Vista - Access to folders

05-03-2009

I recently purchased a new laptop with Vista on it, and I continue to be
frustrated by the layers of security I have to constantly wade through. I
am the owner, administrator and sole user of this computer. It is used in
my home and is not part of any LAN. Yet even though I am the administrator
and only user, I still have to give myself permission before I can do
certain things or run certain programs. Is there any quick and easy way I
can change a setting somewhere so that I don't have to constantly give
myself permission to do various things?

Also, I have managed to change the security settings on various folders by
going into Properties so that I can access the folders freely and see and
access all files. But there are certain folders like the main Windows
folder where I can't quite get the settings right so that I can have full
control over the folder. I still see certain things grayed out on security
screens under Properties where I am trying to give myself full control.

I should mention that I have been a computer professional for more than 40
years so this is not a situation where it is likely I will "accidentally"
delete something important or do something to destroy the integrity of the
system. I have had a lot of experience over the years with earlier Windows
operating systems and am pretty comfortable with Windows XP and its
predecessors. But Vista is turning out to be a real pain, and for a single
user, single computer environment like mine where I am not part of a network
and am just using the computer for my own personal reasons, the security is
excessive and annoying.

So again...my questions are these:

1) Is there an easy way I can give myself total control over all folders
and files on the system?

2) Can I somehow get rid of those annoying "need your permission to
continue" messages when the system ought to be smart enough to realize that
I am an administrator and the only user?

05-03-2009

Hi Rick
The link below has the instructions that will show you how to change all
administrator account's UAC Privilege Level to keep UAC on and not prompt an
administrator.
User Account Control (UAC) - Elevate Privilege Level[11]=User
Accounts

H Brown

"Rick" <rick@xxxxxx> wrote in message
news

wiLl.29059$YU2.24495@xxxxxx

Quote:

>I recently purchased a new laptop with Vista on it, and I continue to be
>frustrated by the layers of security I have to constantly wade through. I
>am the owner, administrator and sole user of this computer. It is used in
>my home and is not part of any LAN. Yet even though I am the administrator
>and only user, I still have to give myself permission before I can do
>certain things or run certain programs. Is there any quick and easy way I
>can change a setting somewhere so that I don't have to constantly give
>myself permission to do various things?
>
> Also, I have managed to change the security settings on various folders by
> going into Properties so that I can access the folders freely and see and
> access all files. But there are certain folders like the main Windows
> folder where I can't quite get the settings right so that I can have full
> control over the folder. I still see certain things grayed out on
> security screens under Properties where I am trying to give myself full
> control.
>
> I should mention that I have been a computer professional for more than 40
> years so this is not a situation where it is likely I will "accidentally"
> delete something important or do something to destroy the integrity of the
> system. I have had a lot of experience over the years with earlier
> Windows operating systems and am pretty comfortable with Windows XP and
> its predecessors. But Vista is turning out to be a real pain, and for a
> single user, single computer environment like mine where I am not part of
> a network and am just using the computer for my own personal reasons, the
> security is excessive and annoying.
>
> So again...my questions are these:
>
> 1) Is there an easy way I can give myself total control over all folders
> and files on the system?
>
> 2) Can I somehow get rid of those annoying "need your permission to
> continue" messages when the system ought to be smart enough to realize
> that I am an administrator and the only user?
>

05-03-2009

Rick wrote:

Quote:

> I recently purchased a new laptop with Vista on it, and I continue to be
> frustrated by the layers of security I have to constantly wade through. I
> am the owner, administrator and sole user of this computer. It is used in
> my home and is not part of any LAN. Yet even though I am the administrator
> and only user, I still have to give myself permission before I can do
> certain things or run certain programs. Is there any quick and easy way I
> can change a setting somewhere so that I don't have to constantly give
> myself permission to do various things?
>
> Also, I have managed to change the security settings on various folders by
> going into Properties so that I can access the folders freely and see and
> access all files. But there are certain folders like the main Windows
> folder where I can't quite get the settings right so that I can have full
> control over the folder. I still see certain things grayed out on security
> screens under Properties where I am trying to give myself full control.
>
> I should mention that I have been a computer professional for more than 40
> years so this is not a situation where it is likely I will "accidentally"
> delete something important or do something to destroy the integrity of the
> system. I have had a lot of experience over the years with earlier Windows
> operating systems and am pretty comfortable with Windows XP and its
> predecessors. But Vista is turning out to be a real pain, and for a single
> user, single computer environment like mine where I am not part of a network
> and am just using the computer for my own personal reasons, the security is
> excessive and annoying.
>
> So again...my questions are these:
>
> 1) Is there an easy way I can give myself total control over all folders
> and files on the system?
>
> 2) Can I somehow get rid of those annoying "need your permission to
> continue" messages when the system ought to be smart enough to realize that
> I am an administrator and the only user?
>
>

Rick wrote:

Quote:

> I recently purchased a new laptop with Vista on it, and I continue to be
> frustrated by the layers of security I have to constantly wade

through. I

Quote:

> am the owner, administrator and sole user of this computer. It is

used in

Quote:

> my home and is not part of any LAN. Yet even though I am the

administrator

Quote:

> and only user, I still have to give myself permission before I can do
> certain things or run certain programs. Is there any quick and easy

way I

Quote:

> can change a setting somewhere so that I don't have to constantly give
> myself permission to do various things?
>
> Also, I have managed to change the security settings on various

folders by

Quote:

> going into Properties so that I can access the folders freely and see

and

Quote:

> access all files. But there are certain folders like the main Windows
> folder where I can't quite get the settings right so that I can have

full

Quote:

> control over the folder. I still see certain things grayed out on

security

Quote:

> screens under Properties where I am trying to give myself full control.
>
> I should mention that I have been a computer professional for more

than 40

Quote:

> years so this is not a situation where it is likely I will

"accidentally"

Quote:

> delete something important or do something to destroy the integrity

of the

Quote:

> system. I have had a lot of experience over the years with earlier

Windows

Quote:

> operating systems and am pretty comfortable with Windows XP and its
> predecessors. But Vista is turning out to be a real pain, and for a

single

Quote:

> user, single computer environment like mine where I am not part of a

network

Quote:

> and am just using the computer for my own personal reasons, the

security is

Quote:

> excessive and annoying.
>
> So again...my questions are these:
>
> 1) Is there an easy way I can give myself total control over all

folders

Quote:

> and files on the system?
>
> 2) Can I somehow get rid of those annoying "need your permission to
> continue" messages when the system ought to be smart enough to

realize that

Quote:

> I am an administrator and the only user?
>
>

If your laptop got stolen a casual thief would probably reformat rather
than get your personal info.

But yes it can be a nuisance, and is also pretty worthless security to a
knowledgable thief and also the idiot who clicks on yes to everything
because they don't understand it.

I hated, hated, hated it at first but it should get less frequent and
you will "Get used to it". You can disable it but to be honest I've
found that if you do "Non default" things to Winders it can come back
and bite you.

I recommend you learn to live with it and watch a few youtube videos
based on a search for MAC Vs PC. It's no technical help whatsoever but
we're probably about the same age and it breaks up the day, It's Sunday,
at least it is here in Iowa.

05-03-2009

"Rick" <rick@xxxxxx> wrote in message
news

wiLl.29059$YU2.24495@xxxxxx

Quote:

>I recently purchased a new laptop with Vista on it,

[...]

Quote:

> ...frustrated by the layers of security I have to constantly wade
> through.

[...]

Quote:

> ...the owner, administrator and sole user of this computer.

[...]

Quote:

> ...where I am trying to give myself full control.

[...]

Quote:

> I should mention that I have been a computer professional for more
> than 40 years

[...]

Quote:

> So again...my questions are these:
>
> 1) Is there an easy way I can give myself total control over all
> folders and files on the system?

Not really, only the "system" account has that kind of control.

Disable MIC and use the *real administrator* (Administrator) account.

Quote:

> 2) Can I somehow get rid of those annoying "need your permission to
> continue" messages when the system ought to be smart enough to realize
> that I am an administrator and the only user?

The "Administrator" account should not be subjected to UAC, and if MIC
can be turned off via
HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System\EnableMIC
- no more access denied due to integrity levels.

05-04-2009

"H Brown" <H.Brown@xxxxxx> wrote in message
news:er2TicAzJHA.1432@xxxxxx

Quote:

> Hi Rick
> The link below has the instructions that will show you how to change all
> administrator account's UAC Privilege Level to keep UAC on and not prompt
> an administrator.
> User Account Control (UAC) - Elevate Privilege Level[11]=User
> Accounts
>
> H Brown

That worked fine for eliminating the annoying "permission to proceed"
messages. Thanks very much!

I still have an issue with going into Properties to change the permissions
on certain files and folders. If I go into some folders (like Windows) and
try to change the permissions to full access, I get little windows that pop
up and say "an error has occurred while applying security information to
[folder path]. Access is denied."

05-04-2009

This is very handy...
Context Menu - Take Ownership

--
Windows 7 beta
http://get.live.com/wlmail/overview
http://download.live.com/wlmail

"Rick" <rick@xxxxxx> wrote in message
news:2xBLl.25946$c45.3186@xxxxxx

Quote:

>
> "H Brown" <H.Brown@xxxxxx> wrote in message
> news:er2TicAzJHA.1432@xxxxxx

Quote:

>> Hi Rick
>> The link below has the instructions that will show you how to change all
>> administrator account's UAC Privilege Level to keep UAC on and not prompt
>> an administrator.
>> User Account Control (UAC) - Elevate Privilege Level[11]=User
>> Accounts
>>
>> H Brown

>
> That worked fine for eliminating the annoying "permission to proceed"
> messages. Thanks very much!
>
> I still have an issue with going into Properties to change the permissions
> on certain files and folders. If I go into some folders (like Windows)
> and try to change the permissions to full access, I get little windows
> that pop up and say "an error has occurred while applying security
> information to [folder path]. Access is denied."
>

05-03-2009	#1 (permalink)
Rick n/a posts	Access to folders I recently purchased a new laptop with Vista on it, and I continue to be frustrated by the layers of security I have to constantly wade through. I am the owner, administrator and sole user of this computer. It is used in my home and is not part of any LAN. Yet even though I am the administrator and only user, I still have to give myself permission before I can do certain things or run certain programs. Is there any quick and easy way I can change a setting somewhere so that I don't have to constantly give myself permission to do various things? Also, I have managed to change the security settings on various folders by going into Properties so that I can access the folders freely and see and access all files. But there are certain folders like the main Windows folder where I can't quite get the settings right so that I can have full control over the folder. I still see certain things grayed out on security screens under Properties where I am trying to give myself full control. I should mention that I have been a computer professional for more than 40 years so this is not a situation where it is likely I will "accidentally" delete something important or do something to destroy the integrity of the system. I have had a lot of experience over the years with earlier Windows operating systems and am pretty comfortable with Windows XP and its predecessors. But Vista is turning out to be a real pain, and for a single user, single computer environment like mine where I am not part of a network and am just using the computer for my own personal reasons, the security is excessive and annoying. So again...my questions are these: 1) Is there an easy way I can give myself total control over all folders and files on the system? 2) Can I somehow get rid of those annoying "need your permission to continue" messages when the system ought to be smart enough to realize that I am an administrator and the only user?
My System Specs

05-03-2009	#2 (permalink)
H Brown n/a posts	Re: Access to folders Hi Rick The link below has the instructions that will show you how to change all administrator account's UAC Privilege Level to keep UAC on and not prompt an administrator. User Account Control (UAC) - Elevate Privilege Level[11]=User Accounts H Brown "Rick" <rick@xxxxxx> wrote in message newswiLl.29059$YU2.24495@xxxxxx Quote: >I recently purchased a new laptop with Vista on it, and I continue to be >frustrated by the layers of security I have to constantly wade through. I >am the owner, administrator and sole user of this computer. It is used in >my home and is not part of any LAN. Yet even though I am the administrator >and only user, I still have to give myself permission before I can do >certain things or run certain programs. Is there any quick and easy way I >can change a setting somewhere so that I don't have to constantly give >myself permission to do various things? > > Also, I have managed to change the security settings on various folders by > going into Properties so that I can access the folders freely and see and > access all files. But there are certain folders like the main Windows > folder where I can't quite get the settings right so that I can have full > control over the folder. I still see certain things grayed out on > security screens under Properties where I am trying to give myself full > control. > > I should mention that I have been a computer professional for more than 40 > years so this is not a situation where it is likely I will "accidentally" > delete something important or do something to destroy the integrity of the > system. I have had a lot of experience over the years with earlier > Windows operating systems and am pretty comfortable with Windows XP and > its predecessors. But Vista is turning out to be a real pain, and for a > single user, single computer environment like mine where I am not part of > a network and am just using the computer for my own personal reasons, the > security is excessive and annoying. > > So again...my questions are these: > > 1) Is there an easy way I can give myself total control over all folders > and files on the system? > > 2) Can I somehow get rid of those annoying "need your permission to > continue" messages when the system ought to be smart enough to realize > that I am an administrator and the only user? >
My System Specs

05-03-2009	#3 (permalink)
Charlie Tame n/a posts	Re: Access to folders Rick wrote: Quote: > I recently purchased a new laptop with Vista on it, and I continue to be > frustrated by the layers of security I have to constantly wade through. I > am the owner, administrator and sole user of this computer. It is used in > my home and is not part of any LAN. Yet even though I am the administrator > and only user, I still have to give myself permission before I can do > certain things or run certain programs. Is there any quick and easy way I > can change a setting somewhere so that I don't have to constantly give > myself permission to do various things? > > Also, I have managed to change the security settings on various folders by > going into Properties so that I can access the folders freely and see and > access all files. But there are certain folders like the main Windows > folder where I can't quite get the settings right so that I can have full > control over the folder. I still see certain things grayed out on security > screens under Properties where I am trying to give myself full control. > > I should mention that I have been a computer professional for more than 40 > years so this is not a situation where it is likely I will "accidentally" > delete something important or do something to destroy the integrity of the > system. I have had a lot of experience over the years with earlier Windows > operating systems and am pretty comfortable with Windows XP and its > predecessors. But Vista is turning out to be a real pain, and for a single > user, single computer environment like mine where I am not part of a network > and am just using the computer for my own personal reasons, the security is > excessive and annoying. > > So again...my questions are these: > > 1) Is there an easy way I can give myself total control over all folders > and files on the system? > > 2) Can I somehow get rid of those annoying "need your permission to > continue" messages when the system ought to be smart enough to realize that > I am an administrator and the only user? > > Rick wrote: Quote: > I recently purchased a new laptop with Vista on it, and I continue to be > frustrated by the layers of security I have to constantly wade through. I Quote: > am the owner, administrator and sole user of this computer. It is used in Quote: > my home and is not part of any LAN. Yet even though I am the administrator Quote: > and only user, I still have to give myself permission before I can do > certain things or run certain programs. Is there any quick and easy way I Quote: > can change a setting somewhere so that I don't have to constantly give > myself permission to do various things? > > Also, I have managed to change the security settings on various folders by Quote: > going into Properties so that I can access the folders freely and see and Quote: > access all files. But there are certain folders like the main Windows > folder where I can't quite get the settings right so that I can have full Quote: > control over the folder. I still see certain things grayed out on security Quote: > screens under Properties where I am trying to give myself full control. > > I should mention that I have been a computer professional for more than 40 Quote: > years so this is not a situation where it is likely I will "accidentally" Quote: > delete something important or do something to destroy the integrity of the Quote: > system. I have had a lot of experience over the years with earlier Windows Quote: > operating systems and am pretty comfortable with Windows XP and its > predecessors. But Vista is turning out to be a real pain, and for a single Quote: > user, single computer environment like mine where I am not part of a network Quote: > and am just using the computer for my own personal reasons, the security is Quote: > excessive and annoying. > > So again...my questions are these: > > 1) Is there an easy way I can give myself total control over all folders Quote: > and files on the system? > > 2) Can I somehow get rid of those annoying "need your permission to > continue" messages when the system ought to be smart enough to realize that Quote: > I am an administrator and the only user? > > If your laptop got stolen a casual thief would probably reformat rather than get your personal info. But yes it can be a nuisance, and is also pretty worthless security to a knowledgable thief and also the idiot who clicks on yes to everything because they don't understand it. I hated, hated, hated it at first but it should get less frequent and you will "Get used to it". You can disable it but to be honest I've found that if you do "Non default" things to Winders it can come back and bite you. I recommend you learn to live with it and watch a few youtube videos based on a search for MAC Vs PC. It's no technical help whatsoever but we're probably about the same age and it breaks up the day, It's Sunday, at least it is here in Iowa.
My System Specs

05-03-2009	#4 (permalink)
FromTheRafters n/a posts	Re: Access to folders "Rick" <rick@xxxxxx> wrote in message newswiLl.29059$YU2.24495@xxxxxx Quote: >I recently purchased a new laptop with Vista on it, [...] Quote: > ...frustrated by the layers of security I have to constantly wade > through. [...] Quote: > ...the owner, administrator and sole user of this computer. [...] Quote: > ...where I am trying to give myself full control. [...] Quote: > I should mention that I have been a computer professional for more > than 40 years [...] Quote: > So again...my questions are these: > > 1) Is there an easy way I can give myself total control over all > folders and files on the system? Not really, only the "system" account has that kind of control. Disable MIC and use the real administrator (Administrator) account. Quote: > 2) Can I somehow get rid of those annoying "need your permission to > continue" messages when the system ought to be smart enough to realize > that I am an administrator and the only user? The "Administrator" account should not be subjected to UAC, and if MIC can be turned off via HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System\EnableMIC - no more access denied due to integrity levels.
My System Specs

05-04-2009	#5 (permalink)
Rick n/a posts	Re: Access to folders "H Brown" <H.Brown@xxxxxx> wrote in message news:er2TicAzJHA.1432@xxxxxx Quote: > Hi Rick > The link below has the instructions that will show you how to change all > administrator account's UAC Privilege Level to keep UAC on and not prompt > an administrator. > User Account Control (UAC) - Elevate Privilege Level[11]=User > Accounts > > H Brown That worked fine for eliminating the annoying "permission to proceed" messages. Thanks very much! I still have an issue with going into Properties to change the permissions on certain files and folders. If I go into some folders (like Windows) and try to change the permissions to full access, I get little windows that pop up and say "an error has occurred while applying security information to [folder path]. Access is denied."
My System Specs

05-04-2009	#6 (permalink)
Dave n/a posts	Re: Access to folders This is very handy... Context Menu - Take Ownership -- Windows 7 beta http://get.live.com/wlmail/overview http://download.live.com/wlmail "Rick" <rick@xxxxxx> wrote in message news:2xBLl.25946$c45.3186@xxxxxx Quote: > > "H Brown" <H.Brown@xxxxxx> wrote in message > news:er2TicAzJHA.1432@xxxxxx Quote: >> Hi Rick >> The link below has the instructions that will show you how to change all >> administrator account's UAC Privilege Level to keep UAC on and not prompt >> an administrator. >> User Account Control (UAC) - Elevate Privilege Level[11]=User >> Accounts >> >> H Brown > > That worked fine for eliminating the annoying "permission to proceed" > messages. Thanks very much! > > I still have an issue with going into Properties to change the permissions > on certain files and folders. If I go into some folders (like Windows) > and try to change the permissions to full access, I get little windows > that pop up and say "an error has occurred while applying security > information to [folder path]. Access is denied." >
My System Specs

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