superUser is a simple and lightweight utility to start any process as the System user with Trusted Installer privileges.
Supported operating systems: Windows 11, 10, 8.1, 8, 7, Vista.
The program acquires the TrustedInstaller process' access token and creates a new (user-specified) process as the System user with Trusted Installer privileges using this token.
There are two ways to run the program:
Double-click the Windows version (superUserW.exe), grant administrator privileges and wait for a command prompt to appear.
Run the command-line version (superUser.exe or sudo.exe) from the command prompt opened as administrator, using the following arguments:
superUser [options] [command_to_run]
command_to_run is the command line used to create the new process. It is a filename followed by arguments. If not specified, cmd.exe is started.
This filename can be:
- An executable name (the .exe extension can be omitted).
- A batch name (.cmd or .bat).
| Option | Meaning |
|---|---|
| /h | Display the help message. |
| /m | Minimize the created window. |
| /s | The child process shares the parent's console. Requires /w. |
| /v | Display verbose messages with progress information. |
| /w | Wait for the child process to finish. Used for scripts. Returns the exit code of the child process. |
- You can also use a dash (-) in place of a slash (/) in front of an option.
- Multiple options can be grouped together (e.g.,
/wsis equivalent to/w /s).
The /ws options allow you to run a process in a completely transparent way:
- The new process runs in the same window and performs its inputs and outputs there.
- The exit code of the new process is returned and you can retrieve it with the errorlevel variable.
Open a command prompt as administrator to run these commands.
superUser64 /ws whoami /user superUser64 /ws whoami /groups | find "TrustedInstaller" superUser64 /w my_script.cmd arg1 arg2 | Exit Code | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 1 | Invalid argument. |
| 2 | Failed to acquire SeDebugPrivilege. |
| 3 | Failed to open/start TrustedInstaller process/service. |
| 4 | Process creation failed (prints error code). |
| 5 | Another fatal error occurred. |
If the /w option is specified, the exit code of the child process is returned. If superUser fails, it returns a code from -1000001 to -1000005 (e.g., -1000002 instead of 2).
sudo.exe is a simpler version of superUser.
It is equivalent to superUser /ws.
- The child process runs in the same window and performs its inputs and outputs there.
- sudo waits for this process to finish and returns its exit code.
Usage is the same as superUser, except that the s, v, and w options do not exist.
Open a command prompt as administrator to run these commands.
sudo64 whoami /user sudo64 whoami /groups | find "TrustedInstaller" sudo64 my_script.cmd arg1 arg2 superUserW.exe is the Windows version of superUser.
Choose this version when not launched from the command prompt or a script, but for example from File Explorer, by double-clicking, a context menu or a shortcut.
Like Windows applications, it does not create a console window at startup (no unwanted window flashing). Messages (errors, help) are displayed in Windows dialog boxes.
Otherwise, the usage remains the same as the command-line versions. By default, cmd.exe is started. To launch another application, specify its name as a parameter (e.g., in the shortcut or context menu).
Note that the s and v options do not exist.