The Requested Operation Requires Elevation – How To Fix?

Take a look at this question by a Windows user on the Microsoft Community forum:

“Before installing Win 7 I saved a bunch of files and folders to an external hard drive. Tonight when I tried to look at some text files I had created in Open Office I got the error message that “The requested operation requires elevation“. If I right-click and go to “Properties” under the “Security” tab and “Group or user name” there is a red question mark followed by a long row of numbers. (A reference to my XP existence? The other names in that box reference my current system.) There are options to change permissions under “Edit” and “Advanced”. I didn’t want to change any settings that could negatively affect the “parent” files or program.”

While accessing files from external hard disks, many Windows users got an error message that said, “The requested operation requires elevation.” Here I shall discuss what this message means, and how you can solve this error.

What Does “The Requested Operation Requires Elevation” Error Message Mean?

This error message is actually related to the Security ID of your concerned file. When you get this error, you need to change the permissions associated with the file and take ownership of it.

When the original permissions associated with the files are still intact, the files are treated like foreign material on your computer. This can also happen occasionally if you save some files on your external hard disk. To make any changes to these files, you need to change the original permissions associated with the files, which can be done if you are logged in as the administrator.

When you change the ownership of a certain file in Windows, you get the explicit rights to change the permissions on that file. Changes that you make to this file are not stopped because of other permissions that seem to contradict these changes. You can also get control over certain files on a hard drive from another computer.

How To Take Ownership Of Files Using File Explorer?

1. Open File Explorer.
2. Browse to the file or folder that you want to change access to.
3. Right-click on the file and select Properties.
4. Under the Security tab, click on Advanced.

5. In the Advanced Security Settings dialogue box, click on Change next to the Owner name.

6. In the following Select User or Group window, click on Advanced and select Find Now.

7. In the search results that follow, locate your username and click OK.
8. Back in the Advanced Security Settings page, if you are taking ownership of a folder, select the checkbox next to Replace owner on subcontainers and objects.
9. Click Apply and then click OK.

When you take ownership of a certain file, you need to reopen the Properties. Select OK in the dialogue box that prompts this, and open the Properties again.

To make sure you have all the permissions, you need to follow these following steps:

10. Go to the Advanced Security Settings page, and select Add.
11. In the Permission Entry, click on Select a Principal.

12. In the following Select User or Group, click on Advanced and select Find Now.
13. Locate your username in the search results that follow and click OK.

14. Now click on the checkbox next to Full control under the Basic permissions and click OK.

Now you have full access to the folder or file you just changed the permissions to. You can make any changes you want to the file to which you earlier had no access.

You can also add the take ownership option in the context menu of the Explorer. This has been covered in our detailed guide on how to take ownership of files and folders in Windows 10.

Conclusion

Remember that the changes mentioned above can only be made if you are logged in as the administrator. Now you know what the ‘The requested operation requires elevation’ error message means, and how you can solve it. Comment below if you found this useful, and tell us if you solved it on your device.