Most of the classic desktop programs out there don’t need administrator rights to run. However, programs that are designed for advanced operations require administrative privileges to run. The popular Macrium Reflect program cannot be run without administrator rights, for example.
Upon launching a program that requires administrator rights to run, you get the User Account Control screen where you need to click the Yes button to launch the program as administrator.
If you want to skip this UAC screen and want to always run programs as an administrator, you will be happy to know that it’s very much possible.
In this guide, we will see how to run programs as an administrator by default in Windows 10.
Tip: Did you know that you can quickly launch any program as an administrator by typing the program name and simultaneously pressing Ctrl + Shift + Enter?
IMPORTANT: Don’t grant administrator rights to untrusted programs.
Method 1 of 4
Always run programs as an administrator in Windows 10
Step 1: Type the program name that you want to always run as an administrator to see the program name in the search result. Right-click on the program name and then click Open file location to see the program’s shortcut icon in the File Explorer (Start menu folder or a sub-folder).
Step 2: Right-click on the program’s shortcut icon and then click Properties.
Step 3: Under the Shortcut tab, click on the Advanced button. This will open a new dialog by the name of Advanced Properties.
Step 4: Here, select the Run as administrator checkbox. Click the OK button. Click Apply.
Step 5: If you get the following “Access Denied” dialog, click the Continue button.
That’s all! From now onwards, the program will be automatically run as administrator.
Method 2 of 4
Make programs run as administrator by default in Windows 10
Step 1: Search for the program in the Start/taskbar search. Right-click on the program name and then click Open file location to open the program shortcut in File Explorer.
Step 2: Right-click on the program shortcut and then click Properties option.
Step 3: Switch to the Compatibility tab. In the Settings section, select Run this program as an administrator checkbox. Click the OK button. Click Apply.
One can completely disable the User Account Control to get rid of the User Account Control, but disabling the UAC is not advisable as it helps prevent unauthorized changes to your computer.
Method 3 of 4
Make program shortcut icons on the desktop to run as administrator
If you have program shortcuts on the desktop, you can configure the program shortcut to always run with administrator rights. Here is how to do that.
Step 1: Right-click on the program’s shortcut icon on the desktop and then click the Properties option.
Step 2: Switch to the Compatibility tab and select Run this program as an administrator option. Click OK and then click Apply.
Method 4 of 4
Always run programs as an administrator via Registry
Step 1: Open the Registry Editor by typing Regedit.exe in the Start/taskbar/Run box and then press the Enter key.
Step 2: In the Registry Editor, navigate to the following key:
ComputerHKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftWindows NTCurrentVersionAppCompatFlags
Step 3: Look for the Layers key. If not present, right-click on the AppCompatFlags key, click New, and then click Key. Name it as Layers. Skip this step if Layers key is present.
Step 4: Select the Layers key on the left pane. On the right-side, right-click on an empty space, click New and then click String Value.
Step 5: Now, in the File Explorer, copy the full path to the executable file of the program that you want to always run as an administrator.
To get the path of the program, search for it in the Start/taskbar search, right-click on it, click Open file location, right-click on the program shortcut, click Properties, and then copy the path of the program Target field.
Step 6: In the Registry Editor, right-click on the newly created String Value, click Rename, and then paste the path of the executable file of the program.
Step 7: Finally, double-click on it and change its value data to ~ RUNASADMIN and then click OK button. This will make the program always run as an administrator.
