# Installing Cursor with User Setup to Avoid Admin Privileges **URL:** \ **Category:** Help\ **Created:** [October 8, 2024, 5:27pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/installing-cursor-with-user-setup-to-avoid-admin-privileges/21691 "2024-10-08T17:27:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Londjide](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/londjide/32/7523_2.png) [@Londjide](https://forum.cursor.com/u/Londjide)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2024, 5:27pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/installing-cursor-with-user-setup-to-avoid-admin-privileges/21691/1 "2024-10-08T17:27:57Z")
Hi everyone, I’m trying to install Cursor on my Windows machine, but I need to do it without admin privileges, ideally with a “user setup” option. Unfortunately, I don’t have administrative rights on my computer and can’t modify system-wide directories. Does anyone have experience installing Cursor as a standard user? Perhaps there’s a portable version or a workaround that allows installation without requiring admin access? Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance. ---
**Author:** ![OldProgrammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/oldprogrammer/32/82341_2.png) [@OldProgrammer](https://forum.cursor.com/u/OldProgrammer)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2025, 3:28pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/installing-cursor-with-user-setup-to-avoid-admin-privileges/21691/2 "2025-10-07T15:28:59Z")
I have installed with a user setup and am not able to install extensions. ---
**Author:** ![deanrie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/deanrie/32/1263_2.png) [@deanrie](https://forum.cursor.com/u/deanrie)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2025, 4:34pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/installing-cursor-with-user-setup-to-avoid-admin-privileges/21691/3 "2025-10-07T16:34:32Z")
Hey, are you getting any errors? ---
**Author:** ![OldProgrammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/oldprogrammer/32/82341_2.png) [@OldProgrammer](https://forum.cursor.com/u/OldProgrammer)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2025, 2:12am UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/installing-cursor-with-user-setup-to-avoid-admin-privileges/21691/4 "2025-10-08T02:12:22Z")
Yes. The error I am getting is: `The editor could not be opened due to an unexpected error. Please consult the log for more details.` ---
**Author:** ![deanrie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/deanrie/32/1263_2.png) [@deanrie](https://forum.cursor.com/u/deanrie)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2025, 4:18am UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/installing-cursor-with-user-setup-to-avoid-admin-privileges/21691/5 "2025-10-08T04:18:11Z")
Try a few steps to fix this problem: 1. Install the User Setup version: - Make sure to download the version labeled “User Setup”, not “System Setup” - It installs to your user folder and doesn’t require admin rights - This is especially important if you’re on a corporate machine with restrictions You can download the latest version here: [Download · Cursor](https://cursor.com/download) 1. If it doesn’t start after installation: 2. Settings conflicts: 3. Access issues: 4. Error logs: Let me know if any of these solutions helped. ---
**Author:** ![OldProgrammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/oldprogrammer/32/82341_2.png) [@OldProgrammer](https://forum.cursor.com/u/OldProgrammer)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2025, 11:08am UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/installing-cursor-with-user-setup-to-avoid-admin-privileges/21691/6 "2025-10-08T11:08:48Z")
I have the usersetup installed. My issue is that I am unable to install any extensions. I don’t see a settings folder in my installation. ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/original/3X/a/f/af3532fd1688a994a1eb273b21930fa1d50b6dc3.png) ---
**Author:** ![deanrie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/deanrie/32/1263_2.png) [@deanrie](https://forum.cursor.com/u/deanrie)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2025, 11:15am UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/installing-cursor-with-user-setup-to-avoid-admin-privileges/21691/7 "2025-10-08T11:15:51Z")
Check if you have this folder at the following path. If it’s missing, create it manually: `%USERPROFILE%\.cursor\extensions` ---
**Author:** ![OldProgrammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/oldprogrammer/32/82341_2.png) [@OldProgrammer](https://forum.cursor.com/u/OldProgrammer)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2025, 3:40pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/installing-cursor-with-user-setup-to-avoid-admin-privileges/21691/8 "2025-10-08T15:40:06Z")
I do seem to have this folder. ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/original/3X/0/b/0becc9041f8e92d915fa3b9260b40a86cacadbb3.png) ---
**Author:** ![deanrie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/deanrie/32/1263_2.png) [@deanrie](https://forum.cursor.com/u/deanrie)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2025, 4:34pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/installing-cursor-with-user-setup-to-avoid-admin-privileges/21691/9 "2025-10-08T16:34:54Z")
Try fully reinstalling Cursor by deleting two folders: ```auto %APPDATA%\Cursor %USERPROFILE%\.cursor ```