Reset passwords

You can reset a single user's password from their profile, or reset passwords for a group of users at once from the Reset passwords page. If your school uses QR code login, the same page also lets you print or replace learners' QR login codes.

Reset a single user's password

Step 1 — Open the user's edit page

Go to Users in the sidebar, find the user, and select Edit.

Step 2 — Reset the password

On the Security tab, under Password, select Reset to default.

A confirmation dialog appears asking "Reset this user's password to the school default?". Select OK to confirm.

The same panel also lets you set a specific password for the user, or switch on Require a password change at next login without resetting anything — see Edit a user → Security tab.

Result

The user's password is reset to the school's default password. They will be prompted to change it at next login (depending on your school's password policy).

Reset passwords for a group (bulk reset)

Step 1 — Open the Reset passwords page

Select Reset passwords in the left sidebar.

Note: This option is visible to mentors (teachers) as well as admins, if the school has enabled it. It may not appear if your account has been restricted.

Step 2 — Select a group

The page shows a list of groups for the current school. Find the group whose passwords you want to reset (e.g. "Year 7", "7A") by searching or browsing the list.

Step 3 — Review the members

Selecting a group shows its members. Review the list to make sure you are resetting the right people.

Two icons can appear next to a learner's name to help you spot who needs attention: a warning triangle for still has their default password, and a clock for must change their password at next login. See Password-state icons for what they mean.

Step 4 — Reset all passwords

Select Reset all passwords (or the equivalent reset button shown for the group).

A confirmation dialog appears. Confirm to proceed.

Result

All members of the group have their password reset to the school default. They will be prompted to change it at next login.

QR login codes from the Reset passwords page

If your school uses QR code login, the Reset passwords page also carries a QR codes menu in the action bar, so a teacher can hand out or replace pupils' codes without needing an admin. The menu only appears once QR login is turned on for the school (School settings → QR login).

Note: Whoever can reset passwords on this page can manage QR codes here too — an admin, or a teacher the school has allowed. The actions only ever apply to the learners shown on this page, never to staff.

Step 1 — Select the learners

Filter the list down to the class or year group you want, then tick the learners. The QR code filter (under Security in the filter drawer) narrows the list to learners who already have a code, or to those still missing one, and the QR code column shows the same thing row by row.

Step 2 — Choose the action

Open QR codes in the action bar:

• Print QR codes — creates a code for any selected learner who doesn't have one yet, then opens a print view with every selected learner's code, ready to print onto badges, stickers or cards. Allow pop-ups for the site if the print window doesn't open.
• Generate QR codes — creates codes for those who don't have one, without printing. Anyone who already has a code keeps it.
• Delete & regenerate QR codes — replaces every selected learner's code with a brand-new one. The old code stops working immediately, so this is the action to use when a pupil has lost their card. You'll be asked to confirm.
• Delete QR codes — removes the selected learners' codes with no replacement; they can't sign in by scanning until a new code is generated. You'll be asked to confirm.

Result

The selected learners' codes are created, replaced or removed as chosen, and the QR code column updates to show who now holds one. A large selection shows a progress bar while the codes are created — keep the page open until it finishes; anything already created is saved if it stops. For large batches, what to do about a lost card, and troubleshooting, see QR code login.

Bulk reset from the Users page

You can also reset passwords for any selection of users from the Users page using bulk actions:

1. Go to Users and select the users you want to reset.
2. In the action bar, open Password actions.
3. Select Reset to default.
4. Confirm.

Control who can change their password

Whether a user can change their own password can be turned off at four levels. The Password change column on the Users table shows who's affected at a glance, and each user's edit page names the level.

Per user (Users → Edit → Password change)

On a user's edit page, the Password change switch controls that one person:

• For a student, turning it on stops them changing their password on their own profile page.
• For a member of staff, turning it on stops them resetting other users' passwords.

A note names why a student can't change their password ("turned off for this user", "this year group", or "school level"). Changes take effect immediately and are recorded in the activity log.

In bulk (Users → Password actions)

From the Users page, select users and open Password actions to Enable or Disable password change for students — or Enable / Disable password reset for teachers — for the whole selection at once. Enable skips any student whose year group is currently disabled by the year-group setting below — they need that setting turned off for their year group first.

For a year group (school setting)

Settings → Password → Disable passwords for specific year groups turns off password changes for every student in the selected year group(s), without affecting other year groups. See Password settings → Disable passwords for specific year groups.

For all students (school setting)

Settings → Password → Disable student passwords turns off password changes for every student in the school. While it's on, the per-user switch is shown but can't be changed — the school setting takes precedence over both the year-group setting and any per-user/bulk change. This same toggle — plus the school's default passwords, minimum length, complexity, and expiry — is covered in full in Password settings.

These controls govern self-service changes (a user changing their own password). An admin can still set or reset a password from the Users page — except Reset to default, which always skips students whose password change is turned off.

Keeping your default password in sync

Resetting a user to the default password updates their sign-in straight away. For most schools it also re-sends that password to your connected platforms (Google, Microsoft Entra, on-premise Active Directory) so the person can sign in there with the same password.

For some older schools, the stored default is held in an older, one-way format. It still resets the in-app password, and it still reaches Google Workspace — Google is sent the password in exactly that format. What it can't reach is Microsoft Entra and on-premise Active Directory, which both need a readable copy. When that happens:

• The reset still works — the person can sign in to Realsmart with the default, and to Google if your school syncs there.
• The confirmation message names Entra and/or Active Directory, whichever your school actually syncs to, and says those accounts keep the password they already had.
• The notifications bell shows "Re-save your default password when you get a moment" and names the platform(s) affected.
• If Google is the only place your school syncs passwords to, none of this applies to you — nothing is missed, and you won't see the message or the notification.

The fix is a one-off: an admin re-saves the default under School settings → Password (see Password settings). That restores full syncing for future resets, and the bell notification clears itself. Nothing is out of sync in the meantime — everyone's current password still works everywhere it already did. This is historical housekeeping, not a mistake on your part.

Troubleshooting

"This school has no default password set for password resets"

If a reset stops with a message like "This school has no default learner password set for password resets. Set the password under School settings → Password, then try again", no passwords were changed — the reset was refused on purpose rather than silently doing nothing.

This is now uncommon: it means the school has never set a default password for that role (learner or staff), so there is nothing to reset to. The fix is quick:

1. Go to School settings → Password (an admin must do this).
2. Enter the Default learner password and/or Default mentor password and select Save password settings. See Password settings.
3. Return to the reset and try again — it will now work.

Setting the default doesn't change anyone's current password on its own; it just gives "Reset to default" a value to apply.

Related

• Sync passwords to Active Directory
• Edit a user
• Bulk actions on users
• View your profile
• Password settings