How to Run CHKDSK Without Admin Privileges

Updated by

Sherly 

Authored by

Linda 

Last updated on April 22, 2024

CHKDSK is a built-in utility in Windows operating system that checks and scans hard drive errors, and automatically fixes them when errors are detected. Run the CHKDSK command via Command Prompt. There are 10 ways to open Command Prompt in Windows 10.

As reported, they eventually get to a command prompt and enter the command [chkdsk], at which point an error occurs.

"Access denied due to insufficient permissions. You need to run this tool with administrator privileges."

Does the CHKDSK utility require administrator permissions?

Most computer users would like to start with Windows Command Prompt to perform operations, like converting FAT32 to NTFS, formatting hard drive, SD card or USB flash drive, cleaning up USB after formatting, or checking bad sectors on the disk. All these tasks may fail if you lack administrative privileges.

Do you need admin rights to run a command in Command Prompt on Windows 10? Essentially, yes. As mentioned, the CHKDSK command is run through Command Prompt, and we need administrator privileges to access it properly. The quickest way to open Command Prompt with admin rights is as follows:

- Press Windows + X to open the Power User menu, then select "Command Prompt (Admin)."

- Type cmd in the Windows 10 search box, right-click Command Prompt in the results, and select Run as administrator.

Not only the Windows Command Prompt, but also third-party CHKDSK alternatives, such as the Partition Master tool, can initiate and run some operations when granted sufficient permissions.

When you run it as an administrator, the Command Prompt looks like this.

While access to and use of the Windows Command Prompt usually requires administrator privileges, this is typically not a problem for most modern computer users, as we are all effectively administrators on our own machines. In the old days, when computers were shared among many people, elevation was often necessary to restrict access to or use of certain programs and data by granting permission to specific individuals – the administrators.

In modern times, we have our own personal computers or laptops, on which we install software as administrators from the beginning, so the problem does not arise.

How to Run CHKDSK in Windows 10 Without Using the Command Prompt

The answer to the question “How can I run CHKDSK without admin rights?” is actually quite simple: just use either of the two methods we've provided to open Command Prompt as an administrator, and you'll be able to easily run a disk check on your selected drive. As for alternative solutions to running CHKDSK in Command Prompt, some regular users might prefer something simpler and faster than CHKDSK. So, is there a way to run CHKDSK without accessing Command Prompt in Windows?

The partition manager software has integrated the most commonly used CHKDSK function with two obvious advantages:

1. No need to use command line 2. No need to open the Windows Command Prompt

Thus, you can still run the CHKDSK operation to check, scan, and fix file system errors and bad sectors on a drive without booting into Windows 10 through the Command Prompt.

Step 1. Launch Partition Master on your computer. Then, right-click the partition that you wish to check and select “Advanced” > “Check File System”.

Select “Check Partition”

Step 2: In the Check Disk Utility window, select the "Automatically fix file system errors" option, and then click "Start."

Step 3: The software will begin to check the partition file system on the disk. When it's done, click “Finish”.

Finish the partition check