Content

• Steps
• Advice
• Warning

In this article, wikiHow will show you how to access ZIP folders without knowing the password. The only way you can do it is by downloading a password cracking program. However, this may take several days.

Steps

Part 1 of 3: Prepare to remove the password

1. 

2. Type command prompt
3. Press

   

   
   
   Command Prompt at the top of the Start window.

4. 

   Change to the "run" folder of John the Ripper. Import cd desktop / john / run and press ↵ Enter.

5. 

   
   
   Enter the command "run". Type zip2john.exe name.zip> name.hash (remember to replace "name" with the name of your ZIP folder) and click ↵ Enter.
   • For example, with a ZIP folder named "xin_chao", here you would type zip2john.exe xin_chao.zip> xin_chao.hash.

6. 

   
   
   Determine the ZIP directory's hash value. Type name.hash (where "name" is the name of your hash file) and click ↵ Enter. Now you are ready to start cracking your password.

7. 

   Start cracking passwords. Type john.exe -pot = name.pot -wordlist = john / run / password.lst name.hash and press ↵ Enter. John the Ripper will begin comparing your ZIP folder's password with its password database.
   • You will have to replace "name" in both "name.pot" and "name.hash" with the name of your ZIP folder.
   • The file "password.lst" contains a list of passwords and their permutations.

8. 

   Request to show crackable password. Once the program has determined the password, the text "Session complete" will appear at the bottom of the Command Prompt window. Now you can type type name.pot (replace "name" with the name of your ZIP folder) and click ↵ Enter to see that password. advertisement

Part 3 of 3: Using paid software

1. 

   Understand how this approach works. Usually, any professional password cracking software will allow you to crack a file's password with a certain maximum number of characters. However, in order to crack most files, you will need to purchase the software.
   • The upside of using these programs is that they are often very user-friendly.

2. 

   Know what you are looking for. Your chosen password cracking tool will usually offer a free trial package with the ability to use password detection attack techniques.

3. 

   Download and install some professional password cracker. You will have to purchase the software anyway, here are some recommended options:
   • Advanced Archive Password Recovery - https://www.elcomsoft.com/archpr.html
   • Zip Password Recovery Professional - http://download.cnet.com/ZIP-Password-Recovery-Professional/3000-18501_4-75031119.html
   • ZipKey - https://www.passware.com/kit-standard/freedemo/

4. 

   Open your password cracking program. Once the installation is complete, click or double-click the program's icon to open it.

5. 

   Select your password-protected ZIP folder. Usually you will do this by clicking on the options Browse (Browser), Open (Open), or Add (Add) in the program, select the ZIP folder to be cracked and click Open or Choose (Choose).
   • Some password cracking programs allow you to press, hold and drag the ZIP folder into the program's window.

6. 

   Choose a certain password guessing option. In most cases, you should choose Brute force (Forced). However, you can choose Dictionary (Dictionary) or similar to check the word list similar to the word you entered.
   • Method Dictionary best suited when you know part of the password or phrase you used (but don't remember capitalization or characters clearly).

7. 

   Start cracking the ZIP folder's password. Press the button Start (Start) or Tremor (Run) on your application, wait until the password is cracked. As mentioned, this can take a few days.

8. 

   Review the cracked ZIP folder password. After finding the password, the program will display a message. At this point, you can use the cracked password to open the ZIP folder. advertisement

Advice

• A program can use several different methods. For best results, try each method. These include:
  • Attack on the Dictionary: check the word list. If it works, one option is much faster than the other. However, the likelihood of failure is quite large as not all passwords fall into this category.
  • Brute force attack: Guess every possible combination. Only available for short passwords and / or speed processors.
  • Brute force with mask: In case you remember something about the password, this method will allow you to inform the program before starting the enforcement. For example, it might mean that the password contains only letters, not numbers.
• To crack your password, you may need to let your computer run on its own for a few days.

Warning

• Depending on your computer's processing speed, a brute force attack can take a lot of time. It is even possible that the computer could be damaged by the overworked processor due to prolonged password cracking.
• Copying and downloading copyrighted software without payment or without the consent of the owner is illegal in most countries.
• While you can use a password cracker legally, don't access files that you don't have access to.