[German]The August 12, 2025 security updates for Windows have resulted in users of various products suddenly seeing a user account control prompt for administrator rights. Microsoft has now confirmed that the August 2025 updates are causing this problem in Windows 10 and Windows 11. Windows Server is also affected.
Review of the UAC problem
I first received information about problems after installing the August 2025 updates in relation to AutoCAD. Both blog readers and forum posts pointed to a problem with AutoCAD as soon as the August 2025 updates were installed on Windows. After starting AutoCAD for the first time, the UAC prompt opens and admin rights are requested. The cause is the Microsoft updates from August 12, 2025 (see Patchday: Windows 10/11 Updates (August 12, 2025)). It later became apparent that many other software packages were affected. I reported on the problem in the blog post AutoCAD, Firefox, SAP requests admin rights after Windows August 2025 updates (MSI error 1730) and also outlined a temporary workaround to suppress the UAC prompt, at least temporarily.
Microsoft confirms the UAC issue
On September 3, 2025, Microsoft confirmed in the Windows Release Health Dashboard for various Windows versions that there is an issue. The support article Non-admins might receive unexpected UAC prompts when doing MSI repair operations states that the Windows security updates from August 12, 2025 (e.g., KB5063878) and later updates contain a security improvement.
The requirement for administrator rights when performing Windows Installer (MSI) repairs via User Account Control (UAC) is to be enforced. This is intended to fix the CVE-2025-50173 security vulnerability. This vulnerability exists because weak authentication in Windows Installer allows an authorized attacker to elevate their privileges locally.
Various software packages with MSI installers affected
This problem can affect applications that use Windows Installer (MSI), such as Autodesk AutoCAD or Office Professional Plus 2010. In my blog post, I also mentioned SAP software and Firefox. Even with the PhotoFiltre application, which runs portably here, User Account Control occasionally pops up and asks whether the application is allowed to make changes to the system.
Scenarios in which the UAC message appears
Microsoft states that after installing the Windows security update from August 12, 2025 (and later updates), the UAC prompts for administrator rights may appear for standard users in the following scenarios:
- Running MSI repair commands (e.g., msiexec /fu)
- Launching Autodesk applications, including some versions of AutoCAD, Civil 3D, and Inventor CAM, or installing an MSI file after a user logs into the application for the first time.
- Installing applications that configure themselves per user.
- Running Windows Installer during active setup.
- Deploying packages via Manager Configuration Manager (ConfigMgr) based on user-specific "advertising" configurations.
- Enabling Secure Desktop.
If a standard user launches an application that initiates an MSI repair process without displaying the user interface, it fails with an error message and error 1730 is displayed (this is the case with Office Professional Plus 2010).
Which versions of Windows are affected?
Unfortunately, all Windows clients from Windows 10 onwards are affected, as listed below:
- Windows 10 Enterprise 2015 LTSC
- Windows 10 Enterprise 2016 LTSC
- Windows 10 Enterprise 2019 LTSC
- Windows 10 Versionen 21H2 und 22H2
- Windows 11 Versionen 22H2, 23H2 und 24H2
The following versions of Windows Server are also affected:
- Windows Server 2012
- Windows Server 2012 R2
- Windows Server 2016
- Windows Server 2019
- Windows Server Version 1809
- Windows Server 2022
- Windows Server 2025
In my blog post AutoCAD, Firefox, SAP requests admin rights after Windows August 2025 updates (MSI error 1730), I listed some of the affected Windows versions and the KB articles that caused the problem.
Microsoft suggests workarounds
Microsoft has suggested several workarounds in its support article Non-admins might receive unexpected UAC prompts when doing MSI repair operations
One option is to run the affected application with administrator rights (search for it in the Start menu, right-click on the result, and select Run as administrator from the context menu). However, this option will only be available to very few users.
To enable standard users to use the application without UAC prompts, IT administrators in managed environments can perform a Known Issue Rollback (KIR) using a special group policy. This group policy is available for the following Windows versions:
- Windows Server 2025
- Windows Server 2022
- Windows 11 Version 22H2, 23H2, 24H2
- Windows 10 Version 21H2, 22H2
To obtain the KIR Group Policy, affected parties must contact Microsoft Support for Business. IT administrators are strongly advised to avoid other workarounds such as disabling related features (this likely includes the workaround I mentioned in my post AutoCAD, Firefox, SAP requests admin rights after Windows August 2025 updates (MSI error 1730).
Microsoft is working to resolve this issue. IT administrators will be given the option to allow certain apps to perform MSI repair operations without UAC prompts. This improvement will be released in a future Windows update. Details are not yet available.
Similar articles:
Microsoft Security Update Summary (August 12, 2025)
Patchday: Windows 10/11 Updates (August 12, 2025)
Patchday: Windows Server Updates (August 12, 2025)
Patchday: Microsoft Office Updates (August 12, 2025)
Windows 11 24H2: Update KB5063878 causes installation error 0x80240069
Windows 11 24H2: KIR fix for WSUS installation error 0x80240069 with update KB5063878
Windows 11 24H2: Update KB5063878 as a re-release for WSUS (August 14, 2025)
Windows 11 24H2: Does the Aug. 2025 update KB5063878 cause SSD errors?
Windows 11 24H2: Microsoft investigates reports of SSD issues caused by KB5063878
Windows 11 24H2: Preview update KB5062660 causes CertificateServicesClient error events
Windows 10/11: Aug. 2025 updates cause streaming problems
AutoCAD, Firefox, SAP requests admin rights after Windows August 2025 updates (MSI error 1730)
So, a very long article which should state that advertised shortcuts in MSIs are triggering UAC prompts.