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Error message when you try to open Task Manager on a Windows XP-based computer: "Task Manager has been disabled by your Administrator"

Article ID: 913623 - View products that this article applies to.

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SYMPTOMS

When you try to open Task Manager on a Microsoft Windows XP-based computer, you receive the following error message:

Task Manager has been disabled by your Administrator.

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CAUSE

This issue occurs when one of the following conditions is true:

The local administrator disabled Task Manager by modifying the DisableTaskMgr registry entry.
The domain administrator disabled Task Manager by using Group Policy.
A virus or a third-party program disabled Task Manager by modifying the DisableTaskMgr registry entry.
The current user account has restricted permissions.

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Important This section, method, or task contains steps that tell you how to modify the registry. However, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For added protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

322756

(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/322756/ )

How to back up and restore the registry in Windows

To resolve this issue, set the value of the DisableTaskMgr registry entry to 0 (zero).

Note This registry entry will revert to its original setting, and Task Manager will be disabled again unless one of the following actions is performed:

The Group Policy setting is changed on the domain.
The local policy setting is changed on the client.

To set the DisableTaskMgr registry entry value to 0 for a specific user, follow these steps:

Log off from the computer.
Log on to the computer by using a user account that has administrative permissions.
Click Start, click Run, type regedit in the Open box, and then click OK.
In the left pane, click the following registry subkey:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System
In the right pane, double-click DisableTaskMgr.
In the Value data box, type 0, and then click OK.
On the File menu, click Exit.
Restart the computer.

To set the DisableTaskMgr registry entry value to 0 for all users, follow these steps:

Log off from the computer.
Log on to the computer by using a user account that has administrative permissions.
Click Start, click Run, type regedit in the Open box, and then click OK.
In the left pane, click the following registry subkey:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System
In the right pane, double-click DisableTaskMgr.
In the Value data box, type 0, and then click OK.
On the File menu, click Exit.
Restart the computer.