Open Elevated Windows PowerShell in Windows 10

Windows PowerShell has been around for 13 years now. Windows 10 comes with Windows PowerShell 5.0 included.

Most Windows users are aware of the Command Prompt which has been around for nearly as long as Windows itself. The Command Prompt is where you can enter commands into the command line. Windows is compatible with over 280 commands that can be executed. Sometimes you may wish to use the Command Prompt as a substitute for navigating around the operating system—much like a Linux user—and other times you will need to enter commands to get jobs done because there is no other way.

The Windows PowerShell is a command-line shell and scripting language that allows you to execute commands similar to the Command Prompt; however, it is the Windows PowerShell that is the considerably more powerful of the two. While we are yet to find any confirmation from Microsoft about it, some experts suggest that PowerShell was intended to be a replacement for the Command Prompt since you can run most of the same commands and then do much more. If Windows 10 is anything to go by, it is easily believed, as many of the ways to open the Command Prompt around the operating system has changed to now show the PowerShell and PowerShell (admin) entries instead.

PowerShell commands are called cmdlets. You can open PowerShell and run the “Get-Command -Type Cmdlet” command to find out what they all are. You can use the PowerShell for many different things, some of the larger jobs including the uninstalling of Windows applications, to delete a partition from Windows, to find and print a list of running processes, reinstalling the default Windows 10 applications, finding the computers Mac address and many more.

This tutorial demonstrates all the different ways to open the Windows PowerShell when you’re using a version of the Windows 10 operating system. Some of the earlier versions of Windows 10 show Command Prompt entries instead of the Windows PowerShell from places such as File Explorer and the Win+X Quick Links menu. If you see Command Prompt instead of PowerShell, you can either change it in the Settings app or update to a newer version of the operating system from the Settings app.

Method One: How to Open Elevated Windows PowerShell from All Apps in Start Menu

Here is how you can open the elevated version of the Windows PowerShell from the All Apps list in the Start menu:

1. Open the Start menu.

2. Scroll down the list of All Apps and click on the Windows PowerShell entry to expand it.

3. Right-click on the version of Windows PowerShell that you want to open and then hover over More and then click on Run as administrator.

Method Two: How to Open Elevated Windows PowerShell in Search

Here is how you can open the elevated version of the Windows PowerShell directly from Cortana Search in the taskbar in Windows:

1. Open Search by pressing the Windows logo + S keys on your keyboard.

2. Type Windows PowerShell and then click on the Windows PowerShell desktop app which appears under the best match section.

Method Three: How to Open Elevated Windows PowerShell from Task Manager

Here is how you can open the elevated version of the Windows PowerShell from the Task Manager in Windows:

1. Open the Task Manager.

2. From the Task Manager menu, click on File and then Run new task.

3. In the available field, type PowerShell and then click on OK.

Method Four: How to Open Elevated Windows PowerShell from Power User Menu

Here is how you can open the elevated version of the Windows PowerShell from the Power User menu in Windows:

1. Open the Power User menu by pressing the Windows logo + X keys on your keyboard, or by right-clicking on the Start menu.

Method Five: How to “Open Elevated Windows PowerShell Here” in File Explorer

You can open the Windows PowerShell from a device or drive in File Explorer in Windows.

1. Open the File Explorer.

2. From File Explorer’s navigation pane, click on the This PC and then under Device and drives, select one of the devices or drives.

3. From the menu, click on File and then hover over Open Windows PowerShell and then click on Open PowerShell as administrato.

Method Six: How to Open Elevated Windows PowerShell from File Explorer

Here is how you can open the elevated version of the Windows PowerShell from the apps’ context menu in File Explorer in Windows:

1. Open File Explorer.

2. Starting with File Explorer’s navigation pane, head to the following set of folders:

C:\Windows\System32\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0

3. Right-click on the powershell app and then click on Run as administrator from the context menu.
You could also select the powershell app by clicking on it once, click on File from the File Explorer ribbon, and then click on Run as administrator.

That’s all.