Windows 10: If the Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button ...

Discus and support If the Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button ... in User Accounts and Family Safety to solve the problem; KCR - My pleasure entirely. Denis Discussion in 'User Accounts and Family Safety' started by Try3, Apr 5, 2018.

  1. Try3 Win User

    If the Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button ...


    KCR - My pleasure entirely. Denis
     
    Try3, Apr 5, 2018
    #1
  2. Try3 Win User

    If the Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button but no password entry box, use the Built-In Admin account in Safe mode to create replacement Admin accounts

    This article has been submitted as a TenForums tutorial - If the Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button ... I will replace the current thread with a simple link to the tutorial when it has been accepted.


    1 Introduction


    If you get an Admin prompt in which the Yes button is greyed out or missing & which does not show a password entry box, your Admin-level account has suffered from user profile corruption and is no longer fully functional.


    If the Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button ... [​IMG]



    Some potentially quick recovery procedures, such as Restore from a system restore point, might work in your circumstances so this article starts by identifying the most common of them.

    If you cannot recover using one of these quick solutions, however, you should be able boot into Safe mode where the login screen will show a user account that does not normally appear; it has the username Administrator and it exists for precisely this situation - when no functioning user-created Admin accounts exist on the computer.

    You can use this Built-In account to create new Admin-level accounts for your own use. Once you have made those new Admin-level accounts you will once again have control over your computer including the ability to give permission for such things as installations. The Administrator account will then be disabled once again by the system and you will not see it in the list of user accounts at login.

    This article guides you through booting into Safe mode then creating two new Admin-level user accounts. You can then either make use of one of them as your day-to-day user account or can use them to create an additional account for day-to-day use.

    Whilst the procedure seems complex I have endeavoured to describe it in terms that any user can follow. Please don't be put off by trying to understand the entire article; after perhaps skimming through the whole thing once, just read each paragraph, do the step concerned then move on to the next paragraph.


    2 Do at least consider some potentially quicker recovery procedures instead


    2.1 I don't think this can ever be the case but if you already have another Admin-level user account & if that Admin account is somehow still fully functional despite the fault symptom you are experiencing then you could use it to create a new Admin-level user account to replace the defective one. You could also use the guidance in para 5.4 below to rescue the defective account's contents and potentially even repair the defective user account.

    2.2 Do not dismiss the notion of simply rebooting. The problem might only be intermittent. If it is intermittent then catch the system while it's working to create two new password-protected Admin-level accounts before the problem returns - see paras 5.2-5.5 below.

    2.3 Take a look at Recovery options in Windows 10 - Windows Help but bear in mind that your current fault condition might stop some options working.

    • Your fault condition would, for example, stop you using Reset your PC but you would be able to Use installation media to restore or reset your PC.
    • I cannot advise on any of these recovery options because I rely on making frequent system images instead so I never use any of them.

    2.4 If you have a recent system image made before the fault appeared then restoring it would be an appropriate recovery method as long as you have an up-to-date backup of any of your own files that are on the same drive as your Windows installation. The procedure you need to use depends on the application you used to create the image & the procedures you use for backing up your own files.

    2.5 This TenForums tutorial article Fix 'You've been signed in with a temporary profile' Error is derived from an MS KB article [KB947215 article, see para 5.4 below] but specifically addresses the possibility that you are currently using a temporary profile. This would have been reported in a notification at logon so I would expect that to be the main symptom you would have been searching for in this forum rather than the symptom Admin prompt has a greyed out Yes button. I have included the link just in case you have landed on this article anyway.

    2.6 If none of these quicker recovery methods work for you then you will need to use the Safe mode method explained below.


    3 Boot into Safe mode


    Note that there is a more generally-applicable procedure in Safe mode - TenForums but it does not have all the steps and explanations that have been provided below [because this procedure is based solely on this one specific fault condition].


    3.1 Prepare -
    Do you normally boot up to a logon screen [see 3.1.1]
    or
    have you bypassed that using netplwiz so that you boot up straight to your desktop without having to sign in every time [see 3.1.2]
    or {for local accounts only}
    you boot up straight to your desktop without having to sign in every time because you have never set a password for your day-to-day user account? [see 3.1.3]

    3.1.1 If you boot up to a logon screen, it eases getting into Safe mode and you are ready to go to para 3.2 below to start the procedure.
    3.1.2 If you have bypassed the logon screen then attempt to reset it by

    • entering netplwiz in a command prompt, then,
    • in the netplwiz window, selecting your Admin-level user account, and
    • setting the checkbox for Users must enter a username and password to use this computer.
    • If you get an Admin challenge when running netplwiz [which would happen if you had set your UAC protection to its highest level] you will not be able to get around it so you will need to take the modified step described in para 3.5 below.
    • Now go to para 3.2 below to start the procedure.
    3.1.3 If you have bypassed the logon screen because {for local accounts only} you have never set a password for that account you will need to take the modified step described in para 3.5 below. Now go to para 3.2 below to start the procedure.

    3.2 I always remove my internet connection before booting into Safe mode. This is not essential but doing so eases creating new local user accounts [see para 4.2 below].

    3.3 Go to Settings, Update & security, Recovery then click on Advanced start-up - Restart now.

    3.4 You'll be taken to a blue menu. Select Troubleshoot, Advanced options, Startup settings, Restart.

    3.5 You'll be rebooted to another blue menu. Press the 4 key* or the F4 key* to select Enable Safe mode. You will be taken to the Safe mode login screen.

    * Modified step [if applicable] If you were unable [paras 3.1.2, 3.1.3 above] to turn off the attempt to boot straight into your day-to-day user account with no login screen appearing then, immediately after pressing the 4 key or F4 key, press and hold down the Shift key until the login screen appears.

    • If you are too slow then you will have to reboot normally [i.e. not into Safe mode] then repeat steps 3.2-4.
    • I have tried this Shift key procedure repeatedly on a new Windows 10 computer & on a six year old Windows 10 computer upgraded from Windows 7 and it works every time but I have also tried it on a twelve year old Windows 10 computer that is almost-but-not-quite-fully Windows 10 compatible and cannot get it to work. If I lost all my Admin-level accounts on this particular computer I would therefore have to either restore it from a recent system image made before the fault developed or reinstall Windows 10.

    3.6 Starting Safe mode in Windows 10 does not look like the Safe mode startup you might have seen in previous Windows versions. There is, for example, no long list of drivers & other Windows components whizzing up the screen.

    3.7 The Safe mode login screen ought to have entries for your existing user accounts, entries for a couple of accounts created by Windows or the computer maker [DefaultAccount, Guest, possibly defaultuser0] and an entry for an account with the username Administrator.

    3.8 Administrator is the username of the Built-In Administrator account. Administrator only appears in the list because Windows has detected that there are no user-created Admin accounts in the system. In the hope of avoiding too much confusion, I will use the term Administrator in full whenever I refer to the Built-In Administrator account and I will use the term Admin when referring to any Admin-level user accounts that you create.

    3.9 If the username Administrator is not shown on the Safe mode login screen then I think you have additional faults on your system because it would mean that, although your fault symptom demonstrates that you have no functioning Admin-level accounts, Windows thinks that you do.

    • I think that you will probably end up with no choice but to reinstall Windows 10.
    • You could try to deliberately enable the Built-In Administrator account to see if you can then complete this procedure. I would expect your attempt to be thwarted by your inability to get past the Admin prompt.

    3.10 Click on the Administrator account and it will log in without waiting for anything else - Administrator has no password [by default] so there is nothing to type in.


    4 Use the Administrator account to fix the problem


    4.1 When you log in to Administrator in Safe mode you'll be taken to a fairly normal-looking, albeit black, desktop. There is Windows version info at the top and the words Safe mode are shown in each corner.

    Note about the behaviour of earlier Windows 10 versions In earlier Windows 10 versions but not in Ver 1709, you'd get a false warning that the Get started app could not be opened or that you'd need to get a new app to open ms-get-started. Similarly, if you ever logged in to Safe mode using any other user account, you'd have had a false warning that the Tips app or another app could not be opened "using the Built-In Admin" even though you were not using it. You could always simply dismiss these warnings out of hand or just ignore them.


    If the Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button ... [​IMG]

    4.2 Create a new Admin account with a password

    4.2.1 Notes about creating a new Admin account with a password

    • You can change the password later so you can just keep it simple for now as long as you do not go online until you have finished.
    • You can call the new user account almost whatever you like as long as no existing account uses the same name so do not call it Administrator, DefaultAccount or Guest and do not use the name of any of your own user accounts.
    • Avoid spaces in the name & password just to keep things simple, only use characters you can type on the keyboard and don't use any symbols in either of them that File explorer would reject if you tried using them in a filename - so, for example, do not use these * : < > / \ | " ?.
    • I chose the username NewAdminPrimary with a password 12345 below to act as an example.

    4.2.2 The procedure for creating a new Admin account with a password

    • Open a Command prompt - click on the Start button, scroll down & click on Windows system then select Command prompt.
    • By "Enter" below, I mean type what I have shown in italics then press the Enter/Return button.
    • Enter net user if you need to check the names used for your existing user accounts. Don't worry that the list of accounts is followed by The command completed with one or more errors - this always seems to appear when using the command from the Administrator account but the list of accounts is always correct.
    • Enter net user /add NewAdminPrimary 12345
    • Enter net localgroup Administrators NewAdminPrimary /add
    • Enter net user NewAdminPrimary to see the new account's properties and check that its Local group memberships line has the entry Administrators in it [it does not matter that it also has the entry Users].
    • After you have completed step 4.3 below [i.e. your second pass through this account creation procedure], close the Command prompt window by clicking on its x in the top right-hand corner or by entering the command Exit.

    4.3 Repeat steps 4.2.2 to create another account NewAdminReserve so you have both a new Admin-level account to use to manage your computer and a spare one to use to rescue the situation if NewAdminPrimary is ever afflicted with user profile corruption.

    4.4 The user accounts created this way are "local" user accounts. They exist only on this computer. They are not linked to any online accounts such as MSAccounts. Having them as local user accounts will help you during any future fault-finding procedures so it is well worth keeping them local forever.

    4.5 Log into at least one of the new accounts without rebooting [Start button then click on the user icon] just to give you confidence that all is now well. This takes a while as Windows has to go through its We're just setting things up for you & It's taking a bit longer than usual, but it should be ready soon pantomime. Then reboot and log in to one of the new accounts [not Administrator, you have now finished with that and it should be quietly disabled by the system during the reboot].

    4.6 Do something that you know generates an Admin challenge so that you can see that the account is working correctly. You could, for example, click on the Start button, scroll down & click on Windows system then right-click on Command prompt and select More, Run as Admin.


    5 Tidy up then start using the computer normally once again


    5.1 You should now have a fully controllable computer.

    5.2 You should change both of the new Admin accounts' passwords to something sensible now if you just used 12345 when you created them. Make sure you write their passwords down somewhere secure yet readily available to you. Just sign into each one in turn then go to


    • Settings,
    • Accounts,
    • Sign-in options,
    • Password - Change.

    5.3 You could use one of the new Admin-level accounts as your day-to-day account or you could create another account for day-to-day use - creating a standard user account for day-to-day use is the more cautious approach.

    • I have an account for day-to-day use in addition to my two Admin accounts.
    • My day-to-day account is also an Admin account but I could downgrade that to a Standard user account if I wanted - MS used to say that day-to-day accounts should always be Standard user accounts but they withdrew that advice during June 2013.
    • Making your day-to-day account a Standard one has the advantage of limiting the extent to which malware can penetrate your computer because, unless it tricks you into giving it Admin permission to go any further, it will be limited to invading those parts of the computer to which your Standard user account has access.
    • Making your day-to-day account a Standard one will also protect you against the alleged malware that can penetrate into Admin-level actions without generating an Admin prompt if the account in use is an Admin-level one - I have heard about such malware but have not been able to reproduce its actions {perhaps a Windows update has plugged that particular vulnerability}.
    • Even if, like me, you keep your day-to-day user account as an Admin account it is still worth using one of your new Admin accounts whenever you are investigating problems so that you avoid granting additional access permissions to your day-to-day account.

    5.4 Your old Admin-level account has been corrupted. When an account has become corrupted then it is probably a write-off but

    • You can get into its folders at C:\Users\<UserName> to rescue all your own files as well as the account's Windows & application settings using one of your new Admin accounts - see Fix a corrupted user profile [Windows 7 Help].
    • You might be able to fix the account's fault using Method 1 of the Windows 7 KB article You receive a "The User Profile Service failed the logon” error message KB947215 I have only ever done this as a training exercise because I would never be fully confident in the reliability of a fixed account.
    • Somebody once claimed to have used Control panel, User accounts, Manage another account to change a faulty Admin account back to being a Standard account then back to being an Admin account again then back to being a Standard account then back to being an Admin account again and then cycled through this half a dozen times ending with it being an Admin account. After all this, the Admin account's fault had disappeared - it was fully functional again.
      • Whilst this sounds quite strange it apparently worked for that user.
      • It is likely that trying this longshot will disrupt the system’s Restore points.
      • Everything that changes in a system’s settings increases the amount of work that System restore would have to do and therefore increases the chances of System restore failing.
      • Additionally, every change in a system is assessed by Windows and then restore points that it deems to be obsolete are deleted so this longshot might trigger such a deletion.

    5.5 You should now check that Administrator was disabled automatically when Windows detected that the fault condition that enabled it no longer applied.


    • Start;
    • scroll down to Windows system & click on it to expand it,
    • Control panel,
    • Click on View by in the upper right and select Small icons just so you can see everything,
    • User accounts,
    • Manage another account [you will get an Admin challenge that you should now be able to deal with in the normal manner],
    • Your new accounts and your old account should be shown. Administrator should not.


    5.6 If Administrator is still shown then open an elevated Command prompt and disable it.

    • Click on the Start button,
    • Scroll down & click on Windows system then right-click on Command prompt,
    • Hover over More then click on Run as Admin,
    • Enter net user Administrator /active:no

    5.7 It is important to check that Administrator has been disabled because it would otherwise represent a backdoor into your computer that an online hacker can take advantage of
    • Administrator has no password [by default] and Administrator generates no Admin prompts so a hacker who infiltrated Administrator could be doing anything behind your back.
    • Once Administrator is disabled, a hacker would not be able to enable it without generating an Admin prompt that you would see and could reject.

    5.8 Reduce the chances of your accounts being afflicted with user profile corruption again by never forcefully powering off the computer unless the thing freezes up completely leaving you with no choice.

    • Never turn it off forcefully by holding down the power button for several seconds [as opposed to just pressing it for a moment then letting go] unless you have no choice, and
    • Never turn it off by removing its power supply, and
    • Never turn it off while Windows update is trying to install updates.

    - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

    That's it. I appreciate that this procedure will have been daunting for many users. If you think I could improve the explanations given at each step please tell me so I can improve things for others [let me know which para needs changing and what change you suggest].

    Denis

    :)
     
  3. Tryx3 Win User
    If the Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button but no password entry box, use the Built-In Admin account in Safe mode to create two new Admin accounts

    Alan,

    A Reset would be using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

    • Skip sections 1 & 2 if you like and just follow through the heart of the procedure in sections 3-5.
    • Whilst the procedure seems complex I have endeavoured to describe it in terms that any user can follow. Please don't be put off by trying to understand the entire article; after perhaps skimming through the whole thing once, just read each paragraph, do the
      step concerned then move on to the next paragraph.
    • I wrote the article as I worked through the whole procedure and made sure I explained each step fully. I then worked through the whole procedure again using my draft article as my guide in order to check that I had written it all down correctly. Without
      wishing to be at all cynical, I believe that any user can complete the procedure correctly even without understanding any of what they are doing.

    I do not contribute to this forum anymore and have only logged in to respond to your post. If you have any questions, please use

    If the Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button but no password entry box,
    use the Built-In Admin account in Safe mode to create two new Admin accounts - TenForums


    where I will be happy to assist you further.

    I had a quick look at your other questions here. Whilst the messed up Admin prompt will be your first priority, please do explain [in my TenForums thread] why you were trying to run MSConfig in the first place; it is not particularly useful in Windows 10
    & I don't think I have had to look at it for a couple of years. Perhaps MSConfig was no more than an example of when the faulty Admin prompt appears.

    Further to your comment about using Reset, there are several ways of protecting yourself against system problems. I have only Reset once [as a training task in the early Windows 10 period]. Personally, I make "system images" and, if an irreparable problem
    occurs, I simply "restore" the last good system image so that the problem is sidestepped. We can also discuss this further is you wish.

    Denis
     
    Tryx3, Apr 16, 2018
    #3
  4. AlanAmos Win User

    If the Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button ...

    If the Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button but no password entry box, use the Built-In Admin account in Safe mode to create two new Admin accounts

    Denis,

    Many thanks for your comprehensive yet bewildering answer to the 'greyed out ' yes box !

    I say bewildering in the nicest possible way, but finding myself still a little way behind being seen as computer literate, it will take me a while to prepare myself for the journey into 'command prompt ' !.

    I find myself wondering if the option of backing up my laptop and performing

    a reset might be a more viable method, considering my naievity and fear of causing some irreversible calamity !. ( or is this a coward's way out ?)

    I am still undecided and would value your opinion ,

    Thanks again,

    Alan.
     
    AlanAmos, Apr 16, 2018
    #4
  5. EdTittel Win User
    You might want to ask @Brink if he agrees with me that this would make a good tutorial. Then you could turn it into one and post it to the tutorials thread. If you need help with that process, I just learned how to do it myself and would be happy to provide some input and suggestions on that process. @Kari is pretty good at this kind of thing, too.
    Good work!
    --Ed--
     
    EdTittel, Apr 16, 2018
    #5
  6. Brink
    Brink New Member
    Brink, Apr 16, 2018
    #6
  7. Try3 Win User
    EdTittel - @Bree has passed me the link to Windows 10 Tutorial Submissions so I'll be submitting it after I have given it the once-over.

    Brink - Thanks. I'll rejig my para 2.5 to refer to that instead of Kapilarya's version.

    My article was written almost a year ago and I want to work through the whole procedure to make sure, for example, that the details of the Safe mode boot remain correct.

    Denis
     
  8. Brink
    Brink New Member

    If the Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button ...

    No problem Denis. Just let me know when it's ready, and I'll help get it moved over to Tutorials. *Smile
     
    Brink, Apr 16, 2018
    #8
  9. EdTittel Win User
    Good work, Denis. Please keep it up, and thanks!
    --Ed--
     
    EdTittel, Apr 16, 2018
    #9
  10. Try3 Win User
  11. KCR
    KCR Win User
    Very nice work, Denis. . . .
     
Thema:

If the Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button ...

Loading...
  1. If the Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button ... - Similar Threads - Admin prompt has

  2. "To continue, enter an admin username and password", Yes button greyed out

    in Windows 10 Gaming
    "To continue, enter an admin username and password", Yes button greyed out: Hi, i have a problem with my pc. basicaly when i try to open a file with administrator privilages this shows up:"To continue, enter an admin username and password", then the Yes button is greyed out. Before you tell me how please note that i don't have administrator...
  3. "To continue, enter an admin username and password", Yes button greyed out

    in Windows 10 Software and Apps
    "To continue, enter an admin username and password", Yes button greyed out: Hi, i have a problem with my pc. basicaly when i try to open a file with administrator privilages this shows up:"To continue, enter an admin username and password", then the Yes button is greyed out. Before you tell me how please note that i don't have administrator...
  4. greyed out button

    in Windows 10 Gaming
    greyed out button: i want to change my display resolution from 1920x1080 to 1280x720 on Windows 11 but the button is greyed out so i can't do soisthere any way i can change it https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/all/greyed-out-button/8db43d0b-eea7-4b2b-91da-ea16ff26b955
  5. UAC Prompt YES Button gone/missing

    in AntiVirus, Firewalls and System Security
    UAC Prompt YES Button gone/missing: Getting a problem with blank/missing YES option when trying to execute anything that requires UAC prompt.The NO option is there just fine, only the YES is missing.This is a new installation of Windows 10 logged in with microsoft account A and assigned admin role.Once fully...
  6. UAC Prompt YES Button gone/missing

    in Windows 10 Gaming
    UAC Prompt YES Button gone/missing: Getting a problem with blank/missing YES option when trying to execute anything that requires UAC prompt.The NO option is there just fine, only the YES is missing.This is a new installation of Windows 10 logged in with microsoft account A and assigned admin role.Once fully...
  7. UAC Prompt YES Button gone/missing

    in Windows 10 Software and Apps
    UAC Prompt YES Button gone/missing: Getting a problem with blank/missing YES option when trying to execute anything that requires UAC prompt.The NO option is there just fine, only the YES is missing.This is a new installation of Windows 10 logged in with microsoft account A and assigned admin role.Once fully...
  8. UAC prompt with no 'Yes' button

    in Windows 10 BSOD Crashes and Debugging
    UAC prompt with no 'Yes' button: Refering to a response concerning the absence of the yes button from the UAC prompt on January 23 2017. The proposed solution does not work because halfway through it the UAC prompt appears and - yes you guessed it - there's no 'Yes' button!!! Might be a good idea to check...
  9. Button greyed out

    in Microsoft Windows 10 Store
    Button greyed out: so i reset my computer today factory reset as i felt my computer was having problems i also recently posted about this issue and i though the reset solved it... i was able to download a free program until i logged into my account... then the grey button of death...
  10. Fix UAC prompt has greyed out or missing Yes button in Windows 10

    in Windows 10 Tutorials
    Fix UAC prompt has greyed out or missing Yes button in Windows 10: How to: Fix UAC prompt has greyed out or missing Yes button in Windows 10 If the Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button but no password entry box, use the Built-In Admin account in Safe mode to create replacement admin user accounts 1 Introduction If...

Users found this page by searching for:

  1. what if the administrator check box is greyed out

    ,
  2. he Admin prompt has a greyed out or missing Yes button but no password entry box

    ,
  3. yes button is greyed out windows 8

    ,
  4. command prompt (admin) win10 grayed out or missing yes