Insufficient permissions to change routes

[gjf]

After normal install OpenVPN client has no permissions to create routes:

Thu Oct 04 20:09:10 2018 ERROR: Windows route add command failed: returned error code 1
Thu Oct 04 20:09:10 2018 env_block: add PATH=C:\WINDOWS\System32;C:\WINDOWS;C:\WINDOWS\System32\Wbem
Thu Oct 04 20:09:10 2018 ERROR: Windows route add command failed: returned error code 1
Thu Oct 04 20:09:10 2018 env_block: add PATH=C:\WINDOWS\System32;C:\WINDOWS;C:\WINDOWS\System32\Wbem
Thu Oct 04 20:09:10 2018 ERROR: Windows route add command failed: returned error code 1
Thu Oct 04 20:09:10 2018 env_block: add PATH=C:\WINDOWS\System32;C:\WINDOWS;C:\WINDOWS\System32\Wbem
Thu Oct 04 20:09:10 2018 ERROR: Windows route add command failed: returned error code 1
Thu Oct 04 20:09:10 2018 env_block: add PATH=C:\WINDOWS\System32;C:\WINDOWS;C:\WINDOWS\System32\Wbem
Thu Oct 04 20:09:10 2018 ERROR: Windows route add command failed: returned error code 1
Thu Oct 04 20:09:10 2018 Initialization Sequence Completed

The problem can be solved when starting with administrator permissions - but why installer does not change it by default?

[Selva Nair]

This should not happen if OpenVPN is started using the GUI. If it does, check why the interactive service is not running.

Run as admin is not the default because 2.4.x is not supposed to be run as admin --- either use the GUI which will start it as normal user and use the interactive service for privileged tasks or set to start on boot using OpenVPNService which will start it with necessary (and some) privileges.

Advanced users who need to run from command line need to use an elevated command prompt.

[tct]

This may be of help: ​https://community.openvpn.net/openvpn/wiki/OpenVPN-GUI-New

[Gert Döring]

As Selva said - if run from the GUI, route installation will be done by the interactive service (and if that is not running, the GUI will print a warning).

If run from the command line, you need to have admin privs (for that cmd.exe window).