Reclaiming Administrator rights in Windows 11


This will tell you which accounts are in the Administrators group and whether they're enabled.

Powershell:
Get-LocalGroup 'Administrators' | Get-LocalGroupMember | % { Get-LocalUser -SID $_.SID }
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 Enterprise 25H2
OS
Windows 11 Enterprise 25H2
i ask because if you make a bootable windows installation usb, you can unlock and bypass the password to the Administrator account using it to enable a system level command prompt (a lot easier than it sounds)
Does it require administrator rights? I'll give it a go if it doesn't require admin rights.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 1112th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)32 RAM
OS
Windows 11
Computer type
Laptop
Manufacturer/Model
HP Laptop
CPU
12th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)
Memory
32 RAM

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 1112th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)32 RAM
OS
Windows 11
Computer type
Laptop
Manufacturer/Model
HP Laptop
CPU
12th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)
Memory
32 RAM
you can try from the safe mode option but i cant guarantee if it'll bypass it:

click start > type Advanced Startup > Restart Now button

it'll boot to:
1762202207769.webp

choose troubleshoot > Command Prompt

1762202235588.webp

then run these commands:

Code:
net user Administrator /active:yes

Code:
net user Administrator PASSWORD

replace PASSWORD with whatever password you want set. then type "Exit" and boot back into windows. Administrator user account on the logon screen should be enabled if it worked.
 

My Computer My Computer

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Windows 11 Pro
OS
Windows 11 Pro
you can try from the safe mode option but i cant guarantee if it'll bypass it:

click start > type Advanced Startup > Restart Now button

it'll boot to:
View attachment 151477

choose troubleshoot > Command Prompt

View attachment 151478

then run these commands:

Code:
net user Administrator /active:yes

Code:
net user Administrator PASSWORD

replace PASSWORD with whatever password you want set. then type "Exit" and boot back into windows. Administrator user account on the logon screen should be enabled if it worked.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 1112th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)32 RAM
OS
Windows 11
Computer type
Laptop
Manufacturer/Model
HP Laptop
CPU
12th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)
Memory
32 RAM
Thanks. I tried this. Everything says successful but I reboot and am back to square one with no Administrative right.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 1112th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)32 RAM
OS
Windows 11
Computer type
Laptop
Manufacturer/Model
HP Laptop
CPU
12th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)
Memory
32 RAM
you do not have your user account AND Administrator on the logon screen, but it said successful?
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 Pro
OS
Windows 11 Pro
microsoft taking over your laptop 😅
 

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you do not have your user account AND Administrator on the logon screen, but it said successful?
Yes. It seems once Microsoft has overridden admin rights in Windows 11 Home Edition, they ain't giving it up.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 1112th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)32 RAM
OS
Windows 11
Computer type
Laptop
Manufacturer/Model
HP Laptop
CPU
12th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)
Memory
32 RAM
thats not applicable to the commands you ran at all. the commands you ran enable the hidden (always present) Administrator account. if it said successful but nothing showed on the logon screen and you reimaged the pc/are the only user but have no admin rights, the image sounds corrupted to me...
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 Pro
OS
Windows 11 Pro
thats not applicable to the commands you ran at all. the commands you ran enable the hidden (always present) Administrator account. if it said successful but nothing showed on the logon screen and you reimaged the pc/are the only user but have no admin rights, the image sounds corrupted to me...
Then I will try again and I'll get a screen shot or camera shot. I'll try again now.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 1112th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)32 RAM
OS
Windows 11
Computer type
Laptop
Manufacturer/Model
HP Laptop
CPU
12th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)
Memory
32 RAM
1) you posted your screenshot with your password in plaintext. if you use that elsewhere, i recommend removing that image

2) exit is a separate command.
everything before Exit (net user Administrator PASSWORD) is correct. press enter. then on a new entry, type exit and enter again. that will close command prompt.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 Pro
OS
Windows 11 Pro
User Account Control window. I have no yes button that would allow me to continue
And it was for precisely this condition that I wrote the procedure I did.
The user account created during installation has Admin rights but yours seems to be corrupt.
Fix UAC prompt has greyed out or missing Yes button - TenForumsTutorials
The Windows 10 fix applies to Windows 11 as well but I've never before seen the problem reported in ElevenForum so have never felt the need to adjust the article to cope with OS differences.



Denis
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 Home x64 Version 25H2 Build 26200....
OS
Windows 11 Home x64 Version 25H2 Build 26200.9168
I followed a Youtube tech's instructions to fix the no Yes button problem. As I stated earlier, everything was going fine until we got to the tabs to change. His had Local Users & Groups, mine did not have that option. So it was a dead end.
I am going to try your Fix UAC prompt.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 1112th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)32 RAM
OS
Windows 11
Computer type
Laptop
Manufacturer/Model
HP Laptop
CPU
12th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)
Memory
32 RAM
I tried this but it requires admin rights.
Clean install does not require Admin rights.
What exactly did you look at that made you think otherwise?


Denis
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 Home x64 Version 25H2 Build 26200....
OS
Windows 11 Home x64 Version 25H2 Build 26200.9168
It seems once Microsoft has overridden admin rights
No, it's a fault condition. A corrupted user account.
It's been seen since Windows 7 if not earlier.
It is not nearly as common these days as it was a decade ago.

I am going to try your Fix UAC prompt
Good.
The user account created during installation has Admin rights but yours seems to be corrupt.
Fix UAC prompt has greyed out or missing Yes button - TenForumsTutorials
The Windows 10 fix applies to Windows 11 as well but I've never before seen the problem reported in ElevenForum so have never felt the need to adjust the article to cope with OS differences.
The procedure has been used successfully many times in TenForums & in other forums.
The only complication will be that you'll have to cross-refer to ElevenForumTutorials in place of the TenForumsTutorials for which the procedure was written.


Best of luck,
Denis
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 Home x64 Version 25H2 Build 26200....
OS
Windows 11 Home x64 Version 25H2 Build 26200.9168
do you have a usb and the windows iso available?
I do have a USB to which I downloaded Rufus.ie. Guess what you need to boot from your USB port. That's right...admin rights. I'm going through the "replace the yes button" info, but it's a lot for a guy who can follow steps, but is far from being computer savvy.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 1112th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)32 RAM
OS
Windows 11
Computer type
Laptop
Manufacturer/Model
HP Laptop
CPU
12th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)
Memory
32 RAM
Guess what you need to boot from your USB port. That's right...admin rights
No, no, no.
Booting is done outside of Windows. it's just between you & your Bios. There is no concept of Admin rights.
There would be a restriction iff you had deliberately put a password in your Bios to achieve that. But it has nothing to do with Windows Admin permissions.
Boot from USB Drive - ElevenForumTutorials


Denis
 
Last edited:

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 Home x64 Version 25H2 Build 26200....
OS
Windows 11 Home x64 Version 25H2 Build 26200.9168
I do have a USB to which I downloaded Rufus.ie. Guess what you need to boot from your USB port. That's right...admin rights. I'm going through the "replace the yes button" info, but it's a lot for a guy who can follow steps, but is far from being computer savvy.
Rufus should be installed on a different computer, and Rufus should not be burned to the Flash Drive. Either Download the Windows 11 ISO image from Microsoft Download Windows 11
Or via Rufus. Put a blank USB Flash drive in, and to the right of Boot Selection, click the down arrow for Select and choose Download.
This will download the Windows 11 ISO from Rufus's server or click Select and browse it to the downloaded ISO you saved.
Click the Start Button in Rufus to burn the ISO to the Flash Drive.

Once the USB Flash drive has been burned successfully, put it into the Troubled computer.
Stat the computer and with an HP laptop, press the F9 key continuously. Click the Flash Drive to boot from.
Follow pictures from the link in post #8. For Clean Install of Windows.
You are booting from the Flash Drive so Admin rights are not an issue.

Basically once you boot into the USB Flash drive Windows installer,
Choose your language, then Install now than Custom Install.
In Where Would You Like to Install Windows? Select each partition and click the Delete button
Until the drive is all Unallocated Space, then Press Next.

the Windows installer will do all the rest, just follow the on screen prompts.
 

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Windows 11 Pro Insider 64 bit 25H2 26200.5742Intel Core i7 9700K 3.6016 GBnVidia GEForce RTX 2060 Super
OS
Windows 11 Pro Insider 64 bit 25H2 26200.5742
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Manufacturer/Model
Gigabyte Z390 UD
CPU
Intel Core i7 9700K 3.60
Motherboard
Gigabyte Z390 UD
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nVidia GEForce RTX 2060 Super
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onboard
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Two 27" Dell 4K monitors
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Case
Cyberpower PC
Cooling
Water cooled
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Backlit Cyberpower gaming keyboard
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Backlit Cyberpower gaming mouse
Internet Speed
1 GB mbps
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Brave
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Windows Security
No, no, no.
Booting is done outside of Windows. it's just between you & your Bios. There is no concept of Admin rights.
There would be a restriction iff you had deliberately put a password in your Bios to achieve that. But it has nothing to do with Windows Admin permissions.
Boot from USB Drive - ElevenForumTutorials


Denis
I followed youtube tech AskLeo on how to download an iso copy of Windows to a usb. This is the video.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTi7A8C2q38&t=129s. Then I downloaded rufus from Rufus - The Official Website (Download, New Releases). When I clicked on the D: drive I got the yes-less User Account Control window. Will a clean usb iso copy of Windows go straight to Bios and setup bypassing any admin interference?
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 1112th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)32 RAM
OS
Windows 11
Computer type
Laptop
Manufacturer/Model
HP Laptop
CPU
12th Gen Intel(R) Core i3-1215u (1.20 GHz)
Memory
32 RAM

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