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How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows

This wikiHow teaches how to fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' error that occurs when you try to start some apps as an administrator in Windows 8 and 10, usually caused by problems with the User Account...
Method 1 of 4:

Adjusting UAC Settings

  1. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 1How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 1
    Click the Start button. You can also press ⊞ Win.
  2. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 2How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 2
    Type uac while the Start menu is open. This will search for UAC options.
  3. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 3How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 3
    Click the Change User Account Control settings option. This will open the User Account Control Settings window.
  4. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 4How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 4
    Move the slider up one level. If UAC was disabled, move the slider up one level to enable basic UAC. If UAC was already enabled, raise the slider to the next security level.
  5. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 5How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 5
    Click OK. Click Yes if prompted by UAC to continue.
  6. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 6How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 6
    Restart your computer. You'll need to reboot your computer in order for the new UAC changes to take effect.
  7. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 7How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 7
    Try opening the app again.
  8. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 8How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 8
    Lower your UAC settings again. If the app is able to launch, you should be able to go back to your UAC settings and lower it to the setting you were using before. You'll need to reboot again after making the changes.[1]
Method 2 of 4:

Clearing the Store Cache

  1. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 9How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 9
    Press ⊞ Win+R. This will open the Run window.
  2. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 10How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 10
    Type WSReset.exe and press ↵ Enter. You'll see a Command Prompt window appear for a few moments, and then the Windows Store will open.
  3. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 11How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 11
    Try opening your app again. Resetting the Windows Store may have fixed the problem you were experiencing.[2]
Method 3 of 4:

Running System File Checker

  1. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 12How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 12
    Right-click the Start button. You'll see a list of options appear. If you're using Windows 8 and don't see a Start button, press ⊞ Win+X.
  2. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 13How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 13
    Click Command Prompt (Admin). This will open a Command Prompt window with administrator access.
  3. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 14How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 14
    Type SFC /scannow and press ↵ Enter. This will begin the System File Checker utility.
  4. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 15How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 15
    Wait while the scan completes. You can see the scan progress in the Command Prompt window. The scan can take quite a while, especially for slower systems or computers with large amounts of storage.
    1. You can cancel the scan at any time by pressing Ctrl+C.
  5. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 16How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 16
    Try running the app again. If the scan was able to find and repair any problems, your app may now work.
Method 4 of 4:

Checking Security Policies

  1. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 17How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 17
    Press ⊞ Win+R. This will open the Run window.
    1. This method should only be attempted if all other methods have failed, as it involved manually editing Windows Registry entries.
  2. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 18How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 18
    Type secpol.msc and press ↵ Enter. If you get a "Windows cannot find secpol.msc" message, you are not running a compatible version of Windows. This feature is only available in Pro and Enterprise versions of Windows.
  3. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 19How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 19
    Expand the Local Policies folder. You'll see this in the left frame, and several folders will appear underneath it.
  4. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 20How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 20
    Click Security Options. You'll see a list of policies appear in the right frame.
  5. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 21How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 21
    Find the User Access Control: Admin Approval Mode... entry. You may have to scroll to find it.
  6. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 22How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 22
    Double-click the entry.
  7. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 23How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 23
    Select the Enabled radio button.
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    Click OK.
  9. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 25How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 25
    Press ⊞ Win+R. This will open the Run window again.
  10. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 26How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 26
    Type regedit and press ↵ Enter.
  11. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 27How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 27
    Expand the directory tree to find the correct entry. Expand the directory tree in the left frame to open the following location:
    1. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE → SOFTWARE → Microsoft → Windows → CurrentVersion → Policies → System → UIPI
  12. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 28How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 28
    Double-click the (Default) item. You'll see this in the right frame after selecting the UIPI folder.
  13. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 29How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 29
    Type 0x00000001(1) into the Value data field.
  14. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 30How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 30
    Click OK. This will save the changes.
  15. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 31How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 31
    Restart your computer. This will apply your new security policy and registry settings.
  16. How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 32How to Fix the 'This App Can't Be Activated by the Built in Administrator' Error in Windows Picture 32
    Try running your app again. If your computer's security policy settings were to blame for the app not working, it should work now.[3]
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