How to Take Ownership & Grant Permissions to Access Files & Folder in Windows 7
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If you are windows vista user then you will be knowing the file ownership and permissions related issues and now it is extended to windows 7 too, but Windows XP users experimenting with Windows 7 might not know about this.
Windows 7 has implemented addition security mechanism to prevent accidental or intentional file or folder modification by not allowing users other then owner of file or folder to access it. Hence incase if you need to access, modify or delete such files or folder you need to take ownership first then assign rights or permission to respective users. Here is Guide on How to take Ownership and Grant Permission in Window 7.
How to Take Ownership in Windows 7
1. Locate the file or folder on which you want to take ownership in windows explorer
2. Right click on file or folder and select “Properties” from Context Menu
3. Click on Security tab
4. Click on “Advance”
5. Now click on Owner tab in Advance Security Settings for User windows
6. Click on Edit Button and select user from given Change Owner to list if user or group is not in given list then click on other users or groups. Enter name of user/group and click ok.
8. Now select User/group and click apply and ok. (Check “Replace owner on subcontainers and objects” if you have files and folder within selected folder)
9. Click ok when Windows Security Prompt is displayed
10. Now Owner name must have changed.
11. Now click Ok to exist from Properties windows
Once you have taken the ownership of file or folder next part comes is Granting Permissions to that file/folder or object.
How to Grant Permissions in Windows 7
1. Locate the file or folder on which you want to take ownership in windows explorer
2. Right click on file or folder and select “Properties” from Context Menu
3. Click on Edit button in Properties windows Click ok to confirm UAC elevation request.
4. Select user/group from permission windows or click add to add other user or group.
5. Now under Permission section check the rights which you want to grant i.e check “Full Control” under the “Allow” column to assign full access rights control permissions to Administrators group.
6. Click Ok for changes to take effect and click ok final ok to exit from Properties window.
Now you can access files of folder in windows 7 with full permissions and take full control. Here is another simplest method to take ownership, Method to Add Take ownership Option in Right Click Menu.
Reader Comments
That’s the simple way. Windows 7 has a severe bad block in which your instructions do not work. I cannot move files and directories nor rename them nor copy or move them. I cannot apply your tip because Windows 7 refuses to permit me…all while in admin account. I just tried disabling the UAC completely to see if that helps, otherwise its a Win 7 bug in my book. Too much security is not a good idea…not to the point people cannot enjoy computing.
I experienced that too Dave. Was not able to set myself as owner on a folder in Win7.
I can’t count the number of times I have had to re-take ownership of folders on my system. It just won’t stick. These are folders that meant to be written to- like AppData/Local/Temp and My Documents, My Music, Desktop etc. It’s causing havoc.
I really like Windows 7 and I enjoy problem solving and beta testing, but this is a serious bug. I’m using the MS official beta 7000. I started with a clean install but recently did an upgrade-style reinstall to try to solve this. The problem recurred
My user account is a member of Administrator group. I have added take ownership to the R click context menu because I have to reclaim ownership of some folder several times daily. Take ownership works but something somewhere is countermanding it. Any suggestions?
I am beginning to regret ever having taken on the windows 7 beta. I am coldfusion web developer and I need to be able make changes to the files in my wwwroot directory. I came across this post yesterday and followed the advice, and it worked. Yesterday. Now, today, I have to do it all over again. But this time, something isn’t going right. I’m thinking of getting my XP OS out of the closet so that I can get back to making web pages, and not having to worry about all this garbage.
Hugh
problem solved. i downloaded a .reg file from this site http://www.mydigitallife.info/2009/05/21/take-and-grant-full-control-permissions-and-ownership-in-windows-7-or-vista-right-click-menu/
hmm…works partially
Worked great, can save files to anywhere in C now no problem, thanks.
I was having a similar difficulty after having restored files from a backup on a vista install to a windows 7. The trick I found was to go to the root folder in which your locked folders reside, do the above procedure, as well as adding yourself as an auditor in the auditing tab and applying these settings to all recursive folders. Hope it helps.
Hi all,
The first of all I’m experienced user of windows based systems and Linux too.
I have had a similar unsolvable problem with a permissions to the folders/executable files stored on another partition than system (on d:\) in windows 7. After a (clean) new installation windows 7 RC 64bit ENG (code 7100.0.090421) to c:\ I tried to grant a permission to folders/executable files on d:\ makes before in windows XP 32 bit as administrator.
I used the same setup correctly typed here:
1. login user as administrator with administrator’s rights
2. Take Ownership as Administrators (administrators group)
3. Assign full access rights control permissions to Administrators group.
4. restart PC and check ownership and permissions of folder/exec. file as administrators group.
But after that windows 7 were not able to access to the folder at all (”You don’t currently have permission to access this folder”). I tried to find out any solution via google or windows forum but without any successes.
Actually I reinstall windows 7 again and I had a new problem. Some executable files downloaded and stored on d:\ on the previous installation of windows 7 (mostly marked in different color because archive), I was not able to open/execute. Windows typed me “You don’t have permission to open this file” or some times more simple “access denied”.
It was suprise, because on the second installation of windows 7 I have had the same user rights (and ownership and accesses rights too) as the first installation windows 7. I tried to open this files on windows XP, but when I execute the files it typed “file is broken”.
I think that problem was in certificate of windows 7 used during storing files on NTFS saved in operational memory. Because between the 1st installation and the 2nd installation of windows 7 was PC only rebooted (no shut down).
When I copy my image of partition of windows XP to disc C:\ and shut down PC and reboot, I successfully execute most downloaded files on the 1st installation of windows 7 :-)
Windows 7 RC 64 bit (code 7100.0.090421) have a big problem with grant access to control folders/files. When the files has stored you would not be able to open them in other windows system (with the same ownership and accesses, indeed).
I returned to my windows XP / Ubuntu and waiting if Microsoft release patch for this. If not, many people will have similar problems like me/you.
johnny5
mailto: jan.recina@hmail.com
This is ridiculous I take owner ship under my account and used that reg tool and it says I need ownership from the account Im logged into to delete files/folders… wtf?!??! how can i ask myself for permission
this is a serious problem. most irritating and reducing to zero the pleasure i have in using windows 7. Microsoft do something and save us from this ridiculous situation!
Windows7 is looking poor. I want to assign sesecurityprivilege to a user account – I’ve tried group policy editor and local policy editor, but the settings do not take effect.
Help!
Works great. What a annoyance to deal with in Win 7 This makes it a joy to use again.
This whole idea of security to prevent change, moving a file so on and so forth is making life very hard for ordinary users some of whom are even afraid of the mouse or even to click a button. And I am not even talking about novicea at computers.
Look if the idea is to prevent unauthorised access or hacking, then such default security rules are futile because someone who is intent on doing so can find all kind of ways to do it what with all the tricks they can find over the Internet, no matter how cleverly you try to prevent it. The easiest way is to take out the harddisk itself and read all the information as an external disk can’t you understand this simple trick.
Now look, just give users a simple system and let IT administrator or anyone in charge decide whether they want to implement certain security on file, folders, whatever – based on the documentation that comes with the OS.
It is their responsibility and their choice. Don’t impose it on every users of an OS by default.
There are simply too many situations that do not require the kind of security that comes by default for Vista and now Window 7.
Also, for software developers it is pain to deal with all these new security rules with every new OS because they cannot know in advance what are those rules and hence they need to keep modifying their software to fit the new OSes.
A clean open OS is what I propose. Let security rules be available for implementation by administrators and that is enough.