Using a specialized script, he bypassed the standard login and forced the SQL instance into single-user mode. He could see the tables now—the 'Users,' the 'Events,' the 'Permissions.' It was a labyrinth of data. He didn't just need to reset the password; he needed to "repack" the security credentials so the software would accept a new master key without corrupting the existing site data.

: Many older installations use default or easily discovered passwords (like