As the name suggests, you’ll encounter this error when your current logged-in user doesn’t have permission to access or view the properties of a file/folder. You can find the message on the Security tab of the folder properties. Show
It usually happens on a new local user due to restrictions from the admin. But it can also happen if you or a malware script changed the permission settings for the folder/file. So, the only solution is to give the current user the permissions to fully control the folder or file. Table of Contents
Fixes for You Must Have Read Permissions to View the Properties of This ObjectFirst, restart your PC in case any process is using the file/folder and preventing you from accessing it. If the issue still occurs after the reboot, try the possible solutions we have provided below: Change Account to AdministratorYou can only access some protected folders from an administrator account. If you are using a local account, you need to switch to an admin one. Alternately, you can also change your account to an admin account. Depending on your UAC settings, you may need to know the main admin account’s password to make such a change. Here are the necessary steps for this method:
You can also change an account to the administrator using other ways. Visit our dedicated article on changing account to administrator on windows to learn the methods. Take Ownership and Change Permission SettingsIf you encounter this issue on an admin account, there’s definitely something wrong with the folder or file’s permissions. To resolve such issues, you need to take ownership of the folder or root folder and change permissions using the following steps:
If you encounter this error on multiple files/folders, change such setting for their root folder or drive. Take Ownership and Change Permissions Using CLIIf you find it troublesome to execute the above method, you can use the Windows CLIs like Command Prompt to perform a similar process. It only requires two commands so it’s more convenient. The necessary steps are as follows:
Share Folder to EveryoneAnother solution is to share the folder with all users while enabling read/write permissions. It overwrites the original permission settings and makes the folder accessible to all users. Here’s how you can execute this method:
Scan for MalwareIf you encounter this permission issue on the file or folder you could access previously, it’s likely due to malware infection. As such, changing permissions again may resolve the issue, but it does nothing to prevent future attacks. Moreover, some computer virus can also prevent you from changing the permission settings altogether. So, you need to perform a full scan of your system to detect and remove such malware. To do so using the Windows Defender (Virus and threat protection):
Delete Inactive Users in Safe ModeIf you experienced this error on a new user account, it’s likely that an old, inactive account is preventing your system from changing the permissions to facilitate the new user. You need to delete all inactive users while changing the permissions to accommodate the new user account in such a scenario. How do I restore read permissions in Windows 10?Open an elevated command prompt. Run the following command to reset permissions for a file: icacls "full path to your file" /reset . To reset permissions for a folder: icacls "full path to the folder" /reset .
How do I enable read and write in Windows?Installing Read & Write on a Personal Computer. Go to the Read & Write website, scroll down to the "Try Read & Write" button, and click on it. ... . Choose "Windows US EN." The installation file will begin downloading.. Run the downloaded read&write.exe file. ... . If prompted, reboot the computer.. How do I set 755 permissions to a folder in Windows 10?To change the permissions of all of the files within that directory, type “chmod -R 755 directoryname” . (Replace “directoryname” with the actual name of the directory.) If you wish to only change permissions for one file, type “chmod 755 filename“.
Why is readCorrupted files can lead to a folder constantly reverting to “Read-only.” To repair corrupted files and restore your system's health, you can run an SFC or DISM scan on your system. An SFC (System File Checker) scan checks and repairs Windows system files.
|