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Using Windows 10 with two user accounts:

  • One "standard user" (USER-S)
  • One "admin user" (USER-A) who is an administrator on the local machine

Typically, USER-S is logged in. Most things can be done without requiring elevation. But anything that might change Windows settings, such as using the Registry Editor, requires elevation. This also happens when you right-click and Run as administrator.

USER-S then gets a UAC prompt to enter credentials for an admin account (in this case for USER-A). The "User Name" and "Password" are entered and all is good.

My question is whether the "User Name" and "Password" fields of the admin account can be automatically populated on the UAC prompt to save typing. If USER-S has to manually click "Yes", fine, but automatically clicking "Yes" is also ok.

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  • Would that really be any different from making the user an admin directly?
    – grawity_u1686
    Commented Aug 17, 2023 at 16:25
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    Possibly, but not quite.. USER-S (in this scenario) effectively has the permission of USER-A to piggbyback off their admin credentials (USER-S has been given the user name and password to use). If, for some reason, USER-A wishes to withdraw their permission that can be done by changing the password for the USER-A account or deleting USER-A . In either case, the auto-entered credentials would no longer work, but USER-S has not changed.
    – AlainD
    Commented Aug 17, 2023 at 16:32
  • User A can also withdraw that permission by using their admin privileges to remove User S from admins, no?
    – grawity_u1686
    Commented Aug 17, 2023 at 16:37
  • @u1686_grawity: Being in the admin group affects the whole user account. The way described would only affect a single program execution, nothing else. I do have use cases where this would be very comfortable - but i have no solution, so i'm curious how this will turn out.
    – xph
    Commented Aug 19, 2023 at 14:56

1 Answer 1

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My question is whether the "User Name" and "Password" fields of the admin account can be automatically populated on the UAC

Not automatically and not natively.

To have this automated would be very insecure.

Just use the native features available.

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  • It is not clear what you mean by "natively". That this "would be very insecure" is debateable if USER-S still had to click "Yes" on the UAC prompt manually. In any case, the judgement of whether this is a good idea or not is not relevant to the question. Its either possible...or its not.
    – AlainD
    Commented Aug 17, 2023 at 16:26
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    Natively means - how Windows works by default. And so far as I know, what you want is not possible to do.
    – anon
    Commented Aug 17, 2023 at 16:30

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