How can I start a command prompt session with Administrative privileges in Windows Vista?

A. Under Vista, unless you're logged on as the Administrator account, all applications run in a reduced privilege mode, the equivalent of a standard user, even if your account has administrative privileges. When you execute a command that requires higher privileges, you're prompted on whether the action should be allowed. This is Vista's User Access Control (UAC) functionality.

To start a command prompt session with full Administrator rights, right-click the Command Prompt Accessories shortcut (Start, Programs, Accessories, Command Prompt) and select "Run as administrator" from the displayed context menu, as the figure shows.

When you run as Administrator, the command prompt title will show as "Administrator: Command Prompt" instead of the regular "C:Windowssystem32cmd.exe" making it easier to tell when multiple command prompt windows are running, as the figureshows.