FIX: Windows 10/11 admin account is missing after update

Fix

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Updated on October 4, 2023

by Milan Stanojevic

updated on October 4, 2023

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How to bring back administrator account in Windows 10

Create another Administrator account
Change Local Account to Administrator
Use iCacls command
Refresh/Reset your PC
Enable Built-in Administrator account
Enable the Windows install media
Perform system restore rollback from Windows Recovery Environment (Windows RE)
Enable Built-In administrator, and fix your account’s group membership
Perform a fresh install of Windows 10

Just like losing a password, losing your administrator account privileges is one of the lock out situations where you, the user, cannot run anything.

This can happen due to system conflicts, or malware, or just inadvertent modification of your user account settings in the User Accounts Control Panel or the Local Security Policy snap-in.

What follows is you won’t be able to go back to the User Account settings page and set yourself as an admin. Even worse is you may not have a second admin account in your system, so you wouldn’t have activated the built-in admin account.

Consequently, you may have issues using apps in Windows, making new or modifying any configuration settings, among several other problems in the system.

Therefore, it is imperative to get back your admin privileges if you want to run the system without any impediments.

How do you get back the admin privileges since most of the operations require admin rights? Below are a few solutions to help you get back.

FIX: Windows 10 missing administrator account

1. Create another Administrator account

Click Start
Select Settings

Go to Accounts

Select Family & other people

Select Add someone else to this PC

Type a user name, password, and password hint
Click Next
Select Change account type
Click the drop down arrow and select Administrator to set the account to administrator level
Disable the previous administrator account
Restart your computer
Login to the new account you just created

2. Change Local Account to Administrator

If you’ve lost admin rights to your account, change the local account to an admin account by doing the following:

In the search bar, type user accounts and click on the result
Select your User Account
Click Manage another account
Click Add user account
Create a local account user
Click Add an account
Click Sign In without a Microsoft account
Click Local account
Fill in the details on the add local account screen
Click Finish
In the search button, type CMD and click Command Prompt
Type this command: shutdown /r /o and press enter. This will boot the system in Safe Mode
In the search bar, type user accounts and click on the result. You’ll now have two accounts in the system: the issued admin account and local account created
Select Local account
Click Change the account typelink in following window
Change account status from Standardto Administrator
Click Change Account Type. The new local account created is now changed to admin account.
Restart your computer
Log into the new account with admin rights
Back up your documents from the old admin account
Switch to the Microsoft account and synchronize your settings with the new admin account
Your system will now have full admin rights and act normally

Other things to try at this point:

Run antivirus scan as malware can block admin privileges
Try using clean boot to see if you can identify the culprit of the conflict
Boot into recovery using Windows DVD then run System restore to restore your computer to a previous point
If you are in domain computers, consult your system admin whether any new restrictions have been applied
Check if you can activate the hidden super admin account. If you can, it will help you transition forward. It is helpful if you find yourself locked out of your main account by accident and want back door entry.

3. Use iCacls command

This command line can be used to modify security descriptors as well as NTFS file system permissions. To do this:

Press Shift and Power button together to restart your PC
Boot Advanced Menu options
Click Troubleshoot
Select Command Prompt
In the command window, type: cd /d c: icacls * /T /Q /C /RESET to rest permissions

If these don’t work, consider a system restore or refresh/reset option as described below.

4. Refresh/Reset your PC

Here’s how to refresh your PC:

Open Control Panel
Select General
Click Setting
Click Refresh

Note: When you refresh, your files and personalization settings don’t change. Software and programs may be removed and your PC settings may be restored to default values.

Here’s how to reset your PC:

Open Settings
Click Update & Security
In the left pane, select Recovery
Under Reset this PC, click Get Started

Note: a reset removes all personal files and restores all settings to default values.

5. Enable Built-in Administrator account

If you face Windows 10 missing administrator account, it may be due to the admin user account having been disabled on your computer. A disabled account can be enabled, but it is different from deleting the account, which cannot be restored. To enable the admin account, do this:

Right click Start
Select Run

Type net user administrator /active:yes
Close the command prompt
The built-in administrator will be available to sign into
Restart your computer

Go to the admin account and change the standard account to an admin account. To do this:

Click Start, go to the search field box
Type User account
Click Change User Account Control Settings
Click on the User account
Click Change account type
Select the account you want to make into an administrator account

To disable the previous administrator account, do the following:

Right click Start
Type CMD in the search bar, right click Command prompt and select Run as administrator

Type user administrator /active:yes
Close the command prompt
The built-in Administrator will be available to select and sign into
Restart your computer

Your standard account is now your admin account, and the previous admin account is disabled.

6. Enable the Windows install media

Start your computer off the (DiskUSBHDD) that has the installation media
Press SHIFT+F10 to open a command prompt
Run this command: diskpart list vol
Find the right volume and run exit
Run D: (D is your drive letter)
Run cd WindowsSystem32
Run ren Utilman.exe Utilman_old.exe
Run copy cmd.exe Utilman.exe
Restart your computer
On the logon screen, click Accessibility options
On the command prompt, run the command: net user user_to_change *
Enter a new password, enter again and log in
Go back to C:WindowsSystem32 and delete exe
Rename exe to Utilman.exe

7. Perform system restore rollback

Boot the system via Windows installation media or Recovery drive if you have one. If you don’t, download the Windows 10 ISO and create bootable media from another computer
In the set up page, click Next
Click Repair your computer
In WinRE options menu, click Troubleshoot

Click Advanced options

To perform system restore rollback from WinRE, do this:

Click System restore
Choose a target operating system
Click Next in the system restore window
Click Show more restore points check box (if available)
Select the appropriate restore point
Click Next and then click Finish

8. Enable Built-In administrator, and fix your account’s group membership

To do this:

Access the WinRE as described above
In Recovery Options menu, click Troubleshoot

Click Advanced Options

Click Command Prompt and type: net user administrator /active:yes and press enter
Type exit to return to Recovery Options menu
Exit and continue to Windows 10
In the sign-in screen, hold down Shift key and press power icon
Click Restart
On the Choose an option screen, select Troubleshoot
Click Advanced options
Click Startup Settings

Click Restart
Select 4 or F4 to start in Safe Mode or 5 or F5 for Safe Mode with Networking
Log in as admin from safe mode
Create a new user account with admin rights or fix group membership of the existing account

9. Perform a fresh install of Windows 10

Before you do the fresh install, you need to note a few things about the tool:

Using it removes all apps that don’t come standard with Windows, including Microsoft apps like Office or those installed by the PC’s manufacturer like support apps, drivers and other apps
You cannot recover removed apps and will have to manually reinstall later to keep them
You can lose digital licenses, digital content related to apps, or other digital entitlements for apps. Don’t use the tool on any PC that you want to ensure all apps and related content remain installed and licensed

What you need for a fresh install:

An internet connection to download the tool and the Windows 10 image.
Sufficient data storage available on the computer you are clean installing. The download and image is over 3GB.
Make sure you meet the system requirements.
Download the tool here

How to fresh install Windows 10 using the tool:

Back up anything before you start.
Launch the tool
Review and accept license terms
Choose what to keep, if its personal files, select Keep personal files only option or to remove everything, select Nothing. However, whatever you choose here, the tool will still perform a clean/fresh installation.
Select OK to start installation.
The tool will install Windows 10 automatically
All steps are automated with buttons grayed out
After the fresh installation, if there are missing drivers, go to Settings>Update & Security>Windows Update and download latest device drivers. You can also check from your device manufacturer’s website
Reinstall Windows apps available using your Microsoft account

Did any of these solutions help you restore the Windows 10 missing administrator account? Let us know in the comments section below.

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More about the topics: administrator account, windows 10 fix

Milan Stanojevic

Windows Toubleshooting Expert

Milan has been enthusiastic about technology ever since his childhood days, and this led him to take interest in all PC-related technologies. He's a PC enthusiast and he spends most of his time learning about computers and technology. Before joining WindowsReport, he worked as a front-end web developer. Now, he's one of the Troubleshooting experts in our worldwide team, specializing in Windows errors & software issues.

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