REG.EXE throwing access denied when run in command line, but not as a .lnk

Question

I have a strange problem here. I am trying to disable UAC via the command line (batch file) and by using REG.EXE (as it doesn't ask for UAC access itself). I have been able to create a shortcut (.lnk) with the target:

C:\Windows\System32\cmd.exe /k %windir%\System32\reg.exe ADD HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System /v ConsentPromptBehaviorAdmin /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f

If I run that as an administrator - there is no problem at all, it changes the registry. If I try to run that command via the command line itself (run as the exact same administrator), I get access denied.

Eventually, I want to move it to a batch script, but that should be no problem once I am able to run it on the command line. Any ideas? Thank you.

Answer 1

Just because it doesn't prompt for UAC escalation, doesn't mean it doesn't need it.

It needs it.

You'll need to run it from an escalated context - an escalated command prompt, a scheduled task with "run as highest privilege" checked, something. The registry simply cannot be modified without some form of privilege escalation.