Why are some .bat files "run as an administrator" bold in Windows 8?

Question

When I right click on some .bat files the "run as administrator" selection is bold. Why is this?

How do I make it so that all .bat files act that way too?

Answer 1

Answer 1:

Individual .BAT files can be configured to always Run as administrator by creating a shortcut to the batch file and modifying the shortcut's properties. Here's how:

1. Create a shortcut to the batch file
2. Right-click the shortcut and choose Properties

3. On the Shortcut tab click Advanced
   

4. Select the Run as administrator checkbox

5. Click OK twice to save and exit

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Answer 2:

The solution above is great if you don't mind all the extra steps. But why work so hard? You can configure all .BAT files to default to the Run as administrator option. It only requires a simple registry edit:

1. Save the following code snippet into a file named DefaultToRunas.reg

   Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
   
   [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\batfile\shell]
   @="runas"
   

2. Double-click the DefaultToRunas.reg file to merge the settings into the Windows Registry

3. Click Yes if prompted by UAC

4. Click Yes to merge the changes into the Registry

   Notes:

   • I've confirmed this works on Windows 7, Windows 8 and Server 2008 R2
   • This setting change affects all users of the computer

What About Other File Types?

You can use this registry edit to change the default for other file types as well. For example, to make Run as administrator the default action for command files (.CMD), substitute the following registry file in Step 1 above:

    Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

    [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\cmdfile\shell]
    @="runas"

You can read more about manipulating the Windows Context menu in this MSDN article.