How To Change The UAC Behavior Prompt

One of the good things about the Windows 10 operating system, Is the array of security options It provides, one of which Is the UAC (User Account Control), that basically prompts before a program or application can execute with administrator access. Did you know, that you can change Its default behavior prompt for admin users? Well, In this tutorial, I will show you how to do this with only a few simple steps.


Before I make a start, here's what I'm referring to In terms of the UAC (User Account Control). When launching applications or performing specific tasks, In order to prevent unauthorized changes to your computer, by default, the UAC will prompt whether to allow such actions as shown In the Image below.

This Is a safeguard against malicious software (malware) and the like, from silently Installing and Infecting your PC. Essentially, tasks cannot execute/launch without your consent. The above prompt, Is the default action, whereby you simply click Yes or No to allow/disallow the task or application to perform Its job.

Unbeknownst to many users, you can In fact change the UAC behavior prompt by using the good old Local Security Policy. Do note that the LSP Is only available In Windows 10 Pro, Education and Enterprise editions. If you're running either of these, then this tutorial Is for you. So without further delay, let's get this started.

Step One:

To access the Local Security Policy, open the Run menu, enter secpol.msc and hit OK as shown below.

Step Two:

The Local Security Policy will now execute, so click on Local Policies > Security Options and on the right pane, double-click Account Control: Behavior of the elevation prompt for administrators in Admin Approval Mode.

Step Three:

Now simply click the drop-down menu, and you'll have a number of options to choose from that allow to change the UAC behavior prompt. For the purpose of this tutorial, I've selected Prompt for credentials, which will do exactly that- ask for my administrator password at the UAC prompt. When you've made your choice, hit OK to finalize the process.

Last Step:

I've now launched a task that requires administrator privileges, and as you can see, I'm asked to enter my admin password at the UAC prompt, which Is exactly what I expected. Perfect!

Final Thoughts:

There are quite a number of options to change the UAC behavior prompt, but It's way beyond the scope of this article to cover the lot. Do note, that this relates to administrator users and not standard user accounts. There Is no right or wrong as to what should be selected, but rather based on your overall computing usability. If you wish to reverse the change and have the UAC functioning as per Its default state, refer to Step Three above, choose Prompt for consent and hit OK on exit.