Windows 7 HELP: MSCONFIG.EXE "access denied" must be logged on to an administrator account

[BuffyDamion]

I attempted to run msconfig to uncheck some progs in my startup, like I did already many times before, always with no problems at all.

Then my Windows 7 Ultimate PC (Dell XPS M1530) crashed with a broken RAM (one of my two 2GB is defect, so I took it out and restarted with 2GB). All is fine again, except my msconfig.exe problem ^^

It is only msconfig.exe which I have problems with so far, I can start any other prog, even gpedit.msc for example.

(maybe it helps someone, but I recognized, that when using MS Project Pro 2003 to connect to my MS Project Server 2003, it won't work anymore (it did work until yesterday). Now I got an error msg: you do not have a windows account...)

Now I get an "access denied" (try to use a user in the group administrators) error message.

My user account has administrative privileges, but the same error comes up when I activate and log on as administrator.

I also tried the following things, and nothing worked:

- start Windows in SAFE Mode and use Administrator account.

- it is not the HP-fix offered by MS, because I never installed any HP app or driver

- I used subinacl.exe with the following reset.cmd file to rechange all userrights:


(it is a German Windows 7, so it has to be administratoren instead of administrators...)
***********************************************************************************
@echo off
title Resetting ACLs...
cd /d "d:\Windows Resource Kits\Tools"
echo.
echo Resetting ACLs...
echo (this may take several minutes to complete)
echo.
echo ==========================================================================
echo.
echo.
subinacl /subkeyreg HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE /grant=administratoren=f /grant=Buffy=f /grant=system=f
echo.
echo.
subinacl /subkeyreg HKEY_CURRENT_USER /grant=administratoren=f /grant=Buffy=f /grant=system=f
echo.
echo.
subinacl /subkeyreg HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT /grant=administratoren=f /grant=Buffy=f /grant=system=f
echo.
echo.
echo System Drive...
subinacl /subdirectories %SystemDrive% /grant=administratoren=f /grant=Buffy=f /grant=system=f
echo.
echo.
echo Windows Directory...
subinacl /subdirectories %windir%\*.* /grant=administratoren=f /grant=Buffy=f /grant=system=f
echo.
echo.
***********************************************************************************

After that, I have FULL rights again as administrator and as Buffy (my normal admin account), if I check the msconfig.exe security. But still cannot execute it, not with Buffy nor with administrator.


So, maybe anyone have any idea I missed testing.

Or is there a specific registry entry controlling the msconfig.exe rights?


Thanks for any help,
BuffyDamion

 

[ChatGPT]

It seems like you are facing issues with running msconfig.exe on your Windows 7 Ultimate PC after encountering a RAM issue that led to a crash. Here are some steps and suggestions based on the information you provided:

1. User Account Control (UAC):
   • Ensure that User Account Control (UAC) settings are not overly restrictive, causing access issues. You can adjust UAC settings in "Control Panel > User Accounts > Change User Account Control Settings."
   []Registry Settings:
   • Check the registry settings related to msconfig.exe. The registry key controlling the rights for msconfig.exe is usually located at:

      HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\App Paths\MSCONFIG.EXE

   • Verify the permissions for this registry entry and ensure that the appropriate users have the necessary permissions to execute msconfig.exe.
   []System File Checker (SFC) Scan:
   • Run a System File Checker (SFC) scan to check for and repair any corrupted system files that may be affecting the functionality of msconfig.exe. To run an SFC scan, open Command Prompt as an administrator and type:

      sfc /scannow

   []Restore msconfig.exe:
   • Sometimes, the msconfig.exe file itself may be corrupted. You can try to restore it by copying the msconfig.exe file from a working Windows 7 system to your PC. Make sure to get the file from a reliable source to avoid further issues.
   []Group Policy Settings:
   • Check if there are any Group Policy settings that could be affecting the execution of msconfig.exe. You can open the Group Policy Editor by running "gpedit.msc" and navigate to:

      Computer Configuration > Windows Settings > Security Settings > Software Restriction Policies

     Ensure there are no restrictions that might be blocking msconfig.exe.
   []Third-Party Software Interference:
   • It's also worth checking if any third-party security software or applications might be interfering with the execution of msconfig.exe. Temporarily disabling such software could help identify if this is the issue.
   []System Restore:
   • If the issue started recently, consider performing a system restore to a point before the problem occurred. This can help revert any recent changes that might have caused the access issues. If none of these steps resolve the problem, there might be a more intricate issue at play. In that case, seeking support from Microsoft or a professional technician might be necessary to diagnose and fix the problem effectively.