Open Nautilus as Administrator in Ubuntu

This guide walks you through opening File Manager (Nautilus) as an administrator in Ubuntu Linux.

In Ubuntu Linux, you log in as a standard user. To perform administrative tasks, you use the sudo command to gain root (administrator) privileges.

Once you’re logged in as a standard user, opening File Manager or Nautilus with root privileges is challenging. A tool called nautilus-admin used to work, but it no longer does.

Once installed, this tool claims to let you open files and folders as an administrator from the context menu. I tried it, but it didn’t work as expected. While it installs correctly, it still prevented me from deleting files owned by the root user.

Having the ability to edit files and open folders as root or administrator can be quite useful. Below, I will show you how to accomplish this.

This post assumes you are a member of the sudoers file or can run the sudo command.

Without the ability to run the sudo command, the steps below will not work.

To run File Manager as root, press the keyboard shortcut Ctrl — Alt — T to open the terminal console.

Once the terminal is open, run the commands below to launch the file manager as an administrator.

sudo nautilus

It will prompt you to type your password. If you have the necessary permissions, the file manager (Nautilus) will open with administrator or root privileges.

You won’t be able to browse or delete folders that are in use by a process or another user.

That should do it!

Conclusion:

• Opening File Manager as an administrator in Ubuntu Linux can be useful for editing files and managing folders that require root privileges.
• The traditional terminal method and running “sudo nautilus” still works for opening File Manager with root access.
• While third-party tools like nautilus-admin may not function as expected, the sudo command remains a reliable option for accessing File Manager with elevated privileges.
• Following the steps outlined in this post, users can effectively utilize root or administrative privileges to perform necessary tasks within File Manager.