Which Linux-based tool can be used to change Windows user passwords or activate disabled accounts?

• A. CHNTPW
• B. John the Ripper
• C. Hydra
• D. Cain & Abel

Answer: (A)

This question tests knowledge of an offline password-reset approach for Windows from a Linux environment. CHNTPW is a Linux-based tool specifically designed to edit the Windows SAM and related registry hive files, allowing you to reset a user’s password or re-enable an account that has been disabled without knowing the current password. It works by accessing the Windows installation’s registry data offline and applying changes directly to those files, which is exactly what you need when you can’t log in but have legitimate access to reset credentials.

Others listed are different kinds of password tools with different purposes: a password cracker tries to reveal passwords by cracking hashes rather than changing them; a network protocol brute-forcer targets login attempts over networks; and a Windows-only utility focuses on recovery tasks within Windows itself rather than an offline Linux-based registry edit. So CHNTPW is the tool that fits the scenario of changing Windows passwords or activating disabled accounts from a Linux environment.