How do I give myself administrative access on my own computer after install where I stated a business computer instead of personal computer?

Question

I'm locked out from adding and software because of admin permissions and it's my personal computer.

Answer 1

Dear Seth Nease,

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Q&A.

It’s understandable that you’re frustrated about being locked out of administrative access on your personal computer, especially after setting it up as a business computer during installation.

You can try following these steps to solve your issue:

1. Boot your PC into WinRE:
   • Click the Start Menu > Power icon.
   • Hold down the Shift key on your keyboard and, while still holding it, click on Restart.
   • Continue holding the Shift key until a blue screen titled "Choose an option" appears.
2. Open the Command Prompt:
   • On the "Choose an option" screen, select Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Command Prompt
   • Your computer may restart and then open a black command prompt window.
3. Activate the Administrator Account:
   • Run this command:

          net user Administrator /active:yes
     

   • You should see a message that says "The command completed successfully." This command enables the hidden, default Administrator account that has full privileges.
4. Restart and Log in as Administrator:
   • Close the command prompt window.
   • You will be taken back to the blue "Choose an option" screen. Select Continue to exit and restart your PC normally.
   • On the Windows login screen, you should now see a new user account named Administrator in the bottom-left corner. Click on it to log in. By default, this account has no password, so it should log you straight in.
5. Give Your Own Account Administrator Privileges:
   • While logged into the Administrator account, press the Windows + R to open the Run dialog.
   • Type netplwiz and press Enter.
   • The "User Accounts" window will open. Select your personal user account from the list.
   • Click the Properties button.
   • In the new window, go to the Group Membership tab.
   • Change the selection from "Standard user" to Administrator.
   • Click Apply, then OK.
6. Security Cleanup (Important!):
   • Sign out of the Administrator account and log back into your personal account.
   • Go to Start, type cmd, then right-click on Command Prompt and select Run as administrator.
   • Run this command:

          net user Administrator /active:no
     

   • Restart your computer

If the method above not work, you can Reset this PC:

• Follow Step 1 above to get to the Choose an option screen. Then select Troubleshoot > Reset this PC
• Select Keep my files
• After the reset, during setup, choose Set up for personal use to ensure you create a local administrator account

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Best regards, 

Bryan Vu | Microsoft Q&A Support Specialist