The ...cannot be opened with built-in administrator account problem

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  1. Posts : 5
    Windows 10
       #1

    The ...cannot be opened with built-in administrator account problem


    I am trying to help my neighbor upgrade to windows 10 from 8 (we have downgraded once because of these problems, and if I can't get this solved soon, I will have to do it again).

    In 8 apparently, she was using the builtin admin account as her primary/only account, though this was not obvious. When I upgraded her, she started getting the error about apps (especially Edge) not being openable with the built in adminstrator account. So I tried to create a new microsoft account for her that was not the administrator account. But I can't do that, because when creating a new account, it tries to use edge. I tried moving the default browser to chrome, to see if that would help (she can access chrome), but apparently the control panel doesn't recognize that setting.

    This is windows 10 home, so I can't use the secpol solution I have found on various forums. I really don't want to edit the registry.

    I would prefer a solution that creates a non-administrator account for her to use, but if I have to first enable more access to the administrator account and then create a new account, that would be a pain, but would work.
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  2. Posts : 68,663
    64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
       #2

    Hello walkinrobin, and welcome to Ten Forums. :)

    You might see if you may be able to after setting Internet Explorer as the default program using step 5 in OPTION SIX below.

    https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/5...a.html#option6
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  3. Posts : 5
    Windows 10
    Thread Starter
       #3

    Brink said:

    You might see if you may be able to after setting Internet Explorer as the default program using step 5 in OPTION SIX below.

    https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/5...a.html#option6
    Nope, when I now go to Your email and accounts from settings, and click SIgn in with a Microsoft account instead, I just get a window flashing at me (I can barely see it happen, it goes by so fast) and then nothing else happens. (this is the same symptom as I get when chrome is the default browser. I checked and when she uses outlook it does go to IE, so that is the default).

    Next idea?
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  4. Posts : 68,663
    64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
       #4

    You could try doing a repair install of Windows 10.

    Repair Install Windows 10 with an In-place Upgrade
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  5. Posts : 5
    Windows 10
    Thread Starter
       #5

    Brink said:
    You could try doing a repair install of Windows 10.

    Repair Install Windows 10 with an In-place Upgrade
    This sounds like a lot of work. Also I doubt she has the original (probably windows 7 or 8) product key -- we weren't asked for that when I did the upgrade and she is unlikely to have kept it from when she bought this computer.

    I installed windows 10; I then checked that she could access her email and follow links and view attachments; I had to change the browser default to enable her to follow links. I changed nothing else.

    Furthermore, the problem I am describing existed the first time (when she) upgraded to windows 10 and existed from the very beginning after I rolled back to windows 8 and re upgraded her (thinking she might have made an error in the upgrade, so I was particularly careful about every choice point). So I don't see how this would solve anything, since there is nothing to "repair" and it's a lot of work just to prove that it won't work. Can you propose something more helpful? Otherwise, we are going to revert to windows 8 and stay there.
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  6. Posts : 68,663
    64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
       #6

    I'm not sure of anything else other than a clean install of Windows 10.
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  7. Posts : 5
    Windows 10
    Thread Starter
       #7

    Brink said:
    I'm not sure of anything else other than a clean install of Windows 10.
    I have no way of doing a "clean install", since I don't have media and I don't want to lose all her personal data. The only thing I could do is to redo the upgrade, but having done it twice, I don't see what a third try would do.

    Clearly the problem is that there was no check for the built in admin being the only user (or the built in admin also being a "normal" user). I have no idea how to correct that either now that we are in windows 10 (since I can't add another user) or by going back to windows 8 and correcting it there. I've done a lot of searching on the internet, and it's clear that others have had this problem, but it doesn't seem to have ever been solved. I have seen one supposed solution that involves editing the registry to allow more privileges for the admin, but that seems a) wrong and b) prone to have side effects.

    We will go back to Windows 8. I suspect that her next computer will be a Mac or a chromebook. When you have a customer in tears over an upgrade, you need a better solution that "just do a clean install" if you want to keep that person as a customer.
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  8. Posts : 68,663
    64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
       #8

    You can create a Windows 10 USB from a Windows 10 ISO.

    https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/2...dows-10-a.html

    https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/9...-download.html

    Afterwards, boot from the USB, open advance startup options at boot, and see if you may be able to go back to Windows 8.

    https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/2...a.html#option5

    https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/4...s-windows.html

    If successful in going back to Windows 8, create a new account that's an administrator type, disable the built-in Administrator, and upgrade to Windows 10 again if you/she would like.
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  9. Posts : 5
    Windows 10
    Thread Starter
       #9

    OK, I solved it, but not the way you proposed. This page Windows 10: only have built-in administrator account? - Windows 10 Forums introduced me to netplwiz. With that I was able to first create another admin account wihtout using the web (this new account is not the built in admin account, so I think that its permissions can be set to access some of these programs that the original one won't, but I haven't tried that) and then to convert the original account to a normal user account. Took me about 5 minutes, once I discovered that program and figured out that things were going to be much easier if I could convert her account to a user account rather than start over and recreate her setup in a new account.
      My Computer


  10. Posts : 68,663
    64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
       #10

    Great news.
      My Computers


 

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