drunk3nrabbit wrote:
> I was trying to set my administrator privileges to function similar to
> linux (basic user accounts and one "hidden root" account). I enabled
> the Administrator account, used the old XP way of hiding accounts (I
> know that the CTRL+ALT+DEL login method doesn't work anymore). Then set
> the other accounts as standard accounts. finally I disabled UAC thinking
> that it was user specific, not system wide. Restart. When I logged back
> in, I was horrified to find that I could NOT perform ANY raised
> privilege tasks, even if I clicked on "run as administrator". This is
> because UAC is disabled. My computer is basically USELESS because if
> this. If only Microsoft hadn't taken out the CTRL+ALT+DEL login method
> I would be home free!!!! MOTHERFER. Is there ANYWAY to restore to the
> previous unF'ed up settings. I CANNOT run system restore, it gives me
> an "Class not Registered" error. I'm probably screwed, I have
> Bitlocker enabled and i can't disable it. That prevents me from editing
> the registery through bart's pe or the like, at least i think. thanks
> for any help -ben

Apparently you can sometimes boot into safe mode and login with the
built-in "Administrator" account (which is usually disabled) to fix some
of these problems (eg. by re-enabling UAC, making another account an
administrator if you accidentally ended up with no administrator
account, etc.) Apart from that, I can't suggest anything for fixing your
current problem, except a complete reinstall. I'm not saying there isn't
any other way - I've only been using Vista for a week, so more
experienced users might have other suggestions.

The following is how to get the effect I think you want, once you have
got things fixed...
- Open Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Local Security Policy
- Expand "Local Policies"
- Click "Security Options"
- Double-click "Do not require CTRL + ALT + DEL" and change to Disabled
- Double-click "Do not display last user name" and change to Enabled

The first setting requires CTRL+ALT+DEL to be pressed before logging on.
The second requires the username to be typed into a text box.
At least that's how it works on my system anyway.

There are also options to control whether UAC prompts for consent or
elevates without prompting when logged in as an administrator, and
another for whether it prompts for consent or automatically denies
requests for standard users. I assume one or other of those is the
effect you were hoping to achieve by disabling UAC for specific users.

I'm not sure if the Local Security Policy control is included in home
editions of Vista, but the same effect can be achieved by modifying the
registry. I don't know what the keys would be, but someone else may be
able to tell you if needed. Note that incorrectly modifying the registry
can prevent Windows from booting. Always make a backup of the registry
before modifying it.

Mark.