Screen Saver Grace Period Bypasses Password Protection

• Microsoft Windows NT Workstation versions 4.0, 4.0 SP1, 4.0 SP2, 4.0 SP3, 4.0 SP4
• Microsoft Windows NT Server versions 4.0, 4.0 SP1, 4.0 SP2, 4.0 SP3, 4.0 SP4
• Microsoft Windows NT Server, Enterprise Edition versions 4.0, 4.0 SP4

SYMPTOMS

After you configure your computer to use a password-protected screen saver, you may be able to bypass the password security and unlock the computer (using a key press or mouse movement) after the screen saver has started.

CAUSE

There is a delay between the time the screen saver locks the computer and the attendant password protection is established. During this interval, you can use a key press or mouse movement to unlock the computer without having to type in the configured password.

RESOLUTION

WARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

For information about how to edit the registry, view the "Changing Keys and Values" Help topic in Registry Editor (Regedit.exe) or the "Add and Delete Information in the Registry" and "Edit Registry Data" Help topics in Regedt32.exe. Note that you should back up the registry before you edit it. If you are running Windows NT, you should also update your Emergency Repair Disk (ERD).

To resolve this problem, change (reduce) the screen saver password registration interval in the registry. To do this:

1. Click Start, click Run, type regedt32, and then click OK.



2. On the Windows menu, click HKEY_LOCAL_ MACHINE on Local Machine.



3. Double-click the \Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon folder.



4. On the Edit menu, click Add Value, type ScreenSaverGracePeriod, click REG_SZ in the Data Type box, and then click OK.



5. Type a number representing the password activation delay (in number of seconds) in the Data box, and then click OK. You can enter any whole number between 0 and 2,147,483. The default entry is 5. If you use an entry of zero, there is no password protection delay.



6. Quit Registry Editor, and then restart the computer.

Additional query words:

Keywords : kbenv ntsecurity
Version : winnt:4.0,4.0 SP1,4.0 SP2,4.0 SP3,4.0 SP4
Platform : winnt
Issue type : kbprb