How to combine runas with pnputil?

johnaw · Tuesday at 8:31 PM

i want to use runas to disable audio. Once i get this working i'll put it into a .bat file.
Reason: The laptop often or always doesn't recognize my 1/8th" headphone plug when i insert it. Disabling/Reenabling this driver forces the system to recognize the headphones

I'm on Win 11, but these commands go back decades.

This works from admin command line.

Code:

pnputil /disable-device "INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001"

You can see the driver get disabled in Device Manager. The path is "device instance path" in driver properties.

https://stackoverflow.com/a/63219662/209942

Now i'm trying to make it work with runas, but no joy. These don't work:

Code:

runas /savecred /user:BOOMBOX\BOOM pnputil /disable-device "INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001"

Code:

runas /user:BOOMBOX\BOOM "start \"\" pnputil /disable-device \"INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001\""

Code:

runas /user:BOOMBOX\BOOM "start """" pnputil /disable-device ""INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001"""

Code:

runas /user:BOOMBOX\BOOM "cmd pnputil /disable-device \"INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001\""

I don't care to use cmd or start, but i think it might be necessary. Would be great if they weren't necessary (use runas alone).

I looked here, but still stuck.

https://superuser.com/questions/417351/runas-different-user-to-launch-cmd-and-run-command

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/9267278/using-the-dos-start-command-when-passed-arguments-have-quotes

https://superuser.com/questions/1306418/pass-parameters-to-program-started-with-runas

Any ideas?
Thx!

Also asked on tenforums and windowscentral.com.

garlin · Tuesday at 10:03 PM

My preference is to use Elevated scheduled tasks, and not bother with RUNAS credentials.

1. Create a pair of elevated tasks as the Administrator:

Code:

schtasks /create /sc ONCE /tn Disable-Audio /tr "pnputil /disable-device INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001" /ru SYSTEM /rl HIGHEST /f

schtasks /create /sc ONCE /tn Enable-Audio /tr "pnputil /enable-device INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001" /ru SYSTEM /rl HIGHEST /f

2. As an ordinary user, run tasks from the command-line or a batch file:

Code:

schtasks /run /tn Enable-Audio
MyAudio_App.exe
schtasks /run /tn Disable-Audio

dacrone · Tuesday at 10:23 PM

garlin said:
My preference is to use Elevated scheduled tasks, and not bother with RUNAS credentials.

1. Create a pair of elevated tasks as the Administrator:

Code:

schtasks /create /sc ONCE /tn Disable-Audio /tr "pnputil /disable-device INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001" /ru SYSTEM /rl HIGHEST /f schtasks /create /sc ONCE /tn Enable-Audio /tr "pnputil /enable-device INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001" /ru SYSTEM /rl HIGHEST /f

2. As an ordinary user, run tasks from the command-line or a batch file:

Code:

schtasks /run /tn Enable-Audio MyAudio_App.exe schtasks /run /tn Disable-Audio

this or ahk is the route i'd go as well. if op wants other options, you can use nirsoft tools as well...

How to disable and enable audio device from command-line on Windows

How to disable and enable audio device from command-line on Windows operating system, using the SoundVolumeView tool

www.nirsoft.net

johnaw · 2025-07-16T01:38:59-0400

garlin said:
use Elevated scheduled task

1. Create as the Administrator:

Code:

schtasks /create /sc ONCE /tn Disable-Audio /tr "pnputil /disable-device INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001" /ru SYSTEM /rl HIGHEST /f

2. As an ordinary user, run tasks from the command-line or a batch file:

Code:

schtasks /run /tn Disable-Audio MyAudio_App.exe

Awesome solution. I assume MyAudio_App.exe is simply the software I'm using which outputs audio to the headphones. For example a web browser. In my case it's the browser and any other software that outputs audio. I don't need to launch the browser from this script, and I suggest it is confusing to include it in your solution because it's not really part of the solution.

I'm not enabling audio just to run an app one time. I need to fix an issue which prevents the headphones from being detected properly when plugged in. The fix is to disable the driver and then re-enable the driver, and not to enable the driver and then disable the driver as you have shown.

dacrone said:
this or ahk is the route i'd go as well. if op wants other options, you can use nirsoft tools as well...

Thanks for that! I prefer using native Windows features whenever possible.

johnaw · 2025-07-17T00:44:26-0400

garlin said:

Code:

schtasks /create /sc ONCE /tn Disable-Audio /tr "pnputil /disable-device INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001" /ru SYSTEM /rl HIGHEST /f

Do your schtasks commands work for you? I'm getting:
ERROR: No value specified for /ST option.

Help says:

Code:

/ST   starttime    Specifies the start time to run the task. The time
                       format is HH:mm (24 hour time) for example, 14:30 for
                       2:30 PM. Defaults to current time if /ST is not
                       specified.  This option is required with /SC ONCE.

/SC   schedule     Specifies the schedule frequency.
                       Valid schedule types: MINUTE, HOURLY, DAILY, WEEKLY,
                       MONTHLY, ONCE, ONSTART, ONLOGON, ONIDLE, ONEVENT.

I don't want this to run according to any schedule, just when i manually fire it. Should i choose ONEVENT? It's unclear what the "event" should be. Are you sure this is the correct solution for manual execution?

Thx

garlin · 2025-07-17T00:59:05-0400

Sorry, forgot to provide a dummy /ST value.

Code:

schtasks /create /sc ONCE /tn Disable-Audio /tr "pnputil /disable-device INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001" /ru SYSTEM /rl HIGHEST /st 00:00 /f

johnaw · 2025-07-17T01:41:10-0400

garlin said:

Sorry, forgot to provide a dummy /ST value.

Code:

schtasks /create /sc ONCE /tn Disable-Audio /tr "pnputil /disable-device INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001" /ru SYSTEM /rl HIGHEST /st 00:00 /f

Does this work for you at non-admin cmd? I get "access denied" at non-admin cmd. So i still need to use runas in the .bat file, correct?

garlin · 2025-07-17T01:50:06-0400

You have to run the "schtasks create" command once as Administrator.
Afterwards any user can call "schtasks /run /tn TaskName" without needing any special permissions.

johnaw · 2025-07-17T01:52:37-0400

garlin said:
You have to run the "schtasks create" command once as Administrator.
Afterwards any user can call "schtasks /run /tn TaskName" without needing any special permissions.

Works for you? That's what i did. Ran once at admin cmd. See creation error re /ST:

Now getting "access denied" at non-admin console:

Also, this fails. I get prompt for password, but the device doesn't get disabled.

Code:

>runas /user:BOOMBOX\BOOM "schtasks /run /tn Disable-Audio"
Enter the password for BOOMBOX\BOOM:
Attempting to start schtasks /run /tn Disable-Audio as user "BOOMBOX\BOOM" ...

hsehestedt · 2025-07-17T02:32:48-0400

Here is my preferred method for doing this from a batch file:

Create a self-elevating batch file so that if it is not run as admin it will terminate itself and re-launch itself elevated.

Here is an example:

NOTE: The device I was testing with is a different one than you were using. Make sure to change this:

Batch:

@echo off

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
:: Check to see if this batch file is being run as Administrator. If it is not, then rerun the batch file ::
:: automatically as admin and terminate the intial instance of the batch file.                            ::
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

(Fsutil Dirty Query %SystemDrive%>Nul)||(PowerShell start """%~f0""" -verb RunAs & Exit /B)

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
:: End Routine to check if being run as Admin ::
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

:: We reach this point once the batch file is run as admin

pnputil /disable-device "HDAUDIO\SUBFUNC_01&VEN_8086&DEV_2812&NID_0001&SUBSYS_00000000&REV_1000\5&20D072F3&0&0002&00000014"

johnaw · 2025-07-17T02:35:59-0400

hsehestedt said:
Create a self-elevating batch file so that if it is not run as admin it will terminate itself and re-launch itself elevated.

Neat! But seems a bit indirect/janky. It's on my list to try, if other cleaner approaches can't be solved. Thx!

hsehestedt · 2025-07-17T02:42:03-0400

johnaw said:
Neat! But seems a bit indirect/janky. It's on my list to try, if other cleaner approaches can't be solved. Thx!

Of course everyone has their own preferred methods, but I literally use this in dozens of batch files, including some of a few thousand lines in length and everything works flawlessly - not at all janky.

The only way I have not tested is to see what happens if I am logged in as a non-admin user. Should still work although I suspect that it may prompt for user creds then. I have never been interested in testing this only because I have no standard user accounts anywhere

johnaw · 2025-07-17T02:45:17-0400

hsehestedt said:
Of course everyone has their own preferred methods, but I literally use this in dozens of batch files, including some of a few thousand lines in length and everything works flawlessly - not at all janky.

The only way I have not tested is to see what happens if I am logged in as a non-admin user. Should still work although I suspect that it may prompt for user creds then. I have never been interested in testing this only because I have no standard user accounts anywhere

By "janky", i didn't mean unreliable. Maybe "hacky" is a better word?
For security, i never use Win admin accounts for daily usage.
Cheers!

garlin · 2025-07-17T03:03:51-0400

Try this:

Code:

schtasks /delete /tn Disable-Audio
schtasks /create /sc ONCE /tn Disable-Audio /tr "pnputil /disable-device INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001" /rl HIGHEST /st 00:00 /f

Running as SYSTEM was unnecessary for pnputil.

johnaw · 2025-07-17T03:12:04-0400

garlin said:

Try this:

Code:

schtasks /delete /tn Disable-Audio
schtasks /create /sc ONCE /tn Disable-Audio /tr "pnputil /disable-device INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001" /rl HIGHEST /st 00:00 /f

Running as SYSTEM was unnecessary for pnputil.

Thx, but still getting access denied trying to run. Are you logged into Windows as non-admin?

garlin · 2025-07-17T03:22:01-0400

Is your "Naj" user account the primary user on this PC? I had to delete and recreate the tasks a few times to get it run for me (not as Admin).

johnaw · 2025-07-17T03:50:42-0400

garlin said:
Is your "Naj" user account the primary user on this PC? I had to delete and recreate the tasks a few times to get it run for me (not as Admin).

What does 'primary user' mean? There are two accounts:
BOOM (admin, not logged in)
Naj (non-admin, logged in)

hdmi · 2025-07-17T10:13:31-0400

Remove the task again (by running schtasks /delete /tn Disable-Audio as an administrator).
Next, try my batch script to create the task such a way that should fix the Access is denied problem:

Batch:

<# ::
@echo off
"%windir%\System32\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\powershell.exe" -NoProfile -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Command ^$fp = '%~dpnx0'; Invoke-Expression ((Get-Content '%~dpnx0') -join [Environment]::NewLine); Elevate
goto :eof
#>
$Command = "`$fp = '$($fp)'; Write-Host 'Processing: ' -ForegroundColor Yellow -NoNewline; Write-Host `$fp; Invoke-Expression ((Get-Content `$fp) -join [Environment]::NewLine); if (`$fp -ne '') { Main }"
function Elevate {
  if (([Security.Principal.WindowsPrincipal][Security.Principal.WindowsIdentity]::GetCurrent()).IsInRole([Security.Principal.WindowsBuiltInRole] "Administrator")) {
    Start-Process "$env:windir\System32\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\powershell.exe" "-NoProfile -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Command `"$Command`""
  } else {
    Start-Process "$env:windir\System32\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\powershell.exe" "-NoProfile -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Command `"$Command`"" -Verb RunAs
  }
}
function Main {
$fp
  if (([Security.Principal.WindowsPrincipal][Security.Principal.WindowsIdentity]::GetCurrent()).IsInRole([Security.Principal.WindowsBuiltInRole]::Administrator)) {
    $taskName = 'Reset-Audio'
    $deviceId = '"INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001"'

    # Disable + Re-enable device
    $disableAction = New-ScheduledTaskAction -Execute "pnputil.exe" -Argument "/disable-device $deviceId"
    $enableAction  = New-ScheduledTaskAction -Execute "pnputil.exe" -Argument "/enable-device $deviceId"
    $actions = @($disableAction, $enableAction)

    # Harmless trigger to make the task valid
    $trigger = New-ScheduledTaskTrigger -Once -At (Get-Date)

    # SYSTEM principal with full privileges
    $principal = New-ScheduledTaskPrincipal -UserId "SYSTEM" -LogonType ServiceAccount -RunLevel Highest

    # Allow the task to run if on battery power
    $settings = New-ScheduledTaskSettingsSet -AllowStartIfOnBatteries -DontStopIfGoingOnBatteries -StartWhenAvailable

    Register-ScheduledTask -TaskName $taskName -Action $actions -Trigger $trigger -Principal $principal -Settings $settings -Force

    # Grant run permission to Authenticated Users
    $scheduler = New-Object -ComObject "Schedule.Service"
    $scheduler.Connect()
    $task = $scheduler.GetFolder("\").GetTask($taskName)
    $sd = $task.GetSecurityDescriptor(0xF)
    if ($sd -notmatch 'A;;GRGX;;;AU') {
      $sd += '(A;;GRGX;;;AU)'
      $task.SetSecurityDescriptor($sd, 0)
    }
  } else { Write-Host "Couldn't elevate the script." -ForegroundColor Yellow }
  pause
}

EDIT: Corrected the quoted string for $deviceId.

EDIT2: Added settings to allow the task to run even if on battery power. Removed the addition of one minute from the trigger's start time (the -At parameter), as it isn't necessary.

johnaw · 2025-07-17T18:10:48-0400

@hdmi Thanks for all your efforts! But very complicated and long.

I got this one-liner working. So although i have to enter password, it's still preferable for its simplicity.
reset-audio.bat

Code:

powershell.exe -ExecutionPolicy Bypass Start-Process "pnputil" -ArgumentList '/disable-device "INTELAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0295&SUBSYS_1028099F&REV_1000\5&1B578A47&0&0001"' -Verb RunAs

I'm optimistic that i may be able to embed credentials using this or something similar:

Code:

$password = ConvertTo-SecureString “PlainTextPassword” -AsPlainText -Force
$Cred = New-Object System.Management.Automation.PSCredential (“username”, $password)

How to combine runas with pnputil?

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