On of the most hated features in Vista is the User Account Control, or UAC.  This is the term Microsoft gives for the confirmation window that pops up when doing things on Vista which Microsoft considers a security risk.  The feature is considered an annoyance by many people, and according to Ars Technica (http://arstechnica.com/security/news/2008/04/vistas-uac-security-prompt-was-designed-to-annoy-you.ars) Microsoft’s David Cross says that is by design.  If UAC annoys you, there are four ways you can disable the feature.

The first and second methods are very simple, but are not recommended.  Only use these options if the last two options aren’t possible.  The first method can be performed by almost any Windows user, and it is only four steps long.  So here it is.

1.  Go to Start and search for MSCONFIG.
2.  Open MSCONFIG and click the Tools tab.
3.  Scroll until you find Disable UAP and highlight it.
4.  Next, click Okay.  You should see a Command Prompt open and when that window closes you can reboot your computer for the changes to take effect.

The second way will disable all the Vista security that Microsoft has put into Vista.  To use go to Start > Control Panel > Security > Security Center > Other Security Settings and disable the option.

The issue with the first to methods is that it turns off all Vista security settings.  This can be an issue if you don’t have any other software protecting your operating system.  The next two options will not disable all of Vista’s security settings, but will just disable the prompt.

The third method was one that was “given” to David DeJean (http://www.informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2007/06/dont_shut_off_v.html) by a Microsoft employee.  This method will not work with Vista Home Basic nor Vista Home Premium.  If you have either one of these versions of Vista, you will need to use the Registry hack below.

1. Open your Control Panel and Swtich to Classic View
2. Open Admininstration Tools, which should give you a list of options.
3. Click Local Security Policy in that list, which should open a new window titled Local Policies.
4. Click Security Options, and double-click User Account Control: Behavior of the elevation prompt for administrators in Admin Approval Mode  (This maybe shortened to User Account Control: Behavior)
5. Change the settings to Prmpt for Consent to Elevate without prompting in the dialog box that opens.
6. Click Ok to approve the setting.

The last way is a little more tech savy, and needed for some versions of Vista.  You will need to edit your Registry in order to turn the feature off.  Remember you should always back up your Registry before you make any changes to it.

1.  Go to Start and search for Regedit
2.  Expand the following in the Registery HKLM -> Software -> Microsoft -> Windows -> CurrentVersion -> Polices -> System -> ConsentPrompBehaviorAdmin
3.  You want to set the key to 0 (2 is the default value) in order to disable the UAC.

There you have it, four ways to disable Vista’s UAC, and hopefully allow you to enjoy your computer again.