Easily Running a Program as the Administrator

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated July 1, 2019)

When you run a program in Windows, that program is run using whatever user account you used when you logged in to the system. For instance, if I log in using an account named AWyatt, then any programs I run while logged in are executed using whatever security setting and environmental configuration I devised for the AWyatt account.

For some programs, though, you may need a greater level of access to the system. In fact, some programs—particularly those that may access or change system settings—can only be run by an administrator. Fortunately, it is not difficult to run a program as an administrator, regardless of what account I am currently using on the system.

To run a program as an administrator, simply right-click on the program's icon or menu link. You should see a Context menu. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. An example Context menu displayed when right-clicking.

Note the option to "Run as Administrator." If you choose this option, then the program is run using administrator rights. If you don't see the "Run as Administrator" option on the Context menu, it may mean one of three things:

  • The program doesn't require administrator rights in order to run properly.
  • You are already logged in as an administrator (which means that the program is run "as administrator" by default).
  • The program is somehow blocked by Windows from running with admin privileges.

 This tip (10138) applies to Windows 7, 8, and 10.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Inserting the Name of the Last Person to Save the Document

Who saved the document the last time? Word keeps track of that information, and you can insert the person's name into the ...

Discover More

Saving WordArt Graphics as Files

WordArt can be a handy tool for creating all sorts of flourishes on traditional text. If you want to save the graphic ...

Discover More

Displaying Negative Percentages in Red

Excel includes quite a few different formats you can use for the information in a worksheet. One format that isn't as ...

Discover More
More WindowsTips

Recovering a Forgotten Administrator Password

Forgetting your administrator password may be cause for panic because there is no supported way to discover it. Before ...

Discover More

Ransomware Defense

Ransomware attacks can cause your system and data to become inaccessible. These dangerous and potentially costly attacks ...

Discover More

Understanding Data Execution Prevention

Windows has many malware-prevention features. One of these is Data Execution Prevention. This tip provides an explanation ...

Discover More
Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 5 - 0?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


Newest Tips