RANU: Running Admin Tasks easily
A while back I described the set of shortcuts I use to run things as Administrator, even though I'm logged on as a Limited User.
I've packaged them up for dowload. Enjoy.
Overview
Logging on as a restricted user greatly increases security, protecting you from certain virus & trojan horse attacks, and adheres to the "principle of least priviledge".
However, if your domain user account is a normal user on your machine, it can be challenging to perform certain administrative tasks, like:
- Control Panel applets
- Administative Tools
- Install software from Corpnet
- Edit HKLM reg keys
This collection of shortcuts make it easier to run these tools as Administrator.
Setup:
I like to use it as a toolbar on my Windows Task Bar.
- (Optional) Copy to your local machine
- RClick on the Windows Task Bar
- Select Toolbars->New Toolbar
- Point to the Admin Tasks folder
Also, it's a good idea to teach windows to run each explorer window as a separate process. This way you can have both Administrator and User explorers open at the same time. See Aaron Margosis' blog for more info.
Details:
CMD
Launch a command prompt as Administrator
CMD w Network Launch a command prompt as Administartor, but with your network credentials
Explorer w Network
Launch explorer.exe as Administartor, but with your network credentials. Requires setting ExplorerSeparateProcess (see above).
Page Defrag
A sysinternals tool that I like for defragmenting my pagefile.
Regedit
Runs regedit as Administrator (relies on a possibly undocumented option to regedit).
Task Manager
Runs Task Manager as Administrator
Control Panel
Runs CPL control panel applets.
Administrative Tools
MMC Snap-ins that appear in Control Panel->Administrative Tools
Administrative Tools->More
Most of these appear under the the Computer Management MMC snap-in, but here you have direct access to them