5 Fixes for “A Required Privilege Is Not Held by the Client” Error on Windows

Quick Tips

• Ensure your current user account has administrative privileges on Windows.
• If you encounter this error when saving or moving files to a specific drive, try changing the sharing permissions for that drive.
• Disabling admin approval via the Local Security Policy or Registry Editor can also help fix this error.

Try Basic Fixes

• Use an administrator account: In most cases, the “A required privilege is not held by the client” error occurs due to a lack of necessary permissions. Ensure your user account has administrative privileges, and then run the program triggering the error as an administrator.
• Scan for malware: The presence of malware can also cause Windows to show such errors. Hence, scan your PC using Windows Defender or a third-party antivirus program.

Fix 1: Modify Sharing Permissions for the Drive

If you are getting this error when saving or moving files to a specific drive, try changing the sharing permissions for that drive. Here’s how to do it.

Step 1: Press the Windows key + E to open File Explorer. Navigate to This PC > right-click on the problematic drive, and select Properties.

Step 2: Switch to the Sharing tab and click the Advanced Sharing button.

Step 3: Check the Share this folder box and click the Permissions button.

Step 4: Check the Full Control box > hit Apply > OK.

Fix 2: Take Ownership of the System Drive

At times, the “A required privilege is not held by the client” error may appear at boot or while running an installer on your Windows 10 or 11 PC. If that’s the case, you can try taking ownership of the system drive using these steps:

Step 1: Press the Windows key + E to open File Explorer > navigate to This PC > right-click on the C: drive > select Properties.

Step 2: Go to the Security tab and click on Advanced.

Step 3: Click the Change permissions button.

Step 4: Select your account from the list > click Edit.

Step 5: Check the Full control option > click OK.

Step 6: Check the box for Replace all child object permission entries with inheritable permission entries from this object > hit Apply > OK.

Fix 3: Modify the Local Security Policy

Several users on a Microsoft Community post reported fixing this particular error by modifying a security policy. To do this, you must access the Local Security Policy app, which is available on Windows 11 Pro, Enterprise, and Education editions.

Note: If you’re using Windows Home, proceed to the Registry Editor method in the following section.

Step 1: Press the Windows key + R to launch the Run dialog box. Type secpol.msc in the text box and hit OK.

Step 2: In the Local Security Policy window, use the left pane to navigate to the following folder.

Security Settings\Local Policies\Security Options

Step 3: Double-click the User Account Control: Run all administrators in Admin Approval Mode entry in the right pane.

Step 4: Select Disabled and hit Apply.

Fix 4: Edit Registry Files

If you don’t have access to the Local Security Policy, modify a registry entry to apply the changes and resolve the “A required privilege is not held by the client” error. Here’s how:

Step 1: Click the search icon on the taskbar to access the search menu. Type regedit in the box > select Run as administrator.

Step 2: Copy and paste the following path in the address bar at the top and press Enter.

Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System

Step 3: Double-click the EnableLUA entry in the right pane. Enter 0 (zero) in the Value data field and hit OK.

Exit the Registry Editor window and restart your PC to apply the changes.

Fix 5: Use the Command Prompt to Copy the File

Are you getting the “A required privilege is not held by the client” error only while copying files on your Windows PC? If so, use Command Prompt to copy and move the file to another location using these steps:

Step 1: Right-click on the Start icon > select Terminal (Admin) from the list.

Step 2: Run the following command to copy a file from one location to another.

copy Source Destination

Replace Source in the above command with the path of the file you want to copy and Destination with the location where you want to copy the file. For instance, if you wanted to copy the Object.pdf file from C:\ drive to D:\ drive, you would enter this command:

copy C:\Object.pdf D:\