Take Ownership of Vista System Files

When tweaking Vista, at some point you will probably run in to a situation where you need to modify, move or even delete a system file. In Vista, system files are protected by the TrustedInstaller service and Windows File Protection by default. Below, I will show you how you can take ownership of system files and grant yourself the necessary permissions so that you can get your task done.

Warning: Modifying, moving or deleting system files on Vista can have adverse effects on your operating system and in some cases render the system inoperable. Be sure that you know what you are doing prior to proceeding with these instructions.

1. Go to Start>> All Programs>> Accessories>> Command Prompt
2. Right click Command Prompt
3. Select Run as administrator (click continue at the UAC prompt)
4. At the command prompt, type in: takeown /f c:\windows\system32\sysfile.exe

Note: Use the correct path to the system file. “sysfile.exe” is an example only.

5. Press Enter

You should receive a message that states your user name now has ownership of the file. However, you still lack the permissions to modify the file so lets continue.

6. Back at the command prompt, type in: icacls c:\windows\system32\sysfile.exe /grant username:f

Note: Substitute “sysfile.exe” with the correct file name and “username” with your user name.

7. Press Enter
8. You should receive a message that the command completed successfully.

At this point, you have taken ownership of the file and you have the necessary permissions to modify, move or delete the file. If any of the above instructions did not complete successfully, you can try executing the commands in safe mode.

This entry was posted on Sunday, September 30th, 2007 at 6:24 am and is filed under windows vista. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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