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Why does Windows 7 warn me before I run these EXE files I downloaded? I removed the zone identifier already

Here is one of the EXE files.

Why does Windows 7 warn me before I run this EXE file I downloaded? I removed the zone identifier already

I went https://www.adaware.com/free-adaware-protect-download/ I clicked "download your free protection", and downloaded Adaware_protect_Installer.exe

When I try to run it, it says

enter image description here

From the command prompt I can do

streams.exe Adaware_protect_Installer.exe and it says :Zone.Identifier:$DATA 26

So there's a "zone identifier" there, I can delete that with streams -d Adaware_protect_Installer.exe

Then when I try to run Adaware_protect_Installer.exe it says

enter image description here

So the "file origin" has gone from "downloaded from the internet", to "hard drive on this computer".

But why is it warning me at all?

There are some EXE files i'm able to run with no warnings and not just MS ones e.g. C:\ffmpeg\bin>ffmpeg.exe

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1
  • related is this exe I ran where windows warns about unknown publisher github.com/jschicht/MftRcrd Though in the case of the aware exe it's not even an unknown publisher. And for ffmpeg I don't get any talk about publishers.
    – barlop
    Commented Dec 20, 2021 at 17:53

1 Answer 1

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This is not a warning at all. It’s the standard User Access Control (UAC) dialog. You are running a setup program. It requires admin rights, or Windows thinks it does.

On Windows 10, the same dialog looks like this:

enter image description here

You get a dialog like this every time you launch a program…

  • with admin rights manually
  • that Windows thinks is a setup program
  • that declares in its manifest that it requires elevated rights
  • that then relaunches itself with admin rights (same as bullet 1 really)

The only exception are certain trusted operating system programs like Device Manager or Disk Management. By default, they run as admin without any confirmation dialog.

added by barlop

Daniel mentions that you can view the "manifest", by searching for "<assembly" in a file, and that will indicate that it requires elevated rights.

Looking at the mentioned EXE in Hex Edit, a web browser based online hex editor, https://hexed.it/ and searching for "assembly" it does mention requesting privileges.

enter image description here

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6
  • You write "You get a dialog like this every time you launch a program… (with admin rights manually) or (that Windows thinks is a setup program) or (that declares in its manifest that it requires elevated rights) The only exception are certain trusted operating system programs." <--- and what "trusted operating system program" is a setup program?
    – barlop
    Commented Dec 20, 2021 at 19:38
  • also this program here github.com/jschicht/MftRcrd windows warns about, it's far from a setup program , it's just a command line program
    – barlop
    Commented Dec 20, 2021 at 19:40
  • @barlop it does not matter if the executable is an installer or whatever. If it has the run as admin permission flag set (that flag is set in the exe file itself) Windows will execute it with admin permissions (if your account have them) and thus an UAC Dialog is shown.
    – Robert
    Commented Dec 20, 2021 at 20:01
  • @Robert you suggest that the dialog boxes I show in the question are 'cos "run as admin" is checked somewhere. but they're not, also I can't see such an option in properties. compatibility. cmd has it but not the adaware setup file. Also I think the dialog box is slightly differrent when runas admin is set, to this one. The runas admin one seems to say "program location", and not "file origin".
    – barlop
    Commented Dec 21, 2021 at 0:33
  • @barlop please re-read my comment. I am not talking about the run as admin flag in a shortcut which can be enabled/disabled by the user. I am talking about the run as admin flag embedded in the exe file!
    – Robert
    Commented Dec 21, 2021 at 7:38

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