My dad is on a business trip, and has administrator rights on the computer. He usually reviews what I am going to install, and allows me by typing in the password himself. However, he's the only one who knows the password to install things, and I have to install some program to research things on my class, AP U.S History. Option 3: Remove the admin password Step 1: Download and install the Windows Password Refixer software on any computer. Step 2: Insert the password reset disk into the computer on which you want to remove. Step 3: After the computer boots, select the target administrator. But on startup, each program requests the admin password which my brother obviously shouldn't g. Stack Exchange Network Stack Exchange network consists of 174 Q&A communities including Stack Overflow, the largest, most trusted online community for developers to learn, share their knowledge, and build their careers.
However I could also start it and install the application. I did this by starting the install app, a dialogue popped up asking me for admin password however this dialogue had a regular windows frame with an 'X' to close it in top right. By simply closing the dialogue the install file would run and install firefox, no password required.
This seems very odd to me and also circumvents the main reason why I made a standard user account, to have control of what is installed.
I tried to do the same thing with a more 'obscure' program and found that this time instead of the old windows framed dialogue I was now presented with a windows 8 looking blue strip across the screen again asking me to enter admin info but with no 'X' button. So perhaps because firefox was recognized as 'safe' by windows I got a different dialogue, still seems odd though.
So to question,
Can I set it up so that the standard user can not install any program, regardless of what windows think is secure?
I want to give my younger brother access to the games on my Windows 7 PC while using a standard user. But on startup, each program requests the admin password which my brother obviously shouldn't get (with an admin user I had 3 trojans and 9 malware programs on my computer within 2 weeks).
What are the reasons Windows asks for the admin password for a game? Why should the game need administrator rights?
a--3 Answers
I believe sometimes a program update may trigger a need for admin privileges. I want to say Steam has done this to me in the past, but I'm not certain.
If your brother isn't terribly clever, you could always replace the game shortcuts with batch scripts that use runas to start the game. Downside is that your password would be in plain text, and if he opens up the batch script he will be able to log in to your account anyway.
RunasSpc might do the trick for you if he does have some wits about him. You'll create and encrypted file to open the program under your (or any) admin user. Something like this:
Then create a shortcut to launch the game from his Desktop as with a path as follows:
c:path_to_runasspcrunasspc.exe /cryptfile:'C:Usersbrothersomegame.spc'
Now he can launch only the games that you choose under your profile, from his profile.
Tanner FaulknerTanner FaulknerThere's an option at Lifehacker. Quick synopsis here, but read the link for full details:
- Use Task Scheduler to create a task.
- Enable 'Run with highest privileges'
- Enable 'Allow task to be run on demand' or the equivalent option.
- Create a shortcut on the desktop that points to:
C:WindowsSystem32schtasks.exe /run /tn 'FolderNameScheduledTaskName'- Don't forget to change the icon to the regular application's icon!
bgStack15bgStack15If a program is asking for administrative privelages (either through an embedded or external assembly manifest), you can override the elevation request, and force the application to run as a standard user.
How To Find Administrator Password
For example, the program Game Cam insists that it be run as an administrator. It contains an embedded assembly manifest that contains the
entry. You can override this requirement; returning it to the default 'as invoker'. The way to do that is to add a compability entry to the Windows registry:
This overrides the request by the application to run as an administrator, and instead forces the application to run as a standard user.
The application might not handle running as a standard user. Most software developers are lazy, and don't bother to test their applications. So the application might crash and burn horribly.
How To View Administrator Password
But at least it is running as a standard user.
Ian BoydIan Boyd