If boot to password is a boot up password, before the operating system loaded:
Try admin, Admin, password, Password, and PassWord.
Next step of your not afraid of getting inside it:
If none of that works next step is to pop it open and remove the button battery. With the machine unplugged, laptop battery removed. Unscrew the screws under the base. MOST IBM laptops will have the keyboard lift up and out when all screws are removed. Look for the little button cell or long fat cell that looks like a AA battery on steroids. And remove it for a few minutes and then put it all back together.
Next of if you skipped the previous step.
Still have a password?
Try this page (and for this case ignore the end of the world warnings)
bios password listFairly lengthy list of password back doors
If none of the above work for a bios password your final option is a hackers app called a blaster. There’s SOME info on them on the link above. With a machine this old the standard method (3.5 or 5.25) boot, this is going to take a while.
blasters are a combination of a custom bios override, bootloader, and program that basically trying every combination of ASCII code from 1 character to 64 for standard BIOS. Automatically rebooting the machine when the bios locks.
This is the ultimate attack on bios. Be cautious. Blasters are hacking tools. And many are less than on the level.
I use OpenBlaster. Sometimes listed as 0pen8laster.
I’m not linking to it but if you’re not comfortable on a page you wind up at move on to another site.
Next: OS password: