Student working in class on their laptop.

Make Me Admin

Allowing standard user accounts to be elevated to administrator-level, on a temporary basis

Make Me Admin

logoMake Me Admin is a simple, open-source application that allows standard user accounts to be elevated to administrator-level, on a temporary basis.

Faculty and staff often have a legitimate need for administrative privilege on their University-owned computers. Administrative privileges may be required to install software and updates, perform computer management tasks, or run some software packages. However, using administrative access for everyday tasks such as reading e-mail or browsing the web carries an increased risk. Malicious software can take advantage of administrative privileges to jeopardize the operational integrity of a computer system. To that end, we have Make Me Admin, which disables administrative access to your computer but also allows you to quickly and temporarily have admin access to download essential software or take other administrative actions as needed. 

Get Started

  1. Open the Make Me Admin application on your computer, found within the Start Menu.
  2. Screenshot showing how to use Make Me Admin application on your computer and click Grant Me Administrator Rights.Click Grant Me Administrator Rights. This grants you administrative permissions temporarily so you can complete your task.
    Please Note: Admin access is automatically revoked after thirty minutes or when you click Remove My Administrator Rights.

  3. Once you have admin rights, you may still need to enter your SMU ID and password when installing software or changing settings.
  4. Perform the task needing administrator rights.

It is important to remember to right-click and use the Run as administrator option when installing software.

Screenshot of the Run as Administrator option in Windows.

Please Note: Violated accounts with administrative privileges may allow intruders to disrupt computer or network operations, steal information, or allow unauthorized access to data residing on the system or attached devices. Improperly applied administrative privileges may directly impact the availability of both computing resources and IT professional support.