One of the most irritating things about recent versions of Windows is how you are frequently prompted to run some programs as “Administrator” when YOU are the administrator.
This makes sense if you have multiple users on the same PC, but not if you are the only person who ever uses it.
If this irritates you as well, it’s easy to coax Windows into running any program as Administrator by default. Just follow these simple steps:
1 – Press the Windows+E keyboard combination to open the “This PC” or “Computer” dialog box.
2 – Navigate to the executable file of the program you wish to run as Administrator.
Note: The filenames of executable files typically end with .exe and they are usually found on the C: drive in a sub-folder within either the Program Files or the Program Files (x86) folder. Some programs are installed in their own stand-alone folders however.
3 – Once you’ve found the executable file of the program you want to run as Administrator, right-click on it and click Properties.
4 – Select the Compatibility tab.
5 – Check the box beside Run this program as an Administrator.
6 – Click Apply, then click OK.
From now on that program will always run as Administrator without being prompted for your approval.
By the way, when you log in to a user account with full Administrator privileges you’ll have the ability to perform virtually any administrative task that suits your fancy, including some tasks that can cause serious damage to your Windows installation if you make a mistake or perform them without actually meaning to (in other words, by accident).
That’s why I strongly recommend that you create a “Standard” user account (i.e. an account that doesn’t have Administrator privileges) to use for your normal day-to-day computing activities.
It’s impossible to accidentally perform an action that requires Administrator privileges if the account you’re using doesn’t have them.
This post explains this is more detail. It also explains how to create a Standard user account in all the most recent versions of Windows.
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