Progs installed via admin account not available in limited accounts.

  • Thread starter Thread starter Mike Hyndman
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Mike Hyndman

I have a number computers with one admin account and three limited
account holders on each. In have installed MS Office on each PC via the
admin account and all app's run OK in the limited account and appear in
their Program lists.
I've just installed an educational prog (looks cheap, wasn't to buy!)
the same way but this does not show in the limited account holder
program lists, neither will it run, after browsing to the file in
explorer, I get the message re some dll or other can't load and that
the disc may be full.
If I then change the account type to admin and put a shortcut onto the
relevant desktop it will run OK (although it insists on lowering the
screen resolution and does not restore it after exiting) It also
continues to run when the account type is changed back to limited.

Anybody have any experience of this sort problem or could it be just a
problem with this particular app? Not even sure if its XP compatible but
its something that the curriculum says is needed.

TIA
Mike H
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Each different program has seperate requirements for which files it must
access. Limited accounts will prevent access to some of these files.

Have you tried installing the program under a Limited Profile by using the
Run As... command? Using this command you can use your Administrator
credentials to install a program on a Limited Account. Does this help?

Otherwise, I'd suggest looking for answers at the website of the offending
software. Since your Office runs fine on the Limited Accounts I doubt that
there's a problem with your system.
 
Each different program has seperate requirements for which files it must
access. Limited accounts will prevent access to some of these files.

Have you tried installing the program under a Limited Profile by using the
Run As... command? Using this command you can use your Administrator
credentials to install a program on a Limited Account. Does this help?

Otherwise, I'd suggest looking for answers at the website of the offending
software. Since your Office runs fine on the Limited Accounts I doubt that
there's a problem with your system.
Click to expand...
Thanks for your reply, will try the run as tomorrow.

I think its the "Mickey Mouse" software to blame, its supposedly a
learning type adventure game done in Macromedia Flash, something which
passes for education these days.
again many thanks
Mike H

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Mike said:
I have a number computers with one admin account and three limited
account holders on each. In have installed MS Office on each PC via the
admin account and all app's run OK in the limited account and appear in
their Program lists.
I've just installed an educational prog (looks cheap, wasn't to buy!)
the same way but this does not show in the limited account holder
program lists, neither will it run, after browsing to the file in
explorer, I get the message re some dll or other can't load and that
the disc may be full.
If I then change the account type to admin and put a shortcut onto the
relevant desktop it will run OK (although it insists on lowering the
screen resolution and does not restore it after exiting) It also
continues to run when the account type is changed back to limited.

Anybody have any experience of this sort problem or could it be just a
problem with this particular app? Not even sure if its XP compatible but
its something that the curriculum says is needed.

TIA
Mike H
remove -bats- to reply
Click to expand...


You may experience some problems if the software was designed for
Win9x/Me, or if it was intended for WinNT/2K/XP, but was improperly
designed. Quite simply, the application doesn't "know" how to handle
individual user profiles with differing security permissions levels, or
the application is designed to make to make changes to "off-limits"
sections of the Windows registry or protected Windows system folders.

For example, saved data are often stored in a sub-folder under the
application's folder within C:\Program Files - a place where no
inexperienced or limited user should ever have write permissions.

It may even be that the software requires "write" access to parts
of the registry or protected systems folders/files that are not normally
accessible to regular users. (This *won't* occur if the application is
properly written.) If this does prove to be the case, however, you're
often left with three options: Either grant the necessary users
appropriate higher access privileges (either as Power Users or local
administrators), explicitly grant normal users elevated privileges to
the affected folders and/or part(s) or the registry, or replace the
application with one that was properly designed specifically for
WinNT/2K/XP.

Some Programs Do Not Work If You Log On from Limited Account
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q307091

Additionally, here are a couple of tips suggested, in a reply to a
different post, by MS-MVP Kent W. England:

"If your game or application works with admin accounts, but not with
limited accounts, you can fix it to allow limited users to access the
program files folder with "change" capability rather than "read" which
is the default.

C:\>cacls "Program Files\appfolder" /e /t /p users:c

where "appfolder" is the folder where the application is installed.

If you wish to undo these changes, then run

C:\>cacls "Program Files\appfolder" /e /t /p users:r

If you still have a problem with running the program or saving
settings on limited accounts, you may need to change permissions on
the registry keys. Run regedit.exe and go to HKLM\Software\vendor\app,
where "vendor\app" is the key that the software vendor used for your
specific program. Change the permissions on this key to allow Users
full control."


--

Bruce Chambers

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both at once. - RAH
 
Bruce,

Many thanks for a most informative reply.
Looking at the application I don't think that is sophisticated enough to
require differing access rights/permissions, I just think that it is not
designed to run in WXP, (never ran that well in W98!). It looks like
something that was played off a floppy disc ten to twelve years ago in
MSDos 5. Even so I would have expected it to appear in the limited
account program lists,no?
Hopefully, this is the last term that this piece of "software" is
required reading, will have to wait and see what horrors will be foisted
on us in September!
Again, many thanks
Mike H
You may experience some problems if the software was designed for
Win9x/Me, or if it was intended for WinNT/2K/XP, but was improperly
designed. Quite simply, the application doesn't "know" how to handle
individual user profiles with differing security permissions levels, or
the application is designed to make to make changes to "off-limits"
sections of the Windows registry or protected Windows system folders.

For example, saved data are often stored in a sub-folder under the
application's folder within C:\Program Files - a place where no
inexperienced or limited user should ever have write permissions.

It may even be that the software requires "write" access to parts
of the registry or protected systems folders/files that are not normally
accessible to regular users. (This *won't* occur if the application is
properly written.) If this does prove to be the case, however, you're
often left with three options: Either grant the necessary users
appropriate higher access privileges (either as Power Users or local
administrators), explicitly grant normal users elevated privileges to
the affected folders and/or part(s) or the registry, or replace the
application with one that was properly designed specifically for
WinNT/2K/XP.

Some Programs Do Not Work If You Log On from Limited Account
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q307091

Additionally, here are a couple of tips suggested, in a reply to a
different post, by MS-MVP Kent W. England:

"If your game or application works with admin accounts, but not with
limited accounts, you can fix it to allow limited users to access the
program files folder with "change" capability rather than "read" which
is the default.

C:\>cacls "Program Files\appfolder" /e /t /p users:c

where "appfolder" is the folder where the application is installed.

If you wish to undo these changes, then run

C:\>cacls "Program Files\appfolder" /e /t /p users:r

If you still have a problem with running the program or saving
settings on limited accounts, you may need to change permissions on
the registry keys. Run regedit.exe and go to HKLM\Software\vendor\app,
where "vendor\app" is the key that the software vendor used for your
specific program. Change the permissions on this key to allow Users
full control."
Click to expand...

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