How to Fix “Access Denied as You Do Not Have Sufficient Privileges” Error?

Dealing with Access Denied as you do not have sufficient privileges or the disk may be locked by another process error and looking for its fixes? Whether you’re trying to open a file, modify a system setting, or access a network resource, this error can be frustrating as it hinders you from accessing some programs to the maximum utility. Well with this article it won’t be any difficult for you to deal with such issues.

What Causes “Access Denied as You Do Not Have Sufficient Privileges” Error?

But before diving directly for solutions, you must know the major factors as it will help you to pick the most effective solution to get rid of the problem in no time.

• Not running CMD in administrative Mode– In most instances not running the Command Prompt in administrative mode can cause this problem.
• Registry Corruption– If somehow your registry got corrupted then it might be possible that you may encounter this problem.
• Corrupted Drive that consists of installed Windows– If the drive in which the Windows has been installed got corrupted then you may encounter this error.
• Local Account Type– In case your account type has been set to local then there is quite a possibility that you may encountered with do not have enough privileges to complete this operation
• Not having the Ownership of the Partition– If you do not have ownership of the partition then you may get access denied due to insufficient privileges issue.

Now that you are aware of the possible causes for this error, let us know how do you fix chkdsk access denied insufficient privileges with effective fixes.

Methods to Fix Access Denied As You Do Not Have Sufficient Privileges Or The Disk May Be Locked By Another Process Error

Follow the below fixes and troubleshoot this issue in a hassle-free manner.

Solution 1- Run The CMD As An Administrator

Most of the time it has been advised to run the program in administrative mode to avoid such issues. To do so follow the below guidance:

• Launch the Command Prompt by typing cmd in the Windows search box.
• Now, right-click on “CMD” and click on “Run as administrator“ option.

• Once launched, enter the command chkdsk /f drive letter: and hit Enter.

Note: [In place of drive letter: “mention the drive where Windows is installed on your system”]

• After that press the key “Y” on your keyboard and hit Enter if it prompts ‘Would you like to schedule this volume to be checked the next time the system restarts? (Y/N)’.
• Otherwise, simply exit from a CMD panel and restart your system to check for the issue.

Also Read: CHKDSK Cannot Open Volume for Direct Access – 4 Ways

Solution 2- Run SFC Scan To Fix The Registry Corruption

Sometimes registry corruption can cause do not have enough privileges to complete this operation issue. In this case, you can go for DISM or SFC to repair any corrupted registry.

To run the SFC scan, simply follow the steps below:

• Go to Start search box or Win+R and type cmd to run Command Prompt.

• Then on cmd panel execute System File Checker by typing SFC/scannow command and hit Enter.

• SFC scan will now automatically search for the corrupted files and repair them.
• Wait for the scanning process to be complete.

Note: [Do not perform any other action while the scanning is in process]

You can execute the DISM tool by performing the below-guided steps:

• Go to the search box or Win+R and type cmd to run Command Prompt.
• Then on cmd run the DISM command by typing Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth, and hit Enter.
• Now, wait for the DISM to fetch the corrupted files.

Solution 3- Convert Current Account To Administrator

If the above fixes won’t work for you then try converting your current account to an administrative account to fix access denied as you do not have sufficient privileges you have to invoke this utility issue.

• Look for “Control Panel”
• After that, select “Control Panel” from the appeared search result.

• Here, click on ‘View by:’ option and then select “Category“.
• Now, under ‘User Accounts‘ tap on “Change account type” to change the account type.
• After that, tap on your account to make changes.
• And then, on the left side, tap on the option “Change the account type“.
• Now navigate to radio button next to “Administrator” to set the account as an administrator for your system.
• Once done, tap on the “Change Account Type” to save the changes made.
• Lastly, Exit Control Panel tab.

Now try running the command from the administrative account and check whether or not you are getting a same error message.

Solution 4- Taking The Ownership Of The Partition

Taking ownership of the partition is another solution you can go for to get rid of this error.

Follow the steps below:

• Go to File Explorer.
• Right-click the drive and select “Properties“.
• Select “Security” tab.
• Under Security tab, go for the “Advanced“ option.

• Then, tap on “Change“ and select “Advanced“ option.

• Now tap on “Find Now“.
• After that, scroll down the user or group list, choose the user name, and tap OK.
• Again tap on “OK“ and now go for the option “Add“.
• Then, tap on the option “Select a principal“ and go for Advanced.
• Now, tap on “Find Now“.
• Then again scroll down to the user or group list, choose the user name, and tap OK.
• Again tap “OK“.
• Now, choose the “Full control” check box. And click
• Lastly, hit the “Apply” button below and then OK.
• Now under the Security tab, tap on “Apply” and then “OK“.

Finally, you have the proper authorization to run the program.

Solution 5– Fix Access Denied As You Do Not Have Sufficient Privileges By Converting FAT32 To NTFS

You can use Command Prompt to convert FAT32 to NTFS without formatting via cmd. Just follow the simple steps below:

• Look for Command Prompt on a search box.
• Then select cmd from the appeared result and right-click on it and select “Run as administrator”.

• Type “help convert” and hit on the “Enter” key. It will give you a guide on how to convert FAT volumes to another one.
• Type the command “convert drive letter: /NTFS:” and press the “Enter” key.

• Wait and type “exit” once the conversion process finishes.

Now your file system of the targeted device appears to be NTFS.

Check out our video guide to fix “access denied as you do not have sufficient privileges” in no time with ease.

How to Fix Access Denied Hard Drive Error?

Using an inbuilt tool present in Windows named ‘Error Checking Tool’, you can check and fix device errors. Since you are troubled with an access issue on any external hard drives then you need to follow the below steps to fix Access is denied hard drive:

• Firstly connect any inaccessible device to your PC.
• Next, open “This PC/My Computer” and then right-click on the option inaccessible external device and then select “Properties”.
• Lastly, click the option “Tools” and then “Check Or Check Now”.

However, if you are unable to access the data saved on your external hard drive, SD card, USB drive, etc with the above-mentioned method, then you may go for Access Is Denied Error In External Hard Drive 2022 to fix the access problem without losing your data.

How to Avoid CHKDSK Access Denied Insufficient Privileges Error?

CHKDSK access denied insufficient privileges error involves the below proactive measures:

• Regular System & Software Updates
• Implementing Strong Network Policies
• Proper User Account Management
• Consistent Security Scans
• Educating Users on Security Practices.

Frequently Asked Questions:

How Do I Invoke This Utility Running In Elevated Mode?

You can invoke this utility running in elevated mode by running Command Prompt as an Administrator

• Type cmd in the search bar, and then right-click the Command Prompt app and select Run as administrator option.
• In the elevated window, type the chkdsk /f /x commands and hit Enter.

How Do I Verify That I Have Sufficient Privileges To Start System Services?

In order to verify this, here are steps to do so:

• Run gpedit.
• Navigate to Computer Configuration > Windows Settings > Security Settings > Local Policies >User Rights Assignment.
• In the details pane, double-click Log on as a service.
• Click Add User or Group and add the account to the list of accounts that have the Log on as a service right.

Final Thoughts

Access Denied as you do not have sufficient privileges or the disk may be locked by another process is a common error that irritates users as it won’t allow accessing the program or operation thereby restricting them. However, above are some effective fixes that will help you to get rid of this issue in no time. Thereby letting you run the program or operation without causing any further interruptions.

I hope this article turns out to be useful.