C:\ Root Directory Access

Tried to download a file to the root directory of C:\ but Vista wouldn't let me, even though I'm the only user and an administrator. (Reason I tried was to download a utility to fix an incomplete Nitro PDF uninstall. Utility is a .bat file with an accompanying data file. Thought it might not run properly from a directory several levels down. I think I was right.)


Q1: If I'm an administrator, why can't I download a file to the root directory?


So I decided to give myself full control of C:\, went to security properties and made the change. Soon after applying, started getting a million "Access Denied" messages. Decided to cancel, and got this:

"Stopping the propagation of permission settings leads to an inconsistent state, in which some objects have the settings but others don't. If you made the change by mistake, you should apply the correct change immediately to achieve a consistent state."


Q2: Am I in deep kim chee or should I just reset my permissions, and if so, to what parameters?


Thanks.

Hello NuToVista,

The root directory is protected by Vista, so you will not be able to save anything directly there. Instead, you must save it to a one of your user folders like the desktop, then you can copy or move the file over there.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

Thanks Shawn. Can you offer any advice to my second question about correcting my attempt to give myself full control that resulted in this warning:

"Stopping the propagation of permission settings leads to an inconsistent state, in which some objects have the settings but others don't. If you made the change by mistake, you should apply the correct change immediately to achieve a consistent state."

I'm not sure what to change the security parameters back to if I were to change them.

Thanks again!

You're welcome NuToVista.

The C: drive should have TrustedInstaller as the owner by default. If this still is unable to sort it out for you, then doing a System Restore using a restore point dated before your changed the permission may be able to instead.

Hope this helps.