Access is denied - WHY ??

errolgreer · Aug 6, 2009

How can I open folders like Documents and Settings ? I get "Access is denied" although my account is not a limited one. I would like the freedom of opening whatever folder I want to.

Sassa · Aug 6, 2009

See if you enabled guest account by accident...

SquonkSC · Aug 6, 2009

errolgreer said:
How can I open folders like Documents and Settings ? I get "Access is denied" although my account is not a limited one. I would like the freedom of opening whatever folder I want to.

If you want to be able to open Documents and setting you have to take ownership and you need to add you username to the permitted users.

1. Rightclick on the folder

2. select properties

3. goto security tab

4. click on advanced button

5. click owner tab

6. click the edit button

7. click on your own username

8. check the "owner of underlying containers and object"box

9. click ok and wait until rights are distributed.

10. now click ok buttons until you are back in explorer

11. right click again on the folder
12. select the security tab
13. click the edit button
14. in next screen click the add button
15. in the textbox type your user name and click on check name
16. Click ok
17. check the full permissions tick box
18. click ok twice.

You're done

greetz

chev65 · Aug 6, 2009

Or just use the Take Ownership zip file that does all that for you. Now where did I get that file? I swear I need a file server.

zigzag3143 · Aug 6, 2009

chev65 said:
Or just use the Take Ownership zip file that does all that for you. Now where did I get that file? I swear I need a file server.

Its in tutorials if you cant find yours.

Ken

Barman58 · Aug 6, 2009

Folders such as the "documents and Settings" you mention in your post are not actually folders at all - they are virtual folders created by the use of junction points to redirect older hard coded applications to the new locations used for older (XP) folders

Hope this helps

chev65 · Aug 6, 2009

zigzag3143 said:
Its in tutorials if you cant find yours.

Ken

Thanks Ken, I have the file backed up but I forgot where I got it because it was so long ago.

Capella · Aug 8, 2009

its best to use the net user administrator account in vista or windows 7: you wont run into privilege issues
just go to cmd and right click run as admin (it should say Windows/system32)
type this:
net user administrator /active:yes
then log off and go to the enabled administrator account
you wouldn't run into any privilege issues
cheers

Barman58 · Aug 8, 2009

sparkie said:
its best to use the net user administrator account in vista or windows 7: you wont run into privilege issues
just go to cmd and right click run as admin (it should say Windows/system32)
type this:
net user administrator /active:yes
then log off and go to the enabled administrator account
you wouldn't run into any privilege issues
cheers

Whilst I agree that this method will work I would advise that it is only used for those occasions when the protection mechanisms included in Vista/Win7 prevent you from performing a particular operation, and that a normal admin or, better still, a standard user account is used for day to day operations

As this method removes the protection completely and thus prevents any permissions issue for the user it also does the same for any malware that manages to get a foothold on the machine.

It is your personal choice of course

SquonkSC · Aug 8, 2009

Barman58 said:
Folders such as the "documents and Settings" you mention in your post are not actually folders at all - they are virtual folders created by the use of junction points to redirect older hard coded applications to the new locations used for older (XP) folders

Hope this helps

hi barman

I know what you are talking about but in the case of "documents and settings" it's not the case.

It is a real folder (if you can ever call a folder aka directory real.)

greetz

Barman58 · Aug 8, 2009

Sorry My mistake, you are correct of course

not sure why it's actually there as it appears to be a mirror of the users folder

SquonkSC · Aug 8, 2009

Barman58 said:
Sorry My mistake, you are correct of course

not sure why it's actually there as it appears to be a mirror of the users folder

It's to maintain compatibilty with older programs.

"Users" used to be a subdirectory of "Documents and settings" in XP.

Now it is directly in the root. (C:\ in my case)

some older programs want to save to "documents and settings\userx\.......

Greetz

edit: I even think one of them sets is a new kind of mklink, don't know which is real and which is virtual. (you might be right, you might be wrong, and so might I.

)

Barman58 · Aug 8, 2009

Now you would have to leave it open wouldn't you

Have just checked a bit further and have definitive info from sysinternals command "junction"

Junction v1.05

Junction v1.05 - Windows junction creator and reparse point viewer
Copyright (C) 2000-2007 Mark Russinovich
Systems Internals - Windows Sysinternals: Documentation, downloads and additional resources

\\?\c:\\Documents and Settings: JUNCTION
Print Name : C:\Users
Substitute Name: C:\Users

So the documents and settings folder, (directory

), is the junction point and as you say is there to assist older programs in finding the c:\users folder structure

So if you need access to the information in the documents and settings just look in the c:\users folder

SquonkSC · Aug 8, 2009

Thanks for the research Barman.

+rep for that.

We were both right and both wrong, just like Denzel and Gene in "Crimson Tide".

Glad we sorted it out, saves everybody the hassle of getting into docs and settings.

Greetz

1962IEF · Nov 11, 2009

Access denied

i googled everywhere, and this is the best answer, by far. Took a few tries, but it definetely work.............

alpha2000 · Dec 19, 2010

SquonkSC said:
errolgreer said:

How can I open folders like Documents and Settings ? I get "Access is denied" although my account is not a limited one. I would like the freedom of opening whatever folder I want to.

Click to expand...

If you want to be able to open Documents and setting you have to take ownership and you need to add you username to the permitted users.

1. Rightclick on the folder

2. select properties

3. goto security tab

4. click on advanced button

5. click owner tab

6. click the edit button

7. click on your own username

8. check the "owner of underlying containers and object"box

9. click ok and wait until rights are distributed.

10. now click ok buttons until you are back in explorer

11. right click again on the folder
12. select the security tab
13. click the edit button
14. in next screen click the add button
15. in the textbox type your user name and click on check name
16. Click ok
17. check the full permissions tick box
18. click ok twice.

You're done

greetz

this worked - thanks for that. But how do you reverse this when you're done? I dont want to 'permanently' change or mess with the default permissions in win7, but i'm not sure how to restore permissions to the way they were before doing the above. Thanks!

Jacee · Dec 19, 2010

Do a 'system restore' to a date before you did that.

MacGyvr · Dec 19, 2010

errolgreer said:
How can I open folders like Documents and Settings ? I get "Access is denied" although my account is not a limited one. I would like the freedom of opening whatever folder I want to.

"Documents and Settings" is not a real folder. It is a junction point to allow old apps to work. The real folder is "Users." Do not change permissions on "Documents and Settings." Changing it will cause serious issues.

GranPaSmurf · Jan 27, 2011

OK, I got mine fixed after learning more than I ever wanted to know about permissions, ownership and security in general. More than I ever needed to know before Win 7!
It is my data, in my folder, on my (built by me) computer, using my Win 7 Professional 64, in my home-office (where even my wife fears to tread), in my (paid for)house; I am the (only)owner, the (only)administrator, and the author.
Whatever witless computer engineer that thought it was a good idea to deny me access to all the above please stand up and hold up your hand, like the basketball players that foul another player (if they are man enough), and say "I fouled! Bad idea!"

logicearth · Jan 27, 2011

GranPaSmurf said:
OK, I got mine fixed after learning more than I ever wanted to know about permissions, ownership and security in general. More than I ever needed to know before Win 7!
It is my data, in my folder, on my (built by me) computer, using my Win 7 Professional 64, in my home-office (where even my wife fears to tread), in my (paid for)house; I am the (only)owner, the (only)administrator, and the author.
Whatever witless computer engineer that thought it was a good idea to deny me access to all the above please stand up and hold up your hand, like the basketball players that foul another player (if they are man enough), and say "I fouled! Bad idea!"

Ummm. You were never denied access to your data. You just failed to look in the proper place. There is no "Documents and Settings" directory any longer. Furthermore any directory that gives "Access Denied" is nothing more then a Junction that points to old applications to the real, "new" locations.

See the links in my signature. Junction Dysfunction by Raymond Chen will tell you exactly why you are denied access to these special Junctions.

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