Local admin rights

From time to time you wish users could be local admin so that they can configure a application or a system setting of some kind. With upKeeper your wish can come thru with some simple steps.

First you have to know what you want your users to be able to do and estimate the risk with letting them do it them self. Remember that we are about to give our users temporary local admin rights which can be all they need to make a disaster. The following steps should only be used if no other options is available.

Concept

The concept with this simple idea to give users temporary local admin right is to use the application installation feature in upKeeper. The installation will be running as local system and we will give the local user access to the frontend of the application. The application could be a command prompt, registry editor, file explorer or any executable that we want our user to be able to use in a local system mode.  

In this example we will make a command prompt running i local system mode available to the user. From that command prompt the user will be able to execute commands like being a local administrator but only in that specific application and as long as that session is running.

Short to-do list

1. Create empty folder in upKeeper application stage area.
2. Create application in upKeeper with created folder as path, cmd.exe as command, user must be login in ,user interaction checked, exit 0 for uninstall command and uncheck Needs source for uninstall.
3. Test and roll out.   

Detailed to-do list

1. Create an empty folder in upKeeper application stage area and create a basic application in upKeeper. In the following example we have created the folder "command" and application "Command prompt".

2. Enter cmd.exe under install command, set install to "Only when user is logged on" and check "User Interaction". Under uninstallation command should be "exit 0" and "Needs source files for uninstall" should be unchecked. Save application and wait for application server to package application.

3. Add application to a test computer and verify that command prompt shows and that the process i running in local system. Type "whoami" in command prompt to verify current user.

4. Remember to close or type "exit" in the command window for application installation to finish. 

5. Remove application from computer and you are ready to use your new application.

Summary

This concept can be used in many ways and this is just an example. Customer has been using this with applications where users need to perform the installation configuration and similar situations. Remember to use this technic wisely and as a last resort when automation and scripting is not possible or cant be justify from a time spend perspective.