Understanding the Standard User Analyzer Tool

Applies To: Windows 7, Windows Vista

The Standard User Analyzer (SUA) tool enables you to test your applications and to monitor API calls to detect potential compatibility issues due to the User Account Control (UAC) feature in both Windows® Vista and Windows® 7. UAC, formerly known as Limited User Account (LUA), requires that all users (including members of the Administrator group) run as Standard Users, until the application is deliberately elevated, by using the security prompt dialog box. However, not all applications can run properly with the Standard User role, due to the application requiring access and privileges for locations that are unavailable to a Standard User.

Important

SUA requires the use of the Application Verifier. You will receive a download prompt if the Application Verifier is not already installed on the computer running SUA. For more information about the Application Verifier and its error codes and messages, see the Application Verifier online Help system, within the Application Verifier product.

Standard User Analyzer Tool Interface

The following image shows the SUA tool, with the App Info tab selected. This is the tab that appears by default when you open and start to use the tool.

Note

This image also shows all of the available views, including the detailed information panes and the error, informational, and warning messages.

Standard User Analyzer Tool Menus

The SUA tool enables you to perform several tasks from the menu bar, relating to the log files, information views, noise filters, and mitigation management.

File menu	Description
Open Log File	Opens the Open Log File dialog box, which enables you to search for the SUA log (.cab) file.
Save Log File	Opens the Save Log File dialog box, which enables you to save your SUA log (.cab) file.
Export Summary Report	Opens the Save Issue Summary File dialog box, which enables you to save a summary of your issues as a .txt file.
Exit	Closes the SUA tool.

View menu	Description
Error Messages	Select this option to view any error messages (shown with a pink highlight) generated by SUA. This view is enabled by default.
Warning Messages	Select this option to view any warning messages (shown with a yellow highlight) generated by SUA.
Information Messages	Select this option to view any informational messages (shown with a green highlight) generated by SUA.
Detailed Information	Select this option to view more detailed information, including any debug, stack trace, stop code, and severity information, generated by SUA.

Options menu	Description
Filter Noise	Enables you to filter out noise in the issues. This command is enabled by default.
Load Noise Filter File	Opens the Open Noise Filter File dialog box, which enables you to load an existing noise filter (.xml) file.
Export Noise Filter File	Opens the Save Noise Filter File dialog box, which enables you to save a noise filter (.xml) file.
Only Display Records with Application Name in StackTrace	Enables you to reduce the noise. However, because SUA captures only the first 32 stack frames, it is possible that you might filter out real issues with call stacks deeper than 32 frames.
Show More Details in StackTrace	Enables you to view additional stack frames that are related to SUA, but not to the diagnosed application.
Warn Before Deleting AppVerifier Logs	Enables you to receive a warning message before SUA deletes all of the existing SUA-related log files on the computer. This command is enabled by default.
Logging	Enables you to choose your logging-related options, including whether to log error messages, whether to log warning messages, and whether to log informational messages. Note To maintain a manageable file size, we recommend that you do not log the informational messages.

Mitigation menu	Description
Apply Mitigations	Opens the Mitigate AppCompat Issues dialog box, which enables you to select the application fixes that you intend to apply to the application.
Undo Mitigations	Enables you to remove the application fixes that you just applied to the application. Important This option is available only after you apply an application fix but before you close SUA. After you close SUA, the Undo Mitigations feature is unavailable to remove the fix. If you want to remove the fix, you can do so manually from the Programs and Features window in the Control Panel.
Export Mitigations as MSI	Enables you to export your application fixes as a Windows® Installer (.msi) file, which can then be deployed to other computers running the same application.

Help menu	Description
Check for New Version	Takes you to the ACT Download Web site for updates and the latest news about ACT and SUA.
About	Displays the SUA version number.

Standard User Analyzer Tab Details

The following sections provide details about each of the tabs that are available in SUA.

Tab name	Description
App Info	Provides information as it relates to the selected application, including debugging information; error, warning, and informational messages (if enabled); and the application launch and launch-option selections.
File	Provides information about file system access issues. For example, you might see an issue for any application that attempts to write to a file that can typically be accessed only by Administrators.
Registry	Provides information about system registry access issues. For example, you might see an issue for any application that attempts to write to a registry key, located in the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE registry hive, which can typically be accessed only by Administrators.
INI	Provides information about WriteProfile API issues. For example, if you open the Calculator tool (Calc.exe) in the Windows XP operating system, and then change the view from Standard to Scientific, Calc.exe will call the WriteProfile API to write to the Windows\Win.ini file, which is writeable only by Administrators.
Token	Provides information about access-token checking issues. For example, you might see an issue for any application that explicitly checks for the Builtin\Administrators security identifier (SID) in the user's access token. Typically, you will find that this application will not work for a Standard User.
Privilege	Provides information about privilege issues. For example, you might see an issue for any application that explicitly enables SeDebugPrivilege, as it will not work for a Standard User.
Name Space	Provides information about system object creation issues. For example, you might see an issue for any application that attempts to create a new system object, such as an event or a memory map, in a restricted namespace. Applications that produce this error will not function for a Standard User.
Other Objects	Provides information related to applications accessing objects other than files and registry keys.
Process	Provides information about process elevation issues. For example, an application that uses the CreateProcess API to start an executable (.exe) file that, in turn, requires process elevation will not function for a Standard User in the Windows 7 operating system.

See Also

Concepts

Using the Standard User Analyzer Tool
Standard User Analyzer Technical Reference
Mitigating Issues by Using Compatibility Fixes