What is UAC in Windows 10 and how to disable it

If you have a Internet At your home or work, one of the things you need to control is which users or applications can change things in that system.

One way to prevent unauthorized changes is to have someone act as the network administrator. However, if just one person managing everything isn’t enough, that’s where User Access Control (UAC) comes in.

This guide explains what UAC is and how you can disable it in Windows 10.

What is UAC?

UAC is a security feature in Windows 10 that prevents unauthorized or accidental changes to the operating system. This feature was first part of the Windows Vista security system and has since been improved with each new version of Windows.

Such changes can be initiated by the user, by a virus, by malware, or by an application. But if the admin doesn’t approve the changes, they won’t be executed.

Among the changes that require administrative privileges include:

Every time you run a desktop application that requires administrative rights, UAC will pop up. You’ll also see it when you want to change important system settings that require administrator approval.

Any user on your network can log on to their computer with a standard user account, but any processes they launch will be done using the access granted to the standard user. standard.

For example, any application that starts using Windows Explorer will run with standard user level permissions. This includes apps that come with Windows 10 itself.

For legacy applications, not designed with security in mind, additional permissions are often required to run successfully. Additional permissions are required for actions such as installing new software and changing Windows Firewall configurations, as this requires administrator account-level permissions.

If you need to run an application that requires more than standard account user permissions, you can rollback more user groups into tokens to manage applications that make system-level changes to the computer or your device.

For families, there is an option to create a dedicated Kids account that comes with different limits and built-in parental controls and supervision. Learn more in our Microsoft Family account and how to add family members to your Microsoft account guide.

UAC slider levels in Windows 10 and what they mean

In Windows Vista, there are only two UAC options: On or Off. However, in Windows 10, there are four levels of UAC to choose from:

  • Always informed: Notifies you before users and apps make changes that require admin permissions. It also freezes other tasks until you respond and is recommended if you often visit strange websites or install new software.
  • Notify me only when programs/applications try to make changes to my computer: Notifies you when programs try to make changes to your computer or install software. This level also freezes other tasks until you respond, but it won’t notify you when you do changes to Windows settings.
  • Notify me only when programs/applications try to make changes to my computer (don’t dim my screen): Notifies you when a program tries to make changes or install software on your computer. It does not notify you when you make changes to Windows settings and does not freeze tasks until you respond. Only choose this level if it takes a long time to dim your computer screen.
  • Never notice: Doesn’t notify you when a program tries to make changes, install software, or when you modify Windows settings. This setting is not recommended especially if you don’t have a good security suite as it is much easier viruses and malware infect your computer when UAC is off.

How to turn off UAC in Windows 10

Note: We recommend that you do not disable UAC on your computer because doing so will make it easier for malicious programs to infect and manage your computer. If there are applications that continue to enable UAC, use Windows Task Scheduler to run those applications without admin rights and UAC prompts first, instead of disabling UAC entirely.

If you still want to disable UAC, you can do so through the Control Panel, Group Policy, Registry Editor, or using the Command Line.

How to turn off UAC using Control Panel

  1. Open Control Panel and select User account.
  1. Option User account again.
  1. Next, choose Change User Account Control settings.
  1. If you want to disable UAC completely, drag the slider to Never notice to disable UAC and then click ALRIGHT.

To re-enable UAC, drag the slider to your desired security level, then click ALRIGHT. Confirm your choice or enter your admin password if prompted, then restart your computer to keep the changes.

How to disable UAC using command line

  1. To do this, type CMD in the search box and select Run as administrator.

In the Command Prompt box, type this command and press Enter:

reg.exe ADD HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System /v EnableLUA /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f
  1. Restart your computer for the changes to take effect.

If you want to enable or re-enable UAC, enter this order:

reg.exe ADD HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System /v EnableLUA /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f

How to disable UAC using the Group Policy Editor

  1. To do this, type Policy Editor in the search box and select Edit Group Policy.
  1. Option Computer Configuration > Windows Settings and then select Install protection system.
  1. Next, choose Local Policy > Security Options.
  1. Scroll down and double-click User Account Control: Run All Admins in Admin Approval Mode.
  1. Option Disabled > OK.

How to disable UAC using Windows Registry

You can also disable UAC through the Windows Registry. However, before doing that, make sure that you have backed up the registry to avoid any system crashes.

  1. To disable UAC through the Windows Registry, right-click Start > Runenter regedit.exe and press enter on your keyboard.
  2. Follow the path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System
  1. Next, double-click the . key EnableLUA And change Value data arrive 0.
  1. Save the changes and restart your computer.

Take control of your account

UAC makes all the difference between a standard user account and an administrator account. With this feature, you have a basic level of system security that saves your system from malicious processes even when a security suite is already in place.

Can you disable UAC on your computer? Share with us in the comments.

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