How to open the Command Prompt in Windows 7/Vista with Administrative Rights

In Windows XP all programs were run with administrator rights if you were logged in to the computer with a user account with admin rights to that system. There are obviously some security concerns with this, as any piece of software can potentially do damage to your system. This all changes with Windows Vista and Windows 7 as long as you keep UAC (User Access Control) enabled. UAC prevents software that need to access certain parts of Windows from running without any checks and balances.

By default, all programs are run without administrative rights. There are some cases where it is necessary to escalate the rights of an application so that it runs with these admin rights. A good example of this is Windows’ built-in Command Prompt utility. If you launch the Windows Command Prompt from the Start Menu, it will run with normal user (not administrative) rights. When the Command Prompt is opened this way, you will be allowed to do things like run a directory search or copy files, but not more advanced functions such as restarting Windows services. To allow these commands to run, you’ll first need to open the Command Prompt with administrative rights.

 

Opening the Command Prompt in Windows 7 with Administrative Rights:

  1. Click on the Start Menu and browse for the command prompt (Start >> All Programs >> Accessories >> Command Prompt), or search for Command Prompt.
  2. Instead of clicking on the Command Prompt icon to open it, right-click and select Run as Administrator.
  3. You may get prompted to allow this action, if you do simply click on the Yes button.

Robert Borges

About Robert...

I have been in the IT industry since 1993 focusing mainly on networking. Though I got an early start as an amateur computer enthusiast and wrote my first database app at age 12, I started my professional career working in the MIS department of one of the largest liquor distributors in the northeast. I started out there as a systems operator on the company’s two mainframe systems. From there I moved into PC support, and help design and implement the company’s first client-server network… This was back in the days of Win NT 3.51 when I worked on my first migration to Windows NT 4.0 server.

From there I went on to work with Novell 3.x and 4.x along with Windows domains and Microsft's brand new Active Directory. Working my way up from technician to specialist, to an administrator, and eventually all the way up to Sr. Engineer. I spent many years working for MSPs/consulting firms, 9 of which I owned and operated my own firm.

Over the years, I have worked with (at an expert level) various versions of Windows client and server operating systems (including Windows 11 and Windows Server 2019); various virtualization technologies (Hyper-V, VMware, etc.); MS-SQL server 6.5- 2014 R2; Exchange 4-2019, and much more.  Over the years I have built a lot of experience around the Microsoft Azure and Microsoft 365 cloud environments.

I am now CTO at Infused Innovations where our team is focusing on helping clients build a Secure Intelligent Workplace through InfoSec (Zero Trusts Framework), Modern Workplace, and Business Intelligence.

I have been heavily involved in the IT user group community, including serving as president of the board of Boston User Groups, Inc., and president of IT-Pro User Group. In 2017/2018 Microsoft awarded me the Microsoft MVP (Most Valuable Professional) Award, with a focus of Microsoft Azure cloud, for my efforts in the IT community.

I am in a constant state of learning about new products, and new versions of products. Many of which we end up implementing in lab environments and sometimes for our clients. I have a very broad range of expertise and experience. It is my goal to share some of this experience on this blog to help enrich the IT community.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.robertborges.us/2012/06/windows/how-to-open-the-command-prompt-in-windows-7vista-with-administrative-rights/

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  1. […] « How to open the Command Prompt in Windows 7/Vista with Administrative Rights […]

  2. […] prompt. For instructions on launching an administrative command prompt see my prior post titled How to Open the Command Prompt in Windows 7/Vista with Administrative Rights. From an administrative command prompt you have several combinations (type SHUTDOWN /? to see all […]

  3. […] prompt. For instructions on launching an administrative command prompt see my prior post titled How to Open the Command Prompt in Windows 7/Vista with Administrative Rights. From an administrative command prompt you have several combinations (type SHUTDOWN /? to see all […]

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