Hello, I installed Windows 10 on my HP desktop and when I tried to modify an Excel spread sheet it said I was not the administrator. I purchased the complete 2007 Ultimate Office and this is the first time I have ever had a problem. How can I correct this?
The error happens on saving, not when inside the spreatsheet you change a letter or so, right?
I do not know an exact solution right now, but does it tell you the reason, for why you would have to be an administrator to save a spreadsheet?
If the reason in fact is that the file suddenly is write-protected, then there is at least one other thread about this issue here in this forum: MS office issues - Windows 10 Forums
Last edited by Joergi; 16 Aug 2015 at 19:03. Reason: link added
The message I get when I change something is as follows - CD Collection.xlsx is read only, then I get - To save a copy, click OK then give the workbook a new name in the save as dialog box. I tried this and it said I was not the administrator and I could not continue.
It happens to Word documents as well. Even though when you look at the properties of the actual document, the 'read-only' box is not ticked, the documents only open in 'read-only' mode. This is causing me big problems at the moment. I can't even save the document under another name because it says I don't have permission, but I can't work out how to find the permission to do it! Getting very tempted to go back to Windows 7.
BigDude97, what you describe can be two different problems. Am I right that the Spreadsheet should not be read-only? Or is it intended to be read-only?
I just found a solution on another thread..... I printed it out, but I can't remember where I found it exactly. You need to make sure that the Administrator has FULL control for the relevant folder. Once you do that under Properties, Security.... you should find that you can now save the documents in your folders as you did before. Make sure you are on the Documents folder when you do this, and it will cascade the permission to all subfolders that you may have created over time.
So the file should in fact not be read-only.
There are two possible reasons:
1. The file might be used by another program, e.g. by a virus scanner. I think this is rather unlinkely in your case; in my experience, if this is the problem, the files while already opened suddenly become write-protected. You can check, if this is the problem by booting Windows in safe mode and trying again. A guide on how to boot Windows 10 in safe mode is available here: 4 Ways To Boot Into Safe Mode In Windows 10 - I would recomend using method number 2 (Shift + Restart combination).
If the problem is also present in safe mode, then it most likely is not another program, which accesses the file.
2. NTFS file and folder permissions might be wrong. I assume that your spreadsheet is located somewhere inside your own user folder, e.g. in C:\Users\BigDude\... Here is a guide on how to properly set permissions for your user folder:
By default, Windows sets NTFS permissions for your user folder (e.g. for C:\Users\BigDude\) and these then are inherited to all subfolders like to the Desktop\, to the folder Pictures\ and so on. Rightclick your user folder, select Properties > Security > Advanced.
For your user folder, the owner should be set to "SYSTEM".
Below in that window, you should see exactly three different permissions:
One for "SYSTEM", one for "Administators" and one for your username (e.g. BigDude).
For each of them the following should be set: "Full control", inherited from "not inherited", applies to "this folder, subfolders and files".
It may be that one of these three permissions is missing in your case. Also it might be, that you also have another entry, wich gives "unknown account" some kind of permission. This entry most likely is superfluous as it does no longer reference an existing user.
For the different subfolders like Desktop\, Pictures\, Documents\ and so on, the owner should not be "SYSTEM", but it should be your user account.
Apart from that, the same permissions as for your user folder itself should be set.
Applying those settings should basically fix issues with missing permissions for files inside the user folder.
Afterwards, you can rightclick the spreadsheet, go to Properties > Security > Advanced and verify that the file gets the right permissions: The file should not have any permissions set for itself, but it should correctly inherit the permissions of the according folder.
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