Best way to use admin and standard accounts?

[devavictrix]

For the past 20 years or so I've used the admin account as my primary Windows user. I'm at a point when I want to reinstall Windows and I'd like to use a standard account for day to day use and admin only when necessary.

I'm having difficulty in understanding how to install and use programs and drivers successfully.
ie. I change quite a few of the privacy settings in Windows 10. When I reinstall do I have to go through all the settings for both accounts? Can I make changes in admin that will apply to all accounts? Things like my VPN. I use the Windows client to access... do I have to set this up in both admin and standard accounts or just the admin.

Drivers - I guess just install from the admin account. But what about AMD driver for instance... will the settings program be available in the standard account? MSI Live update... its for drivers so if I installed from the admin account should it work in the standard account?

The only other programs I install are Opera, World of Tanks and MS Office, Intel RST and play about with FreeCAD, Python from time to time.

Quite an elementary question that I should have had sorted many years ago! I have reinstalled and had a mess about but i'm struggling to get anything to work in the user account. AMD drivers wouldn't install, MS defender deemed Keepass a dangerous .exe and immediately deleted it, MSI live update installed but wouldn't run (absolutely nothing when I click on it). It all works a treat in the admin account but some aren't accessible in standard account. I'm just lost!


Thank you for any help!

 

[devavictrix]

* local, not standard!

 

[USAFRet]

That is my usual use case.

Standard account for almost ALL use.
Only log in to the Admin when it is absolutely needed. When I'm done doing whatever tiny function absolutely needed that Admin access, log out of it and continue on with the regular user.

 

[USAFRet]

And local account vs MS account?
Absolutely.

The only time I need to deal with the MS account is if I'm trying to install something from the MS Store (rare), or if I need to manage the OS license (even rarer).

 

[devavictrix]

So when you install Windows how do you go about installing programs etc?

Personal stuff like games, web browsers, office etc are pretty straight forward. Drivers often ask for the admin password so I guess the effects span all accounts?, but not drivers do. And some things don't work at all under the local/standard/user account even if I right click - run as administrator. It's left me very confused!

 

[USAFRet]

So when you install Windows how do you go about installing programs etc?

Personal stuff like games, web browsers, office etc are pretty straight forward. Drivers often ask for the admin password so I guess the effects span all accounts?, but not drivers do. And some things don't work at all under the local/standard/user account even if I right click - run as administrator. It's left me very confused!

All my systems have an admin and standard account. Both local accounts.
An MS account is absolutely not needed, unless you need something from the MS store. In that event, I switch user and log into that account.
I can't remember the last time I needed to do that.

Anything else installs and runs just like normal.


What, specifically, do you have that will not run under a local account? Nothing that I use does that.

 

[devavictrix]

Sorry, I'm getting confused with the names. I never use the MS account from Windows... only with opera to read my emails. I'm always "local".

From a standard account ive found MSI live update won't work, AMD driver package won't install and when I downloaded Keepass from Sourceforge Windows detects it as dangerous and deletes it.

I've also noticed when I set-up a VPN it's only available in the account I set it up in.


Does this mean I need to install drivers twice, and everything else? I want to use Keepass and MSI update etc from the standard user account.

 

[USAFRet]

Sorry, I'm getting confused with the names. I never use the MS account from Windows... only with opera to read my emails. I'm always "local".

From a standard account ive found MSI live update won't work, AMD driver package won't install and when I downloaded Keepass from Sourceforge Windows detects it as dangerous and deletes it.

I've also noticed when I set-up a VPN it's only available in the account I set it up in.


Does this mean I need to install drivers twice, and everything else? I want to use Keepass and MSI update etc from the standard user account.

AMD drivers work just fine for me.
"MS Live"? Not sure what that is. Actual OS updates work just fine.
Keepass from SourceForge downloaded and installed just fine. (30 seconds ago)

 

[devavictrix]

I gave it a second attempt - reinstalled Windows (exactly the way I did last time) and everything now installs and works well. I installed everything from the user account. I have no idea why my first install was so problematic.

Still can't get MSI Live Update to work but sod it! MS Office Accounting works as a demo/free version but as soon as I enter the product code it stops working. I think its to do with SQL... I'll sort it out.

Thank you for your replies.