How-To Geek

Hey Guys,

I was trying to delete a folder when a box popped up saying that i would need admin rights. My account is an admin account so i clicked continue. However, i can not seem to delete the folder. Any ideas?

OK, so i figured it out. I added myself and gave myself full control via the folder security. However, if my account is an admin account then why should i have to do this? Shouldn't i have full control on everything by default?

InDiSent, to answer your last question: no, you should not have full control of everything by default. That's what the superuser or "root" account is for. Using the root account is a security risk and even a novice user can damage the OS with so much authority. Most virsuses and other malware will run at the same privilege level as the logged in user. If you are running as root, then the malware is running as root. The word "rootkit" comes from this -- only a root user should be able to install one.

Giving every user the equivalent of superuser access is one reason (of many) that Windows has been so vulnerable to infection. UAC in Vista was added to reduce this risk. From my understanding, the Mac OS, which is based on Unix, keeps the root account hidden from the system owner by default. That's one reason Macs are less vulnerable to infection. Finally, if you *really* know what you are doing, and accept the risks involved, you can make yourself a full-time, always-at-risk superuser as LH has done.

Agree with LH concerning a Single User Machine.

In XP and Win7, I run as the Built-in Administrator Account.

WARNING:
Doing above is not best practice policy according to many.
If one wants to run machine in pure Administrator Mode, one should have ALL important files Backed Up to secure media and also have ways to recover quickly (under 5 minutes) from malicious software machine attacks.
This is an individual decision each must evaluate for themselves.

Regards,
Rick P.

LH, that just proves what I said, that you "*really* know what you are doing". Even if you are running an OS image in a VM, if that image is running with superuser authority then that image is always at risk of a root-level infection. That you can delete the damage and restore the OS image in minutes only means that you have mitigated the risk -- and quite effectively I'll admit.

In an ideal world, every single-user computer owner could have superuser access to their systems. But we live in a world full of malware that wants to infect our systems. LH, raphoenix,and I are geek types and our example should NOT be considered typical or approved for novices.

I always make my account an admin account. I use Norton Ghost and keep a "fresh" image of my machines on an external hdd. I'm not too worried about viruses and malware.......i run anti virus software and i don't install all kinds of crap.

lol

JD, it goes without saying that you would be on the list along with The Geek and other forum regulars who have demonstrated their "techxpertise" by the nature of their postings. :)