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Consent.exe: What Is It & Should You Delete It?

Disable the UAC setting to stop getting permission prompts

5 min. read

Updated onApril 2, 2024

updated onApril 2, 2024

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Key notes

When an application needs to perform tasks that requireadministrative privileges, such as installing new software or updating system files, it needs your consent hence why you may see the consent.exe file in your system.

If you’ve been wondering whether you need this file on your PC, we unpack what the consent.exe file does and its importance in this article.

What is the consent UI for administrative applications?

The consent.exe file is a Windows-based executable used to interact with the user and verify their consent to perform certain actions, such as installing a software program or changing the computer’s settings.

Sometimes, you can download an application but are unsure what it does or how it works. It is best not to allow it to run within your computer until you have researched what it does and whether it is safe to install on your computer.

You’ll most likely find the consent.exe file in theC:\Windows\System32folder. Anywhere else should be a red flag, as it could be a virus masquerading as the real file.

It’s a known fact that you cannot get all the apps you need from Windows Microsoft Store. Sometimes, you’ll need todownload non-Microsoft programsfrom third-party sites.

They may be necessary, but you risk inviting viruses, trojans, and malware into your system, especially without acomprehensive antivirus.

Here is where the consent.exe program comes in. As part of the UAC, it ensures that any changes you make to your PC are approved. If consent.exe sees suspicious activity, it will stop the process from executing and ask whether you want to allow this action.

While it may be an additional layer of security, a section of users has reported that having this file in their system brings up more problems than it solves.

For instance, some are experiencingPC freezes,random crashes, andhigh CPU usage. If you notice that consent.exe takes up a lot of CPU or RAM resources, or if it’s constantly running in the background, you might want to disable it.

How can I disable the consent.exe file?

Start with the following preliminary steps before the more complex solutions:

1. Use Settings

Keeping this setting at Never notify is, however, not recommended because it allows non-administrators access to specific system functions without requiring them to elevate privileges each time they do so.

This is very dangerous, especially when using a shared computer, because other users can install malware into your system, and you wouldn’t know it until it is too late.

2. Use the Registry

Remember tocreate a backup of your Registryso that in case anything goes wrong, you won’t lose your data. Also, check out our article on variousways to disable the UAC.

The above steps are for the genuine consent.exe file. If you suspect it may be a virus, follow the next steps to remove it.

3. Run DISM and SFC scans

Alternatively, you can go forspecialized repair softwareto make sure you get rid of all your Windows stability errors.

4. Scan for viruses

5. Perform a System Restore

When disabling consent.exe, you may run intothis app can’t be activated UAC disablederror, so follow through our helpful guide to bypass this issue.

For any additional thoughts, let us know in the comments below.

Consent.exe: What Is It & Should You Delete It?#

What is the consent UI for administrative applications?#

How can I disable the consent.exe file?#

1. Use Settings#

2. Use the Registry#

3. Run DISM and SFC scans#

4. Scan for viruses#

5. Perform a System Restore#