SharePoint administrators spend a significant amount of time handling user requests for resetting their passwords when users either forget their password and/or lock themselves out of the system. Administrators have to reset the user’s password in Active Directory or Local NT, and then contact the user with a new temporary password to enable the user to log in. While these requests don’t take up too much time individually, collectively they can be time consuming and tedious compared to the every day tasks that need to be completed to ensure your network is running efficiently.
The Password Reset Web Part allows Active Directory or Local NT SharePoint users to reset their own password from an anonymous access SharePoint WSS site. The Web Part can be run under either an “email option” or “security question option” mode. The email option mode uses e-mail based confirmation to facilitate a password change. The security question option works by prompting users to answer up to three security questions before a new password is issued.
Password Reset via E-mail Option
The Password Reset Web Part can be added to a page on an anonymous access SharePoint WSS site. When users forget their password, they can navigate to this site, enter their user name and e-mail address into the Password Reset Web Part and click Submit. An e-mail confirmation is automatically generated and sent to the user’s inbox notifying them a request has been submitted to reset their password; a hyperlink is provided to confirm the request. The user then clicks the hyperlink from the e-mail and their password is reset. Another e-mail message is sent to the user with the new temporary password. This temporary password is generated according to the password security policy set up on your network. All users must also exist in SharePoint with their e-mail address stored with their SharePoint user profile.
Password Reset via Security Questions Option
The Password Reset Web Part allows Active Directory Users to reset their password without requiring intervention of an Active Directory administrator. By adding the Web Part to a SharePoint page, the administrator can configure up to three security questions that map to existing LDAP attributes. When a user wants to reset their password, they enter their user name, password and answer each security question. If all fields are filled in correctly, their new password is displayed in the Web Part zone and the AD account option Change Password on Next Login is set.