Vista Security

When running as Administrator, I find I am unable to access many folders on the hard drive. For example: C:\Users\All Users\Desktop, or C:\Program Data\Favorites. These ought to be accessible to the guy who owns the computer.

It does not seem to matter whether I am running as Administrator or as a user with Administrator privileges.

I does not seem to matter whether User Account Control is on or off.

Attempts to change permissions to Full Control fail. Changing Owner makes no difference.

The same problem appears with the Home Premium, Business, and Ultimate editions.

Questions:

1. What's going on here?

2. Is there a Policy setting that needs to be adjusted?

3. How do I get Vista to relinquish control over all files, folders, and shortcuts.