Access is denied Windows 10 error [FIX]

Most people who see this error feel annoyed and frustrated. It’s not a helpful message and can be hard to fix when it happens in the process of installing new updates or running some other program on your PC., so we’re going to show you how to get rid of these pesky Access is denied errors.

One of the most frustrating Windows 10 errors is when you can’t access your PC. This error pops up and says “access is denied.” If this happens to you, here are some fixes for it:

The “windows 10 access denied administrator” is a problem that has been present for a while. Microsoft has released 3 fixes to fix the issue.

Milan Stanojevic is a writer who lives in Belgrade, Serbia.

Expert in Windows and Software

Milan has been fascinated by computers since he was a youngster, and this has led him to be interested in all PC-related technology. He worked as a front-end web developer before joining WindowsReport. Continue reading

This page was last updated on November 3, 2021.

Originally published in May 2017

• Any notification claiming that access is denied isn’t going to be helpful. It’s much worse if you happen to come across it while using a Windows 10 device.
• Because this might obstruct your work by preventing you from accessing particular folders or programs, we’ve compiled a comprehensive list of tried and true remedies.
• When it comes to solutions, check out our File Explorer Support Guides for additional information.
• Visit the Windows 10 Troubleshooting Hub for additional quick solutions to keep your computer running smoothly at all times.

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When attempting to access particular folders or apps, an access is refused notice may display, interfering with your work.

Although this notice may create issues, you should be able to resolve it using one of our solutions on Windows 10.

How can I get rid of the notification “Access is forbidden” in Windows 10?

Windows 10 – Fix – Access is denied

1. Assume control of the directory.

When you attempt to access a file or directory with inadequate rights, this error normally displays. If you’re not an administrator or if you don’t have control of a folder, this will happen.

All you have to do to remedy the issue is give ownership to your account, which you can accomplish by following these instructions:

1. Right-click the problematic folder and choose Properties from the menu.
2. Go to the Security tab and choose Advanced from the drop-down menu.
3. Change the Owner section at the top of the page.
4. The window to choose a user or a group will now appear. Enter Administrators or your user name in the Enter the object name to choose form. Now choose Check Names from the drop-down menu. Your input will alter if everything is in order. To save your changes, click OK.
5. The owner section will be updated now. To save changes, check Replace owner on subcontainers and objects, then click Apply and OK. Some users recommend that you choose the option to Replace all child object permission entries, so you may want to do that as well.

You may need to manually provide rights to your account in certain circumstances. Follow these basic steps to do so:

1. Select Advanced Security Settings from the drop-down menu.
2. There will be a list of all users shown. Click the Add button if your user account isn’t displayed.
3. Select a principle by clicking on it.
4. Now type in your user account name, then click Check Names and OK. Check out Step 5 above for instructions on how to achieve that.
5. Check Full control and set Type to Allow and Applies to This folder, subfolders, and files. Now press the OK key.

If your user name is already taken, just double-click it and go to Step 5.

Using Command Prompt is another approach to take control. Start Command Prompt as an administrator and type the following commands:

Of course, path to folder should be replaced with the real path to the inaccessible folder. You should now have complete access to the affected folder after performing these two commands.

2. Join the Administrators group using your account.

If you attempt to access a folder without having administrator credentials, you may see an Access is forbidden warning. This may be an issue, but by adding your account to the Administrators group, you can solve it.

Follow these instructions to do so on Windows 10:

1. To access the Win + X menu, press Windows Key + X. Choose Computer Management from the drop-down menu.
2. Navigate to Local Users and Groups -> Users when the Computer Management window appears. Now, in the left pane, double-click your account.
3. To add a new member, go to the Member Of tab and press the Add button.
4. In To pick a field, type Administrators in the field and click Check Names. Click OK if everything is in order.
5. Apply and OK after selecting Administrators.
6. After that, restart your computer to see whether the issue has been repaired.

3. Enable the Administrator account that was previously concealed.

You may utilize the built-in Administrator account in Windows 10 by default. You should be able to use your computer without restriction if you use this account.

This account isn’t readily accessible due to security precautions, but you may activate it by performing the following:

1. Select Command Prompt (Admin) from the menu by pressing Windows Key + X.
2. Run the net user administrator /active: yes command when Command Prompt appears. You’ll be able to access the administrator account after doing so.
3. Switch to the newly enabled Administrator account and log out of your current account. You should be able to access your files without issue from there.
4. Return to your normal account and start Command Prompt as administrator once again when you’ve finished using the Administrator account. To deactivate the Administrator account, type net user administrator /active: no.

Keep in mind that even if you switch back to your primary account, the problem may still exist. If required, you may utilize the Administrator account to perform the necessary system adjustments and resolve the issue.

4. Verify your access rights

If you don’t have the necessary rights to access a directory, you may get an Access is denied warning. However, by following these procedures, you should be able to resolve the issue:

1. Right-click the problematic directory and choose Properties from the menu.
2. Select the Security tab and then the Edit button.
3. Choose your user name from the drop-down menu and select Full control for the Allow column in the Permissions section.

Although this is a straightforward solution, if your user name isn’t in the list, you’ll have to manually add it and then adjust its rights.

Several people suggested that you provide Full Control to both Administrators and Users over the issue folder, so give it a go.

In certain circumstances, giving Full Control to Everyone may be necessary to resolve the issue.

5. Reset permissions using Command Prompt

Users have reported that they ran across this issue when attempting to access the Pictures folder. This problem seems to be caused by OneDrive, thus to correct it, do the following:

1. Choose Settings from the menu by right-clicking the OneDrive symbol in the bottom right corner.
2. Set both Documents and Pictures to This PC alone under the Auto Save tab. To save your changes, click OK.

If it doesn’t work, you’ll need to do the following steps:

1. As an administrator, open Command Prompt.
2. Enter the following commands into Command Prompt after it has opened:
   • cd Your Username/users
   • Pictures /reset /t /q icacls
   • cd /
   • Pictures /reset /t /q icacls
3. Restart your computer after that.

If the issue remains, you may need to repeat this procedure and stop OneDrive until Microsoft resolves the issue.

6. Change your account’s permissions to administrator.

If you get an Access is denied notification, you may be able to resolve the issue by simply making your account an administrator. This is really straightforward, and you may do it by following these steps:

1. Enter control userpasswords2 by pressing Windows Key + R. Click OK or press Enter.
2. The User Accounts window will open now. Check To use this computer, users must first create a user name and password. Now go to Properties and pick your account.
3. Go to the Group Membership section. Apply and OK after selecting Administrator.
4. After that, restart your computer to see whether the problem still exists.

7. Make use of the Reset Permissions tool.

According to users, the Reset Permissions tool may be able to help you with this issue. Simply download the program, run it, choose the affected directory, and proceed through all of the options.

You should be able to access the directory without any issues after that.

8. Uninstall and reinstall Google Drive

When accessing Google Drive, the notice “Access is forbidden” may occur. To resolve the problem, you must quit Google Drive fully and terminate any connected processes. Follow these steps to do so:

1. To launch Task Manager, press Ctrl + Shift + Esc.
2. Locate all Google Drive processes in Task Manager, right-click them, and choose End Task from the menu.
3. Uninstall Google Drive when all Google Drive operations have been completed.
4. Now hit Windows Key + R and type percent localappdata% Google in the search box. Click OK or press Enter.
5. Rename the Drive folder to Drive.old when you’ve found it.
6. Install Google Drive again to see whether the issue has been corrected.

9. Make changes to your register

If you attempt to access a network shared directory, this error message may display, according to users. This may be a major issue, but you can fix it by making a few registry adjustments.

Because changing the register might lead to problems, be extra careful and export your registry just in case. To change your registration, take these steps:

1. Enter regedit by pressing Windows Key + R. Click OK or press Enter.
2. Navigate to this key in the left pane of Registry Editor when it opens: HKEY LOCAL MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetServices LanmanWorkstationParameters
3. Right-click the empty spot in the right pane and select: DWORD > NEW (32-bit) Value
4. As the name of the new DWORD, type AllowInsecureGuestAuth.
5. To examine the properties of the newly formed AllowInsecureGuestAuth DWORD, double-click it. To save your changes, set the Value data to 1 and click OK.
6. After that, restart your computer to see whether the issue has been repaired.

It’s important to note that this approach only works with network shared folders; it won’t work with local folders.

10. Disable User Account Control (UAC).

User Account Control is a handy feature that prevents users and apps from performing commands that need administrator capabilities.

This is a great function, but it may sometimes result in an Access is forbidden notice, particularly when installing new applications. To resolve the problem, take these steps:

1. Enter user accounts by pressing Windows Key + S. Now, from the list of results, choose User Accounts.
2. Click Change User Account Control Settings when the User Accounts box appears.
3. To save your changes, move the slider all the way down and click the OK button.
4. After that, try installing the program once again.

11. Turn off your antivirus program.

Antivirus software is essential, however third-party antivirus might occasionally cause this message to display.

Users claim that they received an Access is forbidden notice while attempting to install particular apps, and that their security software was to blame.

To resolve this problem, just deactivate your security software for a short period of time before attempting to reinstall the program.

If the problem does not arise, it is likely that your antivirus program is to blame, and you should consider upgrading or replacing it.

There are a number of effective antivirus solutions available that will not interfere with other apps on your computer. Then, find them and select among the top antiviruses for Windows 10 that are compatible.

12. Modify the Temp and Installer folders’ ownership and permissions.

Temporary files are generally relocated to the Temp or Installer directories when installing new applications. However, you may be unable to install the required program if you lack the essential permissions.

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Check that the following directories have the proper permissions if this error message displays when attempting to install apps.

If necessary, you may need to modify ownership or permissions to resolve this issue.

13. Examine the factors in the environment

When attempting to create a zipped folder in Windows, you may get an Access is forbidden warning.

This is mainly due to an incorrectly configured percent TEMP percent variable. To resolve this issue, you must specify environment variables as follows:

1. Enter advanced system settings by pressing Windows Key + S. From the menu, choose View advanced system settings.
2. Select Environment Variables from the drop-down menu.
3. Look for TEMP on the list and make sure its value is right. If it isn’t already configured, double-click the TEMP and change the value to percent USERPROFILE percent AppDataLocalTemp.
4. Save your modifications and reboot your computer.

After that, open File Explorer and go to the percent TEMP percent folder by typing percent TEMP percent in the address box. Once you’ve opened the Temp folder, try making a new one and deleting the existing one.

You’ll need to gain ownership of the Temp folder or adjust your permissions if you can’t create or remove a folder.

Fix – Access has been revoked cmd in Windows 10

1. Activate Command Prompt from the Start Menu

If you’re having trouble starting Command Prompt and receive an Access is forbidden notice, consider pinning it to the Start Menu.

This remedy, according to users, addressed the issue for them, so you may want to give it a go. Simply hit Windows Key + S and type cmd into the command prompt.

From the list of results, right-click Command Prompt and choose Pin to Start from the menu.

After that, try using the Start Menu shortcut to start Command Prompt.

2. Open Command Prompt with administrative privileges.

When you attempt to execute a command in Command Prompt, you may get an Access is forbidden notice.

This notification indicates that you lack the proper permissions to view a certain file or execute a particular command. In most circumstances, though, just executing Command Prompt as an administrator would resolve the problem.

Check out one of our previous solutions for more information on how to launch Command Prompt with administrator rights.

Fix – Access to the Windows 10 hard drive is blocked

Change your permissions first.

If you’re having trouble accessing a hard disk partition because of an Access is forbidden notice, consider altering your permissions or the owner.

We’ve previously covered how to achieve that in earlier solutions, so make sure you give your user account Full Control in order to access your hard disk partition.

Several people stated that providing Full Control to Everyone group fixed the issue, so try that as well. Keep in mind that if the group isn’t in the list, you may have to manually add it.

It’s critical to note that the permissions on your system disk should not be changed. If you’re having trouble accessing your C: disk, you should attempt an alternative approach.

It’s important to note that this remedy has the potential to be harmful, so use it at your own risk.

2. Modify the sharing options

Users claim that if this problem occurs when using an external hard disk, it may be resolved by altering a few settings. Due to the following, the problem must be resolved:

1. Locate your external hard drive in This PC, right-click it, and choose Properties from the menu.
2. Go to the Sharing tab and choose Advanced Sharing from the drop-down menu.
3. Check the Share this folder option in the Advanced Sharing box, then click Permissions.
4. Choose Everyone from the drop-down menu and tick the Full Control box in the Allow column. To save your changes, click Apply and OK.
5. Check to see whether the issue has been fixed after saving the modifications.

3. Check to see whether USB drives are restricted.

You may be unable to access an external hard disk if you get an Access is denied notification. This may happen if your registry prevents USB drives from working.

Before we get started correcting the issue, it’s important to note that this remedy has the potential to be harmful, so proceed with caution. Follow these steps to search your registry:

1. Open the Registry Editor program.
2. In the left pane, choose Computer and click Ctrl + F. Click Find Next after entering RemovableStorageDevices.
3. Set Deny to 0 and save modifications if you discover RemovableStorageDevices values.

Remember that these values may not be accessible on your computer, so if you can’t locate them, you should definitely avoid this option.

4. Remove HP Device Manager from your computer.

If you’re seeing this issue while trying to access a hard disk partition on an HP device, consider uninstalling HP Device Manager.

This program has been reported to prohibit users from accessing their hard drives, so uninstall it and see if that fixes the issue.

Fix – Access has been revoked Notepad in Windows 10

1. Open Notepad with administrative privileges.

When you start Notepad, this error message may display. If you’re still having trouble, try launching Notepad as an administrator.

To do so, just find the Notepad shortcut, right-click it, and choose Run as administrator from the context menu. If it fixes the issue, you should make Notepad run with administrator rights all of the time.

Follow these steps to do so:

1. Right-click the Notepad shortcut and choose Properties from the menu.
2. Select the Advanced option from the Shortcut tab.
3. Now choose the option to run as administrator and click the OK button.
4. To save your modifications, click Apply and OK, then attempt to open Notepad using the shortcut. Notepad will always start with administrator rights if you followed the steps correctly.

2. Modify the way files are opened

If Notepad begins automatically with Windows, an access is forbidden warning may display. This is commonly caused by.ini files, but it is a simple problem to fix. To do so, follow the steps below:

1. Go to the C: drive on your computer.
2. Check Hidden files and File name extensions under View.
3. Now look for any. Right-click the ini file in the C: directory and choose Open with -> Choose another program.
4. Click OK after selecting the Provisioning package runtime processing tool.
5. Restart your computer.

Check to see whether the issue has been addressed when your computer has restarted.

3. Remove the desktop.ini files from your computer.

Try removing the desktop.ini file if the Notepad and Access is forbidden messages show every time you start your computer.

This file may be found in the following directories:

Go to both folders and delete the desktop.ini files. Remember that this file could be hidden, so be careful to check any hidden files and directories. Please go to our prior solution for instructions on how to do this.

The issue should be totally addressed after removing the desktop.ini files, and Notepad should no longer start with Windows.

The notice “Access is forbidden” may damage both files and directories, as well as prevent you from installing new programs. This may be a difficult challenge to tackle, but we hope you were able to do it using one of our suggestions.

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The “file access denied windows 10” is an error that can be caused by a variety of different factors. This guide will help you fix the issue.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I fix access denied error in Windows 10?

A: Error access denied is a commonly received error code when connecting to one of your network resources. It can often be caused by misconfigured router settings, firewall issues, or other factors. If you are having trouble accessing the internet with this error on your PC, try using Googles Public DNS server (8.8.4.4) instead of the defaults provided by Microsoft Windows 10 operating system and see if that helps fix it for you

How do I get rid of error Access denied?

A: The error may appear if you try to access the file and it has been blocked by your system. If this is not the case, make sure that you are still connected to the internet and then try again.

How do I fix access denied you dont have permission to access?

A: If you are trying to log into the game and it says that you dont have permission, try hitting update.

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