With the default installation settings, most of the classic desktop programs create their shortcut icons on the desktop upon installing them. While some programs offer an option to install programs without creating the desktop shortcut, some not. Program shortcuts usually have a shortcut icon over them to indicate that they are, well, shortcuts.
As you might have observed, some programs create desktop shortcuts with a shield icon on them. As you can see in the picture below, the yellow and blue shield icon shows up on the lower right area of some program shortcuts.
What’s the shield icon on program shortcuts?
The yellow and blue shield icon indicates that the program will always require administrator rights to run. In other words, it will always run as administrator. When you double-click on a program shortcut which has the shield icon on it, you will get the User Account Control screen (unless you have disabled the UAC) where you need to click the Yes button to run the program with admin rights.
A large number of PC users either hide desktop icons or don’t prefer to have program shortcuts on the desktop. That said, there are users who prefer to have program shortcuts on the desktop so that they can launch programs quickly and easily.
If you are one of those users who keep program shortcuts on the desktop, you might want to get rid of the yellow and blue shield to give all program icons a uniform look. Luckily, with a little bit of effort, you can remove the shield icon from the desktop shortcuts without hampering their functionality.
Remove the yellow and blue shield icon from program icons
Step 1: Right-click on the desktop icon that has the shield icon over it and then click the Properties option.
Step 2: Switch to the Shortcut tab. In the Target box, add the following path at the beginning of the existing target path.
cmd /c start “”
Step 3: Click the Apply button. If you get the Access denied dialog, click the Continue button. Close the dialog box. That’s it! The program shortcut on the desktop will no longer display the blue and yellow shield icon, but it will continue to prompt the UAC screen upon double-clicking on it. You might notice a small delay (negligible) while launching the program now.
If the original program icon is replaced with a Command Prompt icon or any other icon, right-click on the shortcut icon and then click Properties. Note the path to executable of the program in the Targets field. Switch to the Shortcut tab, click the Change icon button, click the Browse button, navigate to the executable of the program, select it and then click the Open button to see the original icon. Click the OK button, click Continue when you get the Access Denied dialog, and then click the Apply button.
To restore the old behavior of the program shortcut, delete the newly added path (cmd /c start “”) from the target field.
Shark Trager says
Not working. Yes, the shield is gone but the icons became useless. I got this message when trying to execute the program by double-clicking on the icon.
Windows cannot find “””C:\Program Files\(Path of the said program).exe”‘. Make sure you type the name correctly, and then try again.
Sandy Wood says
Thank you so much! That was driving me crazy and I wouldn’t have figured it out on my own.