Windows 11 Error 1330: “The Password for This Account Has Expired”
Why This Error Happens
Error 1330 occurs when Windows attempts to authenticate an account—often a service account, scheduled task credential, or domain-joined user—whose password has passed its maximum password age policy without being updated. This is commonly triggered by Group Policy password expiration settings, a stored credential in Windows Credential Manager that is out of sync with the actual account password, or a service running under a local/domain account that never had its password renewed after an admin-forced reset. The underlying authentication token (Kerberos or NTLM) is rejected by the Local Security Authority (LSA) because the account’s pwdLastSet attribute exceeds the domain or local policy threshold.
Step-by-Step Resolution Guide
Step 1: Reset the Account Password Directly
- Press
Ctrl + Alt + Delon the affected machine and select “Change a password” if it’s a local user. - For domain accounts, log in from another working session or ask an admin to reset it via Active Directory Users and Computers (ADUC) > right-click user > Reset Password.
- Ensure the “User must change password at next logon” box is unchecked if this is a service account.
Step 2: Update Stored Credentials in Credential Manager
- Open Control Panel > User Accounts > Credential Manager.
- Locate the entry under “Windows Credentials” tied to the expired account (often listed under enterprise or generic credentials).
- Click Edit or Remove, then re-enter the new password so Windows re-caches the correct token.
Step 3: Adjust Password Expiration Policy (For Service/System Accounts)
- Open
secpol.msc(Local Security Policy) or Group Policy Management for domain environments. - Navigate to Account Policies > Password Policy > Maximum password age.
- For dedicated service accounts, consider setting the password to “Never Expire” via ADUC (checkbox under Account tab) if company policy allows.
Step 4: Restart Dependent Services
- Open
services.msc, locate the service tied to the account (e.g., SQL Server, IIS App Pool, or a custom scheduled task). - Right-click > Properties > Log On tab, re-enter the new password, click Apply.
- Restart the service to force it to re-authenticate with the updated credential.
Alternative or Verification Steps
- Run
net user <username>in an elevated Command Prompt to check thePassword expiresandPassword last setfields and confirm they now reflect a future expiration date. - If the error persists after a password reset, check for cached credentials on other devices (like RDP saved sessions) or verify time sync between the client and domain controller using
w32tm /query /status, since Kerberos authentication failures can sometimes mimic password expiration errors.