How do I get permissions to save in a folder that Windows 7 denies me from?

I'm getting this message - You don't have permissions to save in this folder - even though I am the only user on this machine, and administrator.

How can I set permissions for myself to do everything, everywhere (including saving deleting etc)?

Edit: Sorry, forgot to say which folder it was. It is a folder in Program Files, where I save my PHP files for local testing.

Sorry if Im a bit daft with all this, but I've upgraded straight from XP to 7, and having never used vista, I'm used to being allowed to have full control.

Solution 1:

This is due to UAC (User Access/Account Control) On Windows Vista / 7, and trying to write to a protected folder.

Typically Windows 7 has much lower UAC, but it is still there, especially with older programs that are trying to write to places.

You need to not double click on a file to open, but right click on the program that it opens up in, and click "Run as Administrator", for example to launch command prompt.

When you save, you should be able to write to almost anywhere.

Solution 2:

I would get out of the habit of manually creating files in the "Program Files" folder. The purpose of that location is to hold static application files. You can force the files there by changing permissions on the folder or accepting the UAC prompt when doing a manual copy but if your application expects to change data there you have to elevate privileges. See https://stackoverflow.com/questions/946420/allow-access-permission-to-write-in-program-files-of-windows-7 for a good discussion of this.

Solution 3:

To save file to a Program Folder in Windows 7, you will need to right click the folder whewre you want to save --> Properties, then go to the Security tab, highlight "Users" and then click "Edit..." Give it full control and apply, back out the windows and you should be able to save. When you are done, be sure to go back and uncheck the full control and write boxes.