify the tasks associated with sharing music, pictures and documents within your home network and Windows 7 PCs.
HomeGroup also allows you to share your USB connected printers, if you have a printer in the living room that's shared by HomeGroup it will be automatically installed onto your other HomeGroup enabled PCs. Domain-joined computers can be part of a HomeGroup too.
HomeGroup Password
The only new thing "Homegroup" is different from mapping shared network drivers is that it contains a password to join the homegroup, (ie its more like join a domain, a group of network computer where you need password access to do so) you also got options to leave homegroup etc.
By default, you will be prompt a homegroup password when you finish a clean install of Windows 7. That said if you are using Windows 7 Starter or Home Basic on some OEM netbooks you will not be able to create a homegroup network, hence you no password will show when you first time use the homegroup feature. However, that Starter and Home Basic can still join homegroup to share and access files between other PCs.
So what if you forgot the password when you first install the Windows 7 ?
Finding Your Homegroup Password
If you ever forget your homegroup password, you can find it by opening HomeGroup in Control Panel on a computer that's part of the homegroup. Here's how:
Open up Windows Explorer, and then find the Homegroup option in the left-hand navigation pane. Right-click on Homegroup and choose "View the HomeGroup password"
And there you go, your password in nice bold textand there's even a print button.
Now you have the password and you are all set to setup your home group network
