I remember having read once that one should not use the Administrator Account as a regular user account (as TheChas rightly remind me in another question) but I fail to remember the reason. Could you tell me why please? Thank you
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My take on it is - because it is way to easy to do something you didn't intend to do when you are logged in as Administrator. When you are not doing administrative tasks you should be logged in with a regular user account.
This has a two fold advantage. One, of course, is that you are somewhat protected against doing something too hastily if you have to log in as administrator to perform a task. The other is that you are also aware of what the permissions are for other groups (i.e. Power User, etc.)
If you are logged on as the Administrator, a worm, trojan, virus, or hacker can get complete control over the PC.
If you are logged on as a user, you may be able to regain control of an infected PC by logging on as the administrator.
From Microsoft:
"Why you should not run your computer as an administrator
Running Windows 2000 or Windows XP as an administrator makes the system vulnerable to Trojan horses and other security risks. The simple act of visiting an Internet site can be extremely damaging to the system. An unfamiliar Internet site may have Trojan horse code that can be downloaded to the system and executed. If you are logged on with administrator privileges, a Trojan horse could do things like reformat your hard drive, delete all your files, create a new user account with administrative access, and so on.
You should add yourself to the Users or Power Users group. When you log on as a member of the Users group, you can perform routine tasks, including running programs and visiting Internet sites, without exposing your computer to unnecessary risk. As a member of the Power Users group, you can perform routine tasks and you can also install programs, add printers, and use most Control Panel items. If you need to perform administrative tasks, such as upgrading the operating system or configuring system parameters, then log off and log back on as an administrator."
Loggin on as Administrator loads more services than normal user, thats why if your not doing any administrator task use a normal user to login. Performance is better.
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Administrator Account in Win XP
Could you tell me why please?
Thank you