How to Run a Program as SYSTEM (LocalSystem) Account in Windows

Many Windows system files, registry keys, and services are owned by the SYSTEM (a.k.a LocalSystem) account, which has a high privilege level. If you need to modify a registry key owned by the SYSTEM account, there are at least two options.

The first option that comes to your mind is to take ownership of the corresponding registry key, assign yourself Full Control permissions. Once the registry key or the values are updated, revert the permissions and ownership to SYSTEM .

There is, however, an easier option. You can run the program — e.g., the Command Prompt or the Registry Editor under the SYSTEM account directly and update the registry values.

This article lists six different methods using which you can run programs under the SYSTEM or LocalSystem account in any version of Windows, including Windows 10. You can also add a Run as SYSTEM right-click menu option for .exe files.

Method to run a program under the SYSTEM account:

Before proceeding, understand that the terms SYSTEM , LocalSystem , and NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM are one and the same.

How to Run Programs as SYSTEM (LocalSystem account)

To run a program under the SYSTEM account, use one of the following tools:

Using PsExec.exe from Windows Sysinternals

Use PsExec.exe console tool from Microsoft’s Windows Sysinternals to run a program under the SYSTEM context. Follow these instructions:

1. Download PsExec from Microsoft Sysinternals.
2. Unzip and extract the tool to a permanent folder — e.g., d:\tools
3. Open an elevated or admin Command Prompt window.
4. To start the Registry Editor under the SYSTEM account, type the following command, and press ENTER :

The above PsExec command-line starts the Registry Editor under LOCALSYSTEM account so that you can modify protected areas in the registry.

Note: If you launch Command Prompt ( cmd.exe ) using PsExec.exe under the SYSTEM account, it spawns a new Command Prompt window. And, any program you launch from that Command Prompt window would run under the SYSTEM (LocalSystem) account, which is a high privileged account. You must be cautious when running programs under the SYSTEM account so that you don’t accidentally run an undesired program as SYSTEM .

Using Advanced Run from Nirsoft

AdvancedRun is a simple tool for Windows that allows you to run a program with different settings that you choose, including – low or high priority, start directory, main window state (Minimized/Maximized), run the program with different user or permissions, Operating system compatibility settings, and environment variables. You can also save the desired settings into a configuration file and then run the program automatically from the command-line with the desired settings.

Using Advanced Run, you also launch a program under SYSTEM or a different user context.

Type in the program name to run and choose SYSTEM user in the Run As dropdown box, and click Run.

You can also create a desktop shortcut to run a program as SYSTEM. Here is the command-line syntax you use:

/RunAs 4 instructs to start the program under the LocalSystem account. The possible value data for the /RunAs switch are below:

• 1 – Run as current user (elevate)
• 2 – Run as current user (no elevation)
• 3 – Run as Administrator (force elevation)
• 4 – Run as SYSTEM
• 8 – Run as TrustedInstaller

This starts the program under the LocalSystem account, which you can verify in the Task Manager Details tab.

Run as SYSTEM via the right-click menu

To launch a program under the SYSTEM account (with Advanced Run) from the right-click context menu, make a .reg file from the following contents and run the file.

Change the path to AdvancedRun.exe in the .reg file if necessary.

This adds the Run as SYSTEM command to the right-click menu for .exe files and its shortcuts.

Using Process Hacker

Process Hacker is an excellent process manager that looks similar to Sysinternals Process Explorer. This tool has a unique feature that allows you to launch a program under the same account as a running process or service.

1. Run Process Hacker as administrator.
2. Locate a program or service which is currently running under NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM .
3. Right-click on the process, click Miscellaneous, and click Run as this user…