New Tech Tip: Configuring Windows 7 for a Limited User Account

Last week, I got a copy of Windows 7 Release Candidate 1 (build 7100) and loaded it on my laptop. Though I help customers with limited Vista issues on occasion, I had let it pass me by on my own equipment. So this means I've never gotten to really play with UAC myself.

Now I have, and I really like it (both Windows 7 and UAC). I'll write more about Windows 7 another time, but I had some bumps in the road getting a true limited user working. I'm a huge fan of least privilege, having run it on all my XP workstations, and I was determined to make it so with Windows 7 as well.

I found there was scant guidance on this, so I created a Tech Tip on how to do it safely. Both new-install and existing-user scenarios are covered, and the instructions have worked well on the several configurations I've been testing in virtual machines and on my laptop.

• Unixwiz.net Tech Tip: Configuring Windows 7 for a Limited User Account

It's clearly a best practice to run as a limited user, and I hope these notes help bring that about (and almost all of this applies to Vista as well).