If you are using Windows 8 and you need to run Visual Studio as Administrator, you could always Right Click on the shortcut, then right click on the Visual Studio icon and then select Run As Administrator. But do you really want to do this each and every time you need to run Visual Studio?

Well as always, some very clever folks out there came up with a solution (see reference below) that I am reproducing here. First of all, navigate to devenv.exe at the following file path:

[Program Files]Microsoft Visual Studio 11.0Common7IDE

This is the main executable for Visual Studio 2012.

Right click the exe and select ‘Troubleshoot compatibility’ from the context menu.

Next, select ‘Troubleshoot program’ from the Program Compatibility Troubleshooter.

Then, make sure you check ‘The program requires additional permissions’ check box. Click Next.

On the next screen, click on the ‘Test the program…’ button. This will launch Visual Studio.

After Visual Studio has started, you will see that you have started it with Administrator privileges.

Close Visual Studio and click Next. Then, click on “Yes, save these settings for this program’ option.

The Program Compatibility Troubleshooter will then save your settings. After it has completed, close it. From now on, Visual Studio will always Run as Administrator. Remember, with Administrative access, a program has unlimited access, so use it wisely.

Reference: Abhijit Annaldas