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(cache) Vista UAC Maker : Make your application UAC compliant for Vista/Windows7/Windows8 - www.SecurityXploded.com
 
 
VistaUACMaker
 
 
 
 
See Also
 
 
 
 
Contents
 
 
About
Vista UAC Maker is a free Tool to make your applications UAC compliant for Vista/Windows 7/Windows 8.

It has both GUI and command-line versions making it easier and quicker process.It is fully portable and can be run anywhere without installing any components like .NET or JAVA. It also includes Installer for local installation & un-installation


Vista has introduced new feature called UAC (User Account Control). In short it basically controls the way in which applications are executed by different users.


Due to enforcement of this UAC, by default any application on Vista will run under the context of standard user instead of administrator. As a result the application which requires Administrator privilege will fail to work properly on Vista/Windows7/Windows 8.


So Vista UAC Maker is designed to address this problem by quickly making any Windows XP based application compatible with Vista/Windows 7/Windows 8.

 
 
 
Making Application UAC Compliant

To make any application Vista/Windows7/Windows8 UAC compliant one has to embed a manifest file specifying the privilege required by the application.

Manifest file mainly contains 2 important information, privilege required by the application and UI interaction of application with other windows.
   

There are 3 types of privileges that can be mentioned in the manifest file.
  • requireAdministrator: Run as administrator
  • asInvoker: Run as same privilege as parent process
  • highestAvailable: Run with highest privilege available for user
 

Other than this, one has to specify if the application interacts with user interface of other high privilege applications. For example your application may send the message to modify the UI of other high privilege application.

This is specified through following parameter

      uiAccess : TRUE/FALSE
 
 
 
Example of UAC Manifest File
Manifest file is generally put into the resource section of the application. Typical manifest file with administrator privilege and with no "uiAccess" appears like this.
 
  <assembly xmlns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:asm.v1" manifestVersion="1.0">
   <assemblyIdentity type="win32" processorArchitecture="*" version="1.0.0.0"  
   name="MyApplication.exe"></assemblyIdentity>
   <description>Vista Application</description>
   <dependency>
    <dependentAssembly>
     <assemblyIdentity type="win32" name="Microsoft.Windows.Common-Controls"
     version="6.0.0.0" language="*" processorArchitecture="*"    
     publicKeyToken="6595b64144ccf1df"></assemblyIdentity>
    </dependentAssembly>
   </dependency>
   <trustInfo xmlns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:asm.v2">
    <security>
     <requestedPrivileges>
       <requestedExecutionLevel level="requireAdministrator"  
       uiAccess="FALSE"></requestedExecutionLevel>
     </requestedPrivileges>
    </security>
   </trustInfo>
  </assembly>
 
 
 
Screenshots
VistaUACMaker has both console and GUI version. Here is the screenshot of the GUI version
 
VistaUACMaker Screenshot
 
Here is the screenshot of the Console version...
vistauacmakerconsole 
 
 
 
Installation & Un-installation
Though VistaUACMaker is a Portable tool, it comes with Installer so that you can install it locally on your system for regular usage. This installer has intuitive wizard which guides you through series of steps in completion of installation.
 
At any point of time, you can uninstall the product using the Uninstaller located at following location (by default)
 
[Windows 32 bit]
C:\Program Files\SecurityXploded\VistaUACMaker

[Windows 64 bit]
C:\Program Files (x86)\SecurityXploded\VistaUACMaker
 
 
 
Using GUI version
In just few steps, your application will be ready to run on Vista/Win7/Win8

  • Select the application using browse button or Drag & Drop your EXE file.
  • Set one of the Privilege required for your application from selection box.
  • Check the "Yes" button if your application interacts with high privilege applications.
  • Now click on "Make UAC" to make it UAC compliant with Vista/Windows7/Win8
  • You can also View the existing Manifest (UAC properties) by simply clicking on 'View Manifest' button after selecting the File.
 
 
 
Using Console version
Console tool makes it easy to automate the process. For example you can use it as post build step to make the application Vista/Win7/Win8 UAC compliant. Here is the typical usage information.
 
VistaUACMakerConsole [-d ] [-p ] [-ui] {exe_path}


Options:

-d      Description of the project ( Default : My project )
-p      Privilege level required. possible values : admin, invoker, highest
            admin = administrator (default)
            invoker = same as parent process
            highest = Highest possible level for the user
-ui     Specify if it interacts with higher privilege windows.
        (Default action is not to set this flag)

Note: To view Manifest section just specify EXE path without any parameters.


Examples:
        //Make Win7Project.exe UAC Compliant with Privilege Level as Administrator
        VistaUACMakerConsole -d "My Win7 Project" -p admin "c:\Win7Project.exe"


        //View the Manifest (UAC Properties) in existing Executable File
        VistaUACMakerConsole "c:\Win7Project.exe"
        
 
 
 
History
Version 4.0: 14th Jun 2014
Mega version with the support for making UAC compliant app on Windows 8. Improved GUI screen with glowing icon effects and other changes.
 
Version 3.0:  10th May 2012
Added 'View Manifest' option to view the manifest section (UAC properties) of exising EXE files. Support for quick Drag & Drop of Executable File. Enhanced user interface.
 
Version 2.5:  22nd Nov 2010
Integrated Installer for local Installation & Uninstallation. New Banner and other minor UI improvements.
 
Version 2.0 :  13th Jan 2010
Support for Windows 7.  New attractive GUI with cool look & feel.
 
Version 1.5 :  29th May 2009
Enhanced user interface with improved about dialog.
 
Version 1.0 :  30th Jan 2006
First public release of VistaUACMaker
 
 
 
Download
FREE Download VistaUACMaker v4.0

License  : Freeware
Platform : Windows XP, 2003, Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8

Download
 
 
 
See Also