How to Always Open Terminal App in Admin Mode in Windows 11?

Terminal is the default command line interface in Windows 11. You can toggle Command Prompt or Windows PowerShell within Terminal console to get things done. However, most of the times you need admin access to run commands in Terminal. Though it is possible to open Command Prompt and PowerShell independently in admin mode, it is a good idea to open Terminal in admin mode. This will help to quickly switch the apps and run commands that need admin access. In this article, I will explain various options in Windows 11 to open Terminal app in admin mode.

Terminal Admin Mode

There are two ways to consider when you want to open Terminal app:

• Open in admin mode only when you need.
• Always open the app in admin mode.

Depending upon your need, you can choose the one of the below options.

1. Open from Power User Menu

Windows comes with a secret power user menu to quickly access frequently used apps. Simply right-click on the Start menu icon in the taskbar to open power user menu. Now, select “Terminal (Admin)” option to open Terminal app in admin mode.

2. Search and Open Using Windows Search

Next option is to use the default Windows Search.

• Click the search box or icon in the taskbar or press “Windows + S” keys to open the search.
• Type terminal in the search box and you will find the Terminal app appears as a first result.
• Right-click on the app and select “Run as administrator” option. Alternatively, click the small down arrow on the right-pane in the search results and select “Run as administrator” option.

3. Set Terminal Profile to Run as Administrator

The above methods are though useful, you need to every time select admin mode manually. If you always want to launch the Terminal app with admin mode, then you can set that option in the app’s settings page.

• Open Terminal app using one of the methods explained above.
• Click the small down arrow icon in the title bar and select “Settings” option. Alternatively, press “Control + Comma” shortcut keys to open app’s settings page.

• Go to “Defaults” under “Profiles” heading in the sidebar and turn on the switch against “Run this profile as Administrator” option.

• After that go to “Startup” setting and select “Command Prompt” from the “Default Profile” dropdown. This will show the Command Prompt in admin mode whenever you launch Terminal app. Instead of Command Prompt, you can choose Windows PowerShell or Azure Cloud Shell or create your custom profile and set that as default.

Now the Terminal app will always open in administrator mode and you can run any commands without problems.

4. Create Shortcuts for Terminal with Admin Access

After setting up the profile as explained above, you can create shortcuts for the app in Start menu, taskbar or desktop. You can double click the shortcut to launch Terminal app always in admin mode with the selected profile and you do not need to switch the setting every time.

• Click Start menu icon in taskbar and then click “All apps” button.
• Scroll down and find Terminal app in the list.
• Right-click on the app and select “Pin to Start” to add the shortcut in the Start menu icons. For adding the shortcut to taskbar, select “More” and then select “Pin to taskbar” option.
• You can also create a desktop shortcut by dragging the app and dropping in the desktop.