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Log On in Safe Mode to Configure the Computer for Password Logon

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Applies To: Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2

If the computer is configured to allow only smart card logon, you must log on in Safe Mode and then change the registry key that enforces smart card logon.

To configure the computer to allow password logon

  1. While the computer is starting, press F8 to access the Advanced Boot Options menu.

  2. Select Safe Mode with networking, and then press ENTER.

  3. Log on to the computer by using administrative credentials.

  4. Click Start, type regedit in the Search programs and files box, and then press ENTER.

  5. In HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System, double-click scforceoption, change the Value data to 0, and then click OK.

  6. Log off from the computer, log on to the computer in normal mode, and then refer to the smart card troubleshooting diagram in Troubleshooting Smart Card Plug and Play Issues for the next troubleshooting step.

The change that you made to scforceoption is reset to 1 in the next Group Policy update, which is 90 minutes by default. This assures that the registry modifications do not continue to allow users to log on by using a password instead of a smart card.