One of the features that make Windows 8/7/Vista securer than its previous versions is that most of the applications are launched by default without having local admin rights, even when you log in as an account that belongs to local administrator group.

And you probably already know that if you want to launch an application with local admin rights, you would have to use Run as Administrator to fire up the application.

Many applications need to be run as administrator in order to function properly, especially older software that haven’t been updated to support Windows 7 or Vista yet. So here I’ll show you 2 ways to run a program as administrator in Windows 8, 7, Vista.

Method 1: Run a Program Once as an Administrator

1. Navigate to the program folder of the program you want to run. For example, C:\Program Files\Top Password.
2. Right-click the program icon (the .exe file).
3. Choose Run As Administrator.
4. If you see a User Account Control prompt, accept it.

Method 2: Always Run a Program as an Administrator

1. Navigate to the program folder of the program you want to run. For example, C:\Program Files\Top Password.
   Right-click the program icon (the .exe file).
2. Choose Properties.
3. On the Compatibility tab, select the Run This Program As An Administrator option.
4. Click OK.
5. If you see a User Account Control prompt, accept it.

You can run a program once as an administrator, or you can set a program to always run as an administrator, which fully depends on your choice.