Google Workspace : Reset a user's password

Google Workspace : Reset a user's password

If a user forgets the password for their managed Google account (for example, their Google Workspace or Cloud Identity account) or if you think their account has been compromised, you can reset their password from the Google Admin console.

Resetting a password changes it for the user's online accounts. If the user has Google Drive for desktop, the password doesn't change there. After resetting a user's password, you should also reset the user's sign-in cookies.

Step 1: Reset a user's password

  1. Sign in with an administrator account to the Google Admin console.

    If you aren’t using an administrator account, you can’t access the Admin console.

  2. Go to Menu and then Directory > Users.
  3. In the Users list, point to the user and click Reset password at the right, as shown below.

    Or if the list is long, type in the search bar at the very top to find the user's account page. Then at the left of their account page, click Reset password. Show me how 

  4. In the Reset password box, select an option:
    • Automatically generate a password, such as for a compromised account. This generates a secure password, which the user will need to access the account. When they next sign in, they'll be asked to reset the password again.
    • Create password, for example, to type a simpler password you can give the user over the phone. To view what you type, click Preview . Check the Ask the user to change their password box so they can change it to something more secure when they next sign in.

    • By default, password minimum length is 8 characters. You can change password requirements for your organization.

  5. Click Reset.
  6. Choose how to tell the user about their new password:
    • Click Copy Password, for example, to send the user the password in a Google chat conversation. Then click Done.
    • Click Email Passwordand thenSend to notify the user that their password has changed. Send it to an email address where the user can currently get email. The user also receives a link to reset their password. Or, if you unchecked the Ask the user to change their password box in step 4, they don't receive a link and must contact you for the password.
  7. Reset the user's sign-in cookies (steps below).

Step 2: Reset the user's sign-in cookies

Resetting a user’s sign-in cookies prevents them from signing in with an old password.

To complete these steps, you need the appropriate User management privilege. Without the correct privilege, you won't see all the controls needed to complete these steps.

  1. Sign in with an administrator account to the Google Admin console.

    If you aren’t using an administrator account, you can’t access the Admin console.

  2. Go to Menu and then Directory > Users.
  3. Open the user's account page: Click the user's name. Or, at the top, in the search box, enter the user's name and open their account page. For more options, go to Find a user account. 
  4. At the top, click Securityand thenSign in cookiesand thenReset.
  5. (Optional) To return to the user’s account page, at the top, click the Up arrow .

Step 3: After changing a password

After you reset a password and sign-in cookies, the user is signed out of all active sessions. To reopen their apps, the user needs to complete the following actions:

  • Google web apps (such as Gmail or Google Drive)—The user has to sign in again with their new password.
  • Google apps on Android—The user is notified they need to verify their identity by signing in to their account. Already synced data—for example, email already received in Gmail—is still accessible, but no new emails can be sent or received until the user signs in again with their new password. 
  • Google apps on Apple iOS—The user's Google account is removed from the account list. The user has to add their account again, then sign in with their new password.
  • Third-party apps connected via OAuth—Third-party mail apps like Apple Mail and Mozilla Thunderbird―as well as other applications that use mail scopes to access a user’s mail―will stop syncing data after a password reset, until a new OAuth 2.0 token is granted. A new token is granted when the user signs in with their Google account username and new password. For details, go to Automatic OAuth 2.0 token revocation upon password change.
  • Third-party apps that require application-specific passwords (ASPs)—When 2-Step Verification is in use, application-specific passwords (ASPs) may be required to use legacy applications that don't support OAuth. After a password reset, all ASPs are revoked and need to be regenerated. For details, go to Sign in with App Passwords. 

Reset another administrator's password

To reset the password of another administrator, you must have Super Admin privileges. If you have Super Admin privileges, follow the steps to reset a user's password (above on this page).

Recover your own administrator password

If you can't sign in to the Admin console and need to reset your own administrator password, go to Recover administrator access to your account.




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