Windows 8 is a great operating system, but it can be difficult to recover administrator privileges if you lose them. Here are four ways to get back into the administrator role:

  1. Boot your computer into Safe Mode with Networking. In Safe Mode, Windows will start up with only the basic features enabled. To enter Safe Mode, press the F8 key when your computer starts up. Select “Safe Mode with Networking” from the menu that appears, and then press Enter.
  2. Use a boot disk to start up your computer in Recovery Mode. A boot disk is a CD or DVD that contains special software that can help you repair or restore your computer. To use a boot disk, insert it into your computer’s CD or DVD drive and restart it. When you see the startup screen, select “Recovery Console” from the list of options on the left side of the screen. Type “regedit” at the prompt that appears and press Enter to open the Registry Editor window. Locate and delete the “Administrator” key from HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon .
  3. Use System Restore to restore your computer to an earlier point in time. System Restore helps you undo changes you make to your computer by restoring files and settings back to an earlier point in time. To use System Restore, first open Control Panel > System > Recovery > System Restore . In System Restore’s window, select a date from the calendar on the left side of the window, and then click Next . On the next screen, select a restore point from among those available on your hard drive (you can choose an earlier date if you want). Click Next , confirm that you want to restore all files and settings on your computer (this will take some time), and then click Finish .
  4. Use Microsoft’s Command Prompt utility to regain administrator privileges remotely." In Windows ..