Windows 10: Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10

Discus and support Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 in Windows 10 Tutorials to solve the problem; How to: Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 How to Enable or Disable Built-in Elevated Administrator Account in Windows 10... Discussion in 'Windows 10 Tutorials' started by poolwizard, Jul 31, 2015.

  1. Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10


    How to: Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10

    How to Enable or Disable Built-in Elevated Administrator Account in Windows 10


    This tutorial will show you how to enable or disable the hidden built-in elevated Administrator account in Windows 10.

    You must be signed in as an administrator to be able to do the steps in this tutorial.

    User Accounts in Windows 10:

    standard user (Users) - The standard account is an unelevated restricted user account that can be a local account or Microsoft account. It can help protect your computer by preventing users from making changes to the system that affects everyone who uses the computer. When you are signed in to Windows with a standard account, you can do almost anything that you can do with an administrator account, but if a standard user tries to do something that requires elevated rights (ex: run as administrator), Windows will display a UAC prompt for the standard user to enter the password of an administrator account for approval and confirmation before allowing the action.

    administrator user - Is an unelevated administrator account that is created by default during the installation of Windows, or is already setup for you on an OEM (ex: Dell) computer. This account can be a local account or Microsoft account. An administrator account has complete access to the computer, and can make any desired changes. If an administrator user tries to do something that requires elevated rights (ex: run as administrator), Windows will display a UAC prompt for the administrator user to approve before allowing the action.

    Built-in "Administrator" - The hidden built-in elevated "Administrator account" is a local account that has full unrestricted access rights to the PC. By default, this "Administrator" account will not be prompted by UAC. Anything that runs while signed in to this "Administrator" account will also have full unrestricted access to the PC, so it is not recommended to use the built-in "Administrator" account for everyday usage. It's recommended to only enable and use the built-in "Administrator" account as needed instead.


    Contents
    • Option One: Enable or Disable Built-in Administrator in Elevated Command Prompt
    • Option Two: Enable or Disable Built-in Administrator in Elevated PowerShell
    • Option Three: Enable or Disable Built-in Administrator in Local Users and Groups
    • Option Four: Enable or Disable Built-in Administrator in Local Security Policy
    • Option Five: Enable or Disable Built-in Administrator in Command Prompt at Boot


    EXAMPLE: Administrator enabled on Sign in and Switch User

    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]

    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]







    OPTION ONE [/i] Enable or Disable Built-in Administrator in Elevated Command Prompt
    1 Open an elevated command prompt.

    2 Do step 3 (enable), step 4 (enable with password), or step 5 (disable) below for what you would like to do.


    3. To Enable the Built-in Elevated "Administrator" Account
    A) In the elevated command prompt, copy and paste the command below, press Enter, and go to step 6 below. (see screenshot below)

    net user Administrator /active:yes

    If you had previously renamed the built-in "Administrator" account's name, then you will need to substitute Administrator in the command below with the new name instead.

    If your Windows uses a different language than English, then you would need to substitute Administrator in the command below with the translation for your language instead.


    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]

    4. To Enable the Built-in Elevated "Administrator" Account with Password
    A) In the elevated command prompt, copy and paste the command below, press Enter, and go to step 6 below. (see screenshot below)

    net user Administrator password /active:yes

    Substitute password in the command above with the actual password you want to use to sign in to the built-in Administrator account with.

    If you had previously renamed the built-in "Administrator" account's name, then you will need to substitute Administrator in the command below with the new name instead.

    If your Windows uses a different language than English, then you would need to substitute Administrator in the command below with the translation for your language instead.


    5. To Disable the Built-in Elevated "Administrator" Account
    This is the default setting.

    A) In the elevated command prompt, copy and paste the command below, press Enter, and go to step 6 below. (see screenshot below)

    net user Administrator /active:no

    If you had previously renamed the built-in "Administrator" account's name, then you will need to substitute Administrator in the command below with the new name instead.

    If your Windows uses a different language than English, then you would need to substitute Administrator in the command below with the translation for your language instead.


    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]

    6 When finished, you can close the elevated command prompt if you like.





    OPTION TWO [/i] Enable or Disable Built-in Administrator in Elevated PowerShell
    1 Open an elevated PowerShell.

    2 Do step 3 (enable) or step 4 (disable) below for what you would like to do.


    3. To Enable the Built-in Elevated "Administrator" Account
    A) In the elevated command prompt, copy and paste the command below, press Enter, and go to step 5 below. (see screenshot below)

    Enable-LocalUser -Name "Administrator"

    If your Windows uses a different language than English, then you would need to substitute Administrator in the command below with the translation for your language instead.


    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]


    4. To Disable the Built-in Elevated "Administrator" Account
    This is the default setting.

    A) In the elevated command prompt, copy and paste the command below, press Enter, and go to step 5 below. (see screenshot below)

    Disable-LocalUser -Name "Administrator"

    If your Windows uses a different language than English, then you would need to substitute Administrator in the command below with the translation for your language instead.


    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]

    5 When finished, you can close the elevated PowerShell if you like.





    OPTION THREE [/i] Enable or Disable Built-in Administrator in Local Users and Groups
    The Local Users and Groups is only available in the Windows 10 Pro, Enterprise, and Education editions.


    1 Press the Windows + R keys to open the Run dialog, type lusrmgr.msc, and click/tap on OK.

    2 In the left pane, click/tap on the Users folder, then in the middle pane, double click/tap on Administrator. (see sceenshot below)

    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]

    3 Do step 4 (enable) or step 5 (disable) below for what you would like to do.


    4. To Enable the Built-in Elevated "Administrator" Account
    A) Uncheck the Account is disabled box, click/tap on OK, and go to step 6 below. (see screenshot below step 6)

    5. To Disable the Built-in Elevated "Administrator" Account
    A) Check the Account is disabled box, click/tap on OK, and go to step 6 below. (see screenshot below step 6)
    6 You can now close Local Users and Groups if you like.

    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]






    OPTION FOUR [/i] Enable or Disable Built-in Administrator in Local Security Policy
    The Local Security Policy is only available in the Windows 10 Pro, Enterprise, and Education editions.

    All editions can use Option Six below.


    1 Press the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog, type secpol.msc into Run, and click/tap on OK.

    2 In the left pane, click/tap on the Local Policies folder to expand it, and click/tap on the Security Options folder. (see screenshot below)

    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]

    3 In the right pane of Security Options, double click/tap on Accounts: Administrator account status. (see screenshot above)

    4 Do step 5 or 6 below for what you would like to do.


    5. To Enable the Built-in Elevated "Administrator" Account
    A) Select (dot) Enabled, click/tap on OK, and go to step 7 below. (see screenshot below step 7)
    6. To Disable the Built-in Elevated "Administrator" Account
    A) Select (dot) Disabled, click/tap on OK, and go to step 7 below. (see screenshot below step 7)
    7 You can now close Local Security Policy if you like.

    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]






    OPTION FIVE [/i] Enable or Disable Built-in Administrator in Command Prompt at Boot
    This option is good for when you are unable to sign in to Windows 10.


    1 command prompt at boot[/b] (Shift+F10).

    If you don't have a Windows 10 installation USB or recovery drive, then you can use OPTION SIX here to boot to Advanced Startup like in the screenshot below.

    Afterwards, continue to boot to a command prompt at boot.


    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]


    2 In the command prompt, type regedit, and press Enter. (see screenshot below step 3)

    3 In the left pane of Registry Editor, click/tap on the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE key. (see screenshot below)

    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]

    4 Click/tap on File (menu bar), and on Load Hive. (see screenshot below)

    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]

    5 In the Load Hive dialog, open the drive (ex: D ) that you have Windows 10 installed on, and browse to the location below. (see screenshot below)

    The drive letter (ex: C) will not always be the same at boot as it is from within Windows 10.


    D:\Windows\System32\config


    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]

    6 Select the SAM file, and click/tap on Open. (see screenshot below)

    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]

    7 In the Load Hive dialog, type REM_SAM, and click/tap on OK. (see screenshot below)

    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]

    8 In the left pane of Registry Editor, navigate to and open the key below. (see screenshot below)

    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\REM_SAM\SAM\Domains\Account\Users\000001F4


    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]

    9 In the right pane of the 000001F4 key, double click/tap on the F binary value to modify it. (see screenshot above)

    10 Do step 11 (Enable) or step 12 (disable) below for what you would like to do.


    11. To Enable the Built-in Elevated Administrator Account
    A) In the first column of line 0038, change 11 to 10, click/tap on OK, and go to step 13 below. (see screenshot below)

    You would do this by clicking to the left of 11 to place the cursor there, press the Delete key, then type 10.


    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]

    12. To Disable the Built-in Elevated Administrator Account
    A) In the first column of line 0038, change 10 to 11, click/tap on OK, and go to step 13 below. (see screenshot below)

    You would do this by clicking to the left of 10 to place the cursor there, press the Delete key, then type 11.


    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]

    13 Close Registry Editor and the command prompt. (see screenshot below step 3)

    14 Click/tap on Continue to startup back in Windows 10. (see screenshot below)

    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10 [​IMG]


    That's it,
    Shawn


    Related Tutorials

    :)
     
    poolwizard, Jul 31, 2015
    #1
  2. Lead3 Win User

    How do you create a profile in regedit so that it links with a user

    See if this tutorial will help. Option #4

    Enable Elevated Administrator account
     
    Lead3, Jul 31, 2015
    #2
  3. Le Boule Win User
    Le Boule, Jul 31, 2015
    #3
  4. Brink
    Brink New Member

    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10

    Glad it could help, and welcome to Ten Forums. *Smile
     
    Brink, Jul 31, 2015
    #4
  5. I can't get it to work because when i try and open "SAM", I get "This file is in use" and I have no idea how to close it.
     
    ukcatsfan83, Aug 30, 2015
    #5
  6. Brink
    Brink New Member
    Hello ukcatsfan83, and welcome to Ten Forums. *Smile

    Are you able to use one of the other options instead?

    If not, then be sure that you are booting from Windows 10 installation media (ex: USB) to open a command prompt at boot with instead.
     
    Brink, Aug 30, 2015
    #6
  7. I did get it to work using the Admin-cmd. .. BUT i noticed that I cannot use the Start Menu or any apps. . lol. . . . I decided to do a fresh install of Windows 10. . Is there any possible way of using the "hidden admin account" as my every day account to avoid all these errors?
     
    ukcatsfan83, Aug 30, 2015
    #7
  8. Brink
    Brink New Member

    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10

    Windows apps (aka: modern apps) will not work in an elevated account like the built-in Administrator. *Sad
     
    Brink, Aug 30, 2015
    #8
  9. That just sucks! lol I'm pretty techy, but sometimes i do run into some problems.
     
    ukcatsfan83, Aug 30, 2015
    #9
  10. Smajor Win User
    Long story short, had windows tech support try to help with an issue, one of the guys deleted me as administrator, and now I can not regain administrator status. Bare in mind, I don't think I'm as Techy as you guys on here but I'm not a dummy.
    This tutorial states
    You must be signed in as an "administratorto be able to do the steps in this tutorial"

    -but what do I do if I can't sign in as administrator?
    -or how do I log in as administrator?
    -I dont even have a darn password as the administrator!!!

    lol anyway please help
    This is getting frustrating... grr windows 10
     
    Smajor, Dec 5, 2015
    #10
  11. Brink
    Brink New Member
    Hello Smajor, and welcome to Ten Forums. *Smile

    You should be able to use OPTION FOUR to enable the built-in Administrator.

    Afterwards, sign in to the account, and change your other account to an administrator.

    https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/6...dows-10-a.html
     
    Brink, Dec 5, 2015
    #11
  12. mcmtpopp Win User
    Tried all six. Access denied to every option. Can not install upgrades, new software, nothing. I can log in two ways (with Microsoft using email address and password and Local using a PIN) but have NO ADMIN account. Gone. Disappeared. Or I deleted it. Anything is possible. New laptop. New to Windows 10. Former computer specialist for gov't for more than 15 years and I just want to throw Windows 10 out the window. Seriously, I can't install all my software or updates because "Yes" is grayed out. DOS commands are my old friends so I don't have a problem moving around directories, commands, etc. No Admin acct listed or active. Couldn't activate with what acct is available by changing "administrator" to "user name." Am at a total loss. Dead in the water, so to speak.
     
    mcmtpopp, Dec 22, 2015
    #12
  13. OldMike65 Win User

    Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10

    OldMike65, Dec 22, 2015
    #13
  14. mcmtpopp Win User
    Yep. Did it.

    After 3 days, (I just received the new laptop with Win 10 preinstalled ... but can't install any updates for it!), I just ordered the install disk from Toshiba $40) to do a clean install. I don't know what else to do.

    Marti
     
    mcmtpopp, Dec 22, 2015
    #14
  15. OldMike65 Win User
    Well you don't have to use the disk from Toshiba to do a clean install, you can download the ISO from Microsoft and do a clean install, and this will only install windows 10, without all the bloatware that comes with Toshiba. Also you have other choices, like trying the reset option. BUT before doing any of these things make sure you have a backup of your key for Windows 10 activation. download Showkey 1st on this site. then try your other options, clean install being one.
    https://www.tenforums.com/software-ap...7-showkey.html
    https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/9...ad.html?filter
     
    OldMike65, Dec 22, 2015
    #15
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Enable or Disable Elevated Administrator account in Windows 10

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