Win7-Wrong folder permission

Fixing Folder Permissions After Upgrading from Windows XP to Windows 7

Under Windows XP, I never had to worry about file or folder permissions—they just worked. However, after upgrading to Windows 7, I noticed that some programs no longer had proper ‘read’ or ‘write’ access to their own folders. This wasn’t limited to system folders like “Program Files”; it also affected regular directories, such as C:\my data\my own folder\program folder.

Upon inspection, I found a key difference between folders created under Windows XP and those created in Windows 7. Here’s what I observed:

Folder Permissions on Windows XP

For folders created under Windows XP, I saw these user groups:

• Creator Owner
• System
• Account Unknown (S-1-5-21-…)
• Administrators
• Users

Folder Permissions on Windows 7

For folders created under Windows 7, the permissions were different:

• Authenticated Users
• System
• Administrators
• Users

The problem stemmed from the “Account Unknown” entry, which appears to be a leftover from Windows XP. Trying to delete this entry resulted in the following error:

Windows Security
You can’t remove Account Unknown (S-1-5-21-1220945662-706699826-839522115-1003) because this object is inheriting permissions from its parent. To remove Account Unknown, you must prevent this object from inheriting permissions. Turn off the option for inheriting permissions, and then try removing Account Unknown again.

Solutions

Here’s how I resolved this issue:

Solution 1: Add the “Authenticated Users” Group

To make the folder accessible like a regular Windows 7 folder, add the “Authenticated Users” group to it. Follow these steps:

1. Open the folder’s properties.
2. Go to the Security tab and press the Edit button.
3. Click Add….
4. In the text box, type Authenticated Users (without quotes) and click Check Names.
   • If the text is underlined, it means Windows recognizes it.
5. Press OK and let Windows apply the new permissions.

This method allows programs to access the folder, but it may leave behind some clutter, as old folders still retain the “Account Unknown” entry.

Solution 2: Create a New Folder

To avoid leftover entries like “Account Unknown,” I found it better to recreate the folder entirely. Here’s how:

1. Rename the current folder (e.g., from MyData to Old).
2. Create a new folder using the original name (MyData).
3. Move all contents from the old folder (Old) to the new one (MyData).

This ensures that the new folder inherits proper permissions as per Windows 7 standards, without carrying over any old user groups or permission issues.

Final Thoughts

While upgrading from Windows XP to Windows 7 brought some improvements, these permission quirks can be frustrating. However, by adding the “Authenticated Users” group or recreating the folder, you can restore functionality and eliminate these issues.