Windows 8 – How to Use Task Manager Without Elevation

elevationtask-managerwindows 8windows 8.1

In Windows Vista and Windows 7, the task manager ran non-elevated, and you didn't face a UAC prompt unless you chose "View Processes of All Users".

In Windows 8 Preview, out of the box the Task Manager starts elevated every time. How can I configure it to start non-elevated so I don't get hit with a UAC prompt every time I check CPU usage or view the list of running processes to see if an application closed completely?

(I am not looking for answers which involve weakening UAC, and I ask the community's help in downvoting any such suggestions.)

Best Answer

Compatibility "shims" can be used to override the manifest; you can start Task Manager with the __compat_layer environment variable set to runasinvoker, e.g. from a command prompt:
set __compat_layer=runasinvoker taskmgr

Or, use Compatibility Administrator to apply the "RunAsInvoker" compatibility fix to taskmgr.exe so it automatically launches non-elevated.

Reference: http://csi-windows.com/toolkit/uac-prompt-guide

The RunAsInvoker compatibility shim can be enabled in the registry, without needing the Application Compatibility Toolkit or even installation of an SDB. Here is a registry script to do so (adjust the path as appropriate for your system):

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\AppCompatFlags\Layers]
"C:\\Windows\\System32\\taskmgr.exe"="RunAsInvoker"

Related Solutions

Windows – Run task manager (process explorer) as administrator

RUN IT AUTOMATICALLY ON WINDOWS BOOT

Starting anything with administrator privileges on Windows boot is fairly easy, you have just to schedule a task. Here is how it is done for Process Explorer in Windows 8.1. Works in Windows 10 too.

Press Win+S to open search charm, type in sched in the search field and choose a Schedule tasks option.
Task Scheduler window will open, click the Create Task... from the right actions panel.
On the tab General enter any name you like, and check the Run with highest privileges box in the bottom, just like this:
Go to the tab Triggers, push New... button, and set Begin the task to At log on, press OK:
On the tab Actions push New... button and set Action to Start a program; in the Program/script specify a path to the Process Explorer executable and finally in the Add arguments (optional) type in /t (this one will get Process Explorer started minimized to tray):

Basically you're done here, press OK in the main Create Task window. The Process Explorer will start minimized with highest privileges once you log on. You can adjust rest of the settings to your preference, for example make this task run when computer is run on battery (useful for laptops).

RUN IT MANUALLY ON DEMAND

If it is needed to run the task on demand, you'll need to set it begin At task creation/modification at step 4. Also on the Settings tab, check the Allow task to be run on demand. The rest options should be the same.

Then create a shortcut on Windows desktop, set its Target:

C:\Windows\System32\schtasks.exe /run /tn "Process Explorer with Administrator Privileges"

(Note that the task name should be exactly the same as you set it during the task creation).

If you would like, you can set a Shortcut key in the corresponding field. Screenshot for a reference:

enter image description here

That's it, now you can double-click this shortcut or use a shortcut key you set to start any task with administrator privileges and even the annoying UAC will not interfere.

For the hint, thanks to the author of this answer.

High CPU Usage Root Cause – Trust Windows Task Manager or Process Explorer?

I looked at the picture again and see that the sdclt.exe is highlighted in green. This means the process is started. I look at many xperf traces which also show this symptoms.

The solution to reduce the CPU usage is to stop the ConfigNotification task in the Windows Task Scheduler:

Task Scheduler - Microsoft - Windows - WindowsBackup

enter image description here

Please, also contact Microsoft support and open a support case. They need a case to produce a fix for the backup task.

Best Answer

Related Solutions

Windows – Run task manager (process explorer) as administrator

High CPU Usage Root Cause – Trust Windows Task Manager or Process Explorer?

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