How to Enable Administrator Account in Windows 10

Windows 10 is a vast operating system and comes with many secret features and options which are rarely explored. One of those options is a hidden administrator account. This administrator account comes in-built in Windows 10 and is kept hidden and disabled for security purposes.

Though this account generally needs not to be activated, many IT experts and tech enthusiasts might require it for Windows management and troubleshooting purposes. The administrator account is also necessary to fix common Windows account errors that need admin’s permission.

In this post, we would guide you through top methods to enable the administrator account in Windows 10.

Method 1: Enable Administrator Account using Command Prompt

The quickest and most straightforward method to enable the admin account is by using the Command Prompt. Here are the steps.

1. Type Command Prompt on the Windows search box, right-click on its icon, and select Run as Administrator.

2. Type the “net user administrator” command on the command window and hit enter. If Account active status is No, continue to the next step to enable it.
   
3. Now you have to type the “net user administrator /active:yes” command and press the enter key. It would display the confirmation message of command completion.
   
4. Again, check the Account active status. It should now say
   

That is it. You have successfully enabled the administrator account on the Windows 10 system. Now, under your users’ list, you would notice the Administrator user is also added.

To access it, sign-out from the current user account and sign-in with the Administrator account.

If you don’t require the administrator account, you can disable it using the “net user “Administrator” /active:no”.

Method 2: Enable the Windows 10 Administrator account through the Windows Administrative Tools

Windows Administrative Tools provides a lot of options that can only be accessed by the administrator. It can also be used for enabling the Windows 10 administrative account.

1. Search for “Windows Administrative Tools” in the search box and click on its icon to open it.
   
2. Double-click on Computer Management to launch it.
   
3. Open Local Users and Groups
4. Now open the Users folder by double-clicking it.
   
5. Double click on the Administrator account and uncheck the “Account is disabled” option.
   
6. Click Apply and OK. Then close the Windows Administrative Tools.

Method 3: Enable Administrator account using PowerShell

Windows PowerShell is a powerful tool for conducting various customizations. Here is how you can use it to enable the administrator account.

1. In the Windows search bar, search for the Windows PowerShell, right-click on its icon, and select “Run as Administrator.”
   
2. On the command line, type or copy & paste the following command and hit enter to enable administrator account: Get-LocalUser -Name “Administrator” | Enable-LocalUser
3. The command would enable the admin account.

You can access the administrator account by logging-out from the current and log-in using the Administrator user.

After the requirement of the administrator account is fulfilled, you can disable it again using PowerShell. Use this command for that: Get-LocalUser -Name “Administrator” | Disable-LocalUser.

Method 4: Enable Administrator Account using Group Policy Editor

Group policy editor is another powerful tool for accessing the advanced options of Windows 10. Follow these steps to use it for enabling the hidden administrative account in Windows 10.

1. Press Windows key+R to open the Run Command box. Type msc and hit the enter key to open the Group Policy Editor.
2. Now, navigate to this path: Computer Configuration -> Windows Settings -> Security Settings -> Local Policies -> Security Options
3. Open the “Accounts: Administrator account status” option.
   
4. Mark the Enabled option to enable the Administrator Account.
   

That’s it. Now you can access the Administrator account by signing in with it. After its requirements are completed, you can again disable it by following the same steps.

Bottom Line

These are the top methods for enabling the Windows 10 Administrator account. There is no significant difference between the regular Windows 10 account and the hidden administrator account. Just, you won’t get the User Account Control (UAC) prompt in the administrator account. So, only enable it if it is essential. As mentioned in the methods itself, you can also disable the administrator account once it is no longer required.