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HOW TO ADD “TAKE OWNERSHIP” TO THE RIGHT-CLICK MENU IN WINDOWS EXPLORER

Walter Glenn
Walter Glenn
Former Editorial Director


Walter Glenn is a former Editorial Director for How-To Geek and its sister
sites. He has more than 30 years of experience in the computer industry and
over 20 years as a technical writer and editor. He's written hundreds of
articles for How-To Geek and edited thousands. He's authored or co-authored over
30 computer-related books in more than a dozen languages for publishers like
Microsoft Press, O'Reilly, and Osborne/McGraw-Hill. He's also written hundreds
of white papers, articles, user manuals, and courseware over the years. Read
more...

About How-To Geek
@wjglenn

Updated Jul 3, 2017, 12:00 pm EDT | 6 min read

Taking ownership of files or folders in Windows is not simple. Both the GUI and
command line take too many steps. Why not add a simple context menu command that
lets you take ownership of any file or folder?

 


You can add a “Take Ownership” command to your context menu by editing the
Registry manually in two locations—one for files and the second for folders. You
can also just download our one-step Registry hacks to make those changes for
you.

In Windows, a user that has ownership of a file or folder has implicit rights to
change permissions on that object. That user is also always allowed to access
the file or folder—even when other permissions seemingly contradict that access.
Sometimes, you might run into a situation where you need to take over the
ownership of a file or folder. It might be a system file you need to alter to
apply some hack—like replacing Notepad with another text editor—in which case, a
built-in user account named Trusted Installer has the ownership by default. Or
you might have a hard drive from another computer that you need to control files
on.

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Whatever the reason, you can take ownership by using the various permissions
dialog boxes in Windows or by using the Command Prompt. But both methods require
that you complete several steps. With a few edits to the Registry, though, you
can add a simple “Take Ownership” command to the File Explorer context menu that
lets you take ownership in one step. We’re going to show you the manual method
for making those changes to the Registry, but we also have a one-step hack you
can use to install those changes without the hassle.

Note: The technique in this article works in most versions of Windows—from Vista
on up through 7, 8, and 10.


ADD “TAKE OWNERSHIP” BY EDITING THE REGISTRY MANUALLY

To add a “Take Ownership” command to the context menu in any version of Windows,
you just need to make some changes in the Windows Registry. It’s a fair list of
changes, and you’ll be working in two separate Registry locations. But take your
time, follow the steps, and you’ll get there. And if you’d rather not make the
changes yourself, you can skip ahead and just download our one-step hacks. We
would recommend at least skimming this section, though, so you understand the
changes getting made.

Standard warning: Registry Editor is a powerful tool and misusing it can render
your system unstable or even inoperable. This is a pretty simple hack and as
long as you stick to the instructions, you shouldn’t have any problems. That
said, if you’ve never worked with it before, consider reading about how to use
the Registry Editor before you get started. And definitely back up the
Registry (and your computer!) before making changes.

RELATED: Learning to Use the Registry Editor Like a Pro

Open the Registry Editor by hitting Start and typing “regedit.” Press Enter to
open Registry Editor and give it permission to make changes to your PC.





You’re going to make the same set of changes in two locations in the Registry.
The first location adds the “Take Ownership” to the context menu for files of
any type and the second location adds the command to the context menu for
folders.


ADD THE “TAKE OWNERSHIP” COMMAND TO THE CONTEXT MENU FOR FILES

In the Registry Editor, use the left sidebar to navigate to the following key:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\shell



Next, you’ll create a new key inside the shell key. Right-click the shell key
and choose New > Key. Name the new key “runas.” If you already see a runas key
inside the shell key, you can skip this step.





Next, you’re going to change the (Default) value inside the runas key. With the
runas key selected, double-click the (Default) value to open its properties
window.



In the properties window, type “Take Ownership” into the “Value data” box and
then click “OK.” The value you type here will become the command you see on your
context menu, so feel free to change this to whatever you want.



Next, you’re going to create a new value inside the runas key. Right-click the
runas key and choose New > String Value. Name the new value
“NoWorkingDirectory.”



Now, you’re going to create a new key inside the runas key. Right-click the
runas key and choose New > Key. Name the new key “command.”





With the new command key selected, double-click the (Default)value in the right
pane to open it’s properties window.



In the “Value data” box, type (or copy and paste) the following text and then
click “OK.”

cmd.exe /c takeown /f \"%1\" && icacls \"%1\" /grant administrators:F



Now, you need to create a new value inside the command key. Right-click the
command key and choose New > String Value. Name the new value “IsolatedCommand”
and then double-click it to open its properties window.



In the “Value data” box, type (or copy and paste) the following text and then
click “OK.” Note that this is the same command we just added to the (Default)
value.

cmd.exe /c takeown /f \"%1\" && icacls \"%1\" /grant administrators:F





And that adds the “Take Ownership” command to the context menu for files. Let’s
move on to the changes you need to make to get the command onto the menu for
folders.


ADD THE “TAKE OWNERSHIP” COMMAND TO THE CONTEXT MENU FOR FOLDERS

To add the “Take Ownership” command folders, you’re going to make essentially
the same changes you just made in the previous section, but to a different
location in the Registry. In Registry Editor, use the left sidebar to navigate
to the following key:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shell



Next, you’ll create a new key inside the shell key. Right-click the shell key
and choose New > Key. Name the new key “runas.” If you already see a runas key
inside the shell key, you can skip this step.



Next, you’re going to change the (Default) value inside the runas key. With the
runas key selected, double-click the (Default) value to open its properties
window.





In the properties window, type “Take Ownership” into the “Value data” box and
then click “OK.” The value you type here will become the command you see on your
context menu, so feel free to change this to whatever you want.



Next, you’re going to create a new value inside the runas key. Right-click the
runas key and choose New > String Value. Name the new value
“NoWorkingDirectory.”



Now, you’re going to create a new key inside the runas key. Right-click the
runas key and choose New > Key. Name the new key “command.”



With the new command key selected, double-click the (Default)value in the right
pane to open it’s properties window.





In the “Value data” box, type (or copy and paste) the following text and then
click “OK.”

cmd.exe /c takeown /f \"%1\" /r /d y && icacls \"%1\" /grant administrators:F /t



Now, you need to create a new value inside the command key. Right-click the
command key and choose New > String Value. Name the new value “IsolatedCommand”
and then double-click it to open its properties window.



In the “Value data” box, type (or copy and paste) the following text and then
click “OK.” Note that this is the same command we just added to the (Default)
value.

cmd.exe /c takeown /f \"%1\" /r /d y && icacls \"%1\" /grant administrators:F /t



And you’re finally done. You can close Registry Editor. These changes should
take place immediately, so test it out by right-clicking any file or folder and
making sure you see the “Take Ownership” command.





If you want to reverse the changes at any time, just head back into the Registry
and delete the runas keys you created in both locations. This will also delete
everything you created inside. If you already had runas keys in those
locations—for example, you’ve applied other hacks—just delete the command keys
you made instead.


DOWNLOAD OUR ONE-CLICK REGISTRY HACKS



There are a lot of steps if you perform this hack manually, so we don’t blame
you for wanting to use the quicker method. If you don’t feel like diving into
the Registry, we’ve created a couple of hacks you can use. The “Add Take
Ownership to Context Menu” hack creates the keys and values you need to add the
“Take Ownership” command. The “Remove Take Ownership from Context Menu
(Default)” hack deletes those keys, removing the command and restoring the
default setting. Both hacks are included in the following ZIP file. Double-click
the one you want to use and click through the prompts.

Take Ownership Menu Hacks

RELATED: How to Make Your Own Windows Registry Hacks

These hacks are really just the runas key, stripped down to the new keys and
values we talked about in the previous section and then exported to a .REG file.
Running the hacks just creates or deletes the keys for adding the command to the
context menu. And if you enjoy fiddling with the Registry, it’s worth taking the
time to learn how to make your own Registry hacks.

READ NEXT
 * › Take Ownership of a Registry Key in Windows 7
 * › The 50 Best Registry Hacks that Make Windows Better
 * › What Can You Really Expect from Windows Vista Service Pack 1?
 * › How to Clean Up Your Messy Windows Context Menu
 * › Quickly and Automatically Restart a Windows Program When it Crashes
 * › The Best Articles for Tweaking and Customizing Windows 7
 * › Best Windows 7 Explorer Tips and Tricks
 * › Now Even Walmart Wants to See You Half-Naked

Walter Glenn
Walter Glenn is a former Editorial Director for How-To Geek and its sister
sites. He has more than 30 years of experience in the computer industry and
over 20 years as a technical writer and editor. He's written hundreds of
articles for How-To Geek and edited thousands. He's authored or co-authored over
30 computer-related books in more than a dozen languages for publishers like
Microsoft Press, O'Reilly, and Osborne/McGraw-Hill. He's also written hundreds
of white papers, articles, user manuals, and courseware over the years.
Read Full Bio »



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