Windows 10 Computer password protected

[bob24]

My friend passed away recently and his wife knows there are lots of pictures on his windows 10 computer. Unfortunately he password protected it
It has a sata hard drive. I don't have any other sata drives and my computer doesn't have a socket for sata to allow me to plug it into mine as a second drive.
There is what looks like an ide port on his mother board but when I put an old ide drive I have into it I can feel the drive spinning but it doesn't show up in the setup.
It works fine in the computer it came out of, if it is only XP.
Is there any way around the password protection (I have removed the bios battery so every time I turn it on it fails to see the drives and sends me to the setup).
Should my ide drive show in the list of drives in the setup if it is connected? the original sata one does.
Is there a hardware switch or plug to make it the slave drive so it will be seen as a second drive if I manage to get it into another computer? I can't see one on it.
I don't know that much about computers so I would welcome some help.
Thanks.

 

[Neemobeer]

Depends on how the firmware is configured on the system.

I would just boot to a live Linux usb and copy the files from the system if all is has is an operating system password.

 

[bob24]

I have managed to get the drive to show up as a second drive on another computer and can get at most of the files.
I can do a search and find directories called 'pictures' and 'my pictures' in quite a few directories, some of them are refusing to let me into the directory. If I go back a directory and do right click /permissions it says it is read only, if I unclick the read only and apply when I come out and go back in (right click/ permissions) the read only box is still ticked so there are pictures directories I can't get into.
Is there no way of getting around the password? can I not remove it from here by removing or altering a file?

 

[Neemobeer]

You could only need to go in <DriveLetter>:\Users\Pictures. Anything with "My" in the name are just links to the new locations and don't contain data. If you can see the drive you've already bypassed the login password.

 

[bob24]

I have a sata to usb convertor that I can plug the drive into so I can see the drive but as a second drive on a different computer. Some of the directories are locked from me entering them.
I know very little about windows 10, mine is still 7 and just about to go out of cover by microsoft but I have discovered that I can get in by entering his pin on the password screen back in his computer.
It looks as if he got in by entering his microsoft account password. I don't know that one.
When I enter his pin it loads up but only gets as far as the wallpaper and keeps a small ring spinning as the mouse (the loading icon?) There are no application shortcuts appear on the screen.
Is this how windows 10 works? is it looking for the internet and wanting to download stuff before putting the shortcut icons on the screen?
I have left it for a few hours but the mouse icon is still the spinning wheel.
it is connected to the internet and the yellow and green leds alongside the plug are flashing as if it is working with the internet.
If I press the mouse button anywhere on the screen I only get it to blank for a seconds and nothing else happens.
I would like to recover all his pictures for his wife and then use a cleaned out windows 10 for our club which she and I are members of.
I hope someone recognises the symptoms I am describing.
Bob.

 

[nmsuk]

right click on the drive from the other PC, properties > Security > advanced at the top there is owner click on change and select your username this will take ownership of the files on the drive.