How to Fix Run as different user not showing in Windows 11

If you don't know how to fix the "Run as another user" error that doesn't appear in Windows 11, here is a guide that will help you.

It is very convenient to run different users in Windows 11 and 10 since it is possible to run an application with other credentials without having to switch accounts. On the other hand, a great number of users face an infuriating moment when this option disappears from the context menu without any explanation. Find below some step-by-step actions to troubleshoot and bring the "Run as different user" back to your context menu.

This will run it under a different user account by just holding down the Shift key while right-clicking on the shortcut or executable file, and then tap or click "Run as different user" from the context menu.

How to Add Run as Different User in Windows 11?

There are a couple of ways through which the "Run as different user" feature can be enabled. You can use the Local Group Policy Editor, Registry Editor, or the Command Prompt. We shall look at each in detail in the section below.

Fix Run as different user not showing in Windows 11

If you do not see "Run as different user" in your Windows 11/10 PC, then these are some of the solutions you should try:

Restart the Secondary Logon Service: This will enable users running their applications as a different account.

Provide option for "Run as different user" using Local Group Policy Editor: Turns on or off this setting in application or altogether.

Uninstall recent Windows updates: Updates may interfere with the proper functioning of the feature.

Learn to adjust UAC: If not properly adjusted, it can interfere with the action.

Add "Run as different user" in the context menu with Registry Editor: This will let you run it directly from file explorer.

System Restore: If above doesn't work, then restoring your system to a restoration point may fix it for you.

1] Restart the Secondary Logon Service

First of all, let's restart the Secondary Logon service. This service is used to run applications under different user credentials. If this service is yet not started or has some problem, you will not see the "Run as different user" context menu.

Here are the steps:

Open the Run dialog: Press the Windows key + R.

Launch Services: Type services.msc and press Enter.

Locate Secondary Logon: Scroll down and double-click on "Secondary Logon."

Set Startup Type: Under the "General" tab, go to "Startup type" and click on "Automatic."

Apply Changes: Click "Apply," followed by "OK."

Restart Device: Restart your PC to

After the restart check if "Run as different user" option is present inside the context menu.

2] Add Run as different user context using Local Group Policy Editor

If you do not see the "Run as different user" context menu option then you can enable that using Local Group Policy Editor:

Open the Group Policy Editor: Win + R, then in the Run dialog enter gpedit.msc and press Enter.

To configure the desired policy, follow this path: User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Taskbar.

Show the "Run as different user" command on Start: Double-click the Show "Run as different user" command on Start setting, set it to Enabled, then click Apply.

Apply the changes: Apply and OK.

Restart your system to see whether the option is now available.

3] Uninstall newly installed Windows update

An recently installed Windows update might be the cause for the disappearance of "Run as different user" option. If suspecting this, you can revert the update back:

Open Windows Settings: Win + I

Go to Windows Update: Click on Windows Update.

See update history: Click on More options > Update history.

Uninstall the latest update: Highlight which is the latest update and click on uninstall.

Your system will revert to a previous state and may help.

4] Change UAC settings

High User Account Control may hide the "Run as different user" option. Let's try to bring it down:

Open Run: Press Win + R.

Run System Configuration: Type msconfig and press Enter.

Access UAC settings

Click the Tools tab, then change UAC Settings, then Launch.

Lower the UAC level

In the User Account Control Settings window, you have to bring the slider to Never notify and then press the OK button

Apply the changes .

With this, you have lowered UAC restrictions temporarily. You can now see if the option that you want to become visible now is clearly visible.

This will enable the "Run as different user" context menu option. You can also do this using the Registry Editor. Here's what you need to do:

Backup Your Registry: First of all, it is a good idea to backup your registry before making any changes.

Open Notepad: Open a new document in Notepad.

Paste the Appropriate Script: Now, open a Notepad document and paste one of the following scripts, depending on your needs:

For all users:

Code snippet

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwarePoliciesMicrosoftWindowsExplorer]

"ShowRunAsDifferentUserInStart"=dword:00000001

[H

Save file: Even with this added information, all the data must be checked once. The file should be saved with the extension .reg, something like EnableRunAsDifferentUser.reg.

Run file as administrator: You need to right-click on the saved .reg file and click on Run as administrator. Click Yes after seeing the User Account Control notification.

Restart the computer: You need to restart the computer for changes to come into effect.

The "Run as different user" option will appear right away in the context menu.

If none of the above helps, you can still perform a System Restore, which will return your system to a previous point in time when the "Run as different user" option used to work. Running a System Restore can be especially helpful for recent changes that resulted in malfunctioning features.