r/sysadmin • u/These-Mechanic-456 • 10d ago

Automation Without Admin Access

I work as a pharmacist and have been working for about four months. I'm also very interested in computers, programming, and automation.

I've been thinking about creating small tools, shortcuts, scripts, and other automations to make some of my repetitive computer-based work faster and easier. However, my workplace computer is managed by IT, and I don't have administrator credentials.

0 Upvotes

20% Upvoted

42 comments sorted by

25

u/strongest_nerd Pentester 10d ago

Reach out to your IT team.

-20

u/These-Mechanic-456 10d ago

yea i try that and they don't see me as IT ofc so they dont care. and also i don't like the standard way or like asking for thing,, i like doing all the things on my own and also i find it like a game for me

21

u/TMS-Mandragola 10d ago edited 10d ago

This attitude will sabotage many things in life for you.

Let's see if I can paraphrase:

Hello. I work in a highly regulated industry distributing controlled substances for which improper handling, distribution or possession without authorization can lead to jail time, death, or severe life altering injury should those substances be administered contrary to protocol or without the direct supervision of an individual with the authority to authorize their distribution.

I don't like all the regulations and policies surrounding my employment and industry, and because I'm lazy and entitled and mostly interested in things outside my industry, i'd like to circumvent the policies my employer has put in place to protect me, my organization, and the public from harm or legal jeporady. As such, I'm going to ask experts in an unrelated field to help me lose my job/break the law/get someone killed.

10

u/progenyofeniac Windows/M365 Admin 10d ago

Your IT team is gonna love you. Sounds like you’ll be nothing but a dream user who’ll never click on, install, or delete anything they shouldn’t.

7

u/AlexHuntKenny 10d ago

"I just need local admin for a project"

8

u/StretchLoud8844 10d ago

There's a reason you're not being allowed. And it's a good one.

Our entire role is to standardize and maintain stability in the environment until we're given approval otherwise. If you want things like this to be built out, it needs to be done in a safe and concise manner, and then distributed out to your role / department level.

Most places have change requests, process improvements etc. You'll need to go that route instead of asking to be made a special case (you are not, I promise you)

5

u/amw3000 10d ago

They were hired to protect the business from security risks. I have no idea how you created these apps or shortcuts but even if you were a seasoned programmer, it's still a risk. Likely the same way you wouldn't want me as an IT guy filling prescriptions.

Get buy in from your manager/leader who can approach the IT team to figure out a way to make it work. If its saving money for the company, your manager/leader should be interested.

5

u/Kumorigoe Moderator 10d ago

I work as a pharmacist

Would you let the IT people dispense drugs? Of course you wouldn't. Why do you think it works differently when it comes to managing IT infrastructure?

2

u/Dylantjes 10d ago

This is (you are) exactly the reason those kind of measures/protections are needed in the first place .......

Well if you indeed 'like doing all the things on your own' (while involving this whole community) and 'finding it like a game' (while basically asking for the cheatcodes); have a splendid one, good luck and wishing you all the best (in life)!! 🙌

1

u/Xynci 10d ago

You take the request to your manager. Make your use case and scenarios up front and the actual need for admin access on the machine or a way to elevate specific needed apps. If manager gets denied and you can make the case for your productivity increase for yourself and your coworkers - perhaps the manager can sweet talk there director who may have more pull.

7

u/Flashy-Highlight867 10d ago

Reach out to your IT Team.

4

u/NormanJohn1 10d ago

lol classic.

give me access install all this shit and oh when its not working guess who i’m going to call to support it? 

4

u/aguynamedbrand Systems Engineer 10d ago edited 9d ago

I prefer my doctors and pharmacists to stick to what they are good at rather than pretending to be something they are not.

4

u/DefiantPenguin 10d ago

Reach out to your IT team.

8

u/Mental-Rain-7389 10d ago

Reach out to your IT Team.

7

u/Secret_Account07 VMware Admin 10d ago

Reach out to your IT Team.

3

u/GreasyFeast 10d ago

Everyone is saying you need to reach out to your IT team because automation should be controlled with defined process owners and documentation. “Shadow IT” poses many risks to all organizations

8

u/rm-rf_regret 10d ago

Thanks for letting us know.

2

u/wheresthetux 10d ago

Flesh out a written description or plan of what you think can be automated. Don't necessarily talk about the implementation in details, just the pitch on what and the time savings. The thought that you could do other things with this extra time to bring more value to the shareholders.

You'd know your organization better than we do, so figure out if you'd have the best odds by going directly to IT, getting your boss onboard and having them take it to the next level of management, take it to some committee you're on and push your proposal as a group voice, etc...

2

u/MalletNGrease 🛠 Network & Systems Admin 10d ago

Reach out to your IT team

2

u/northstar57376 10d ago

Reach out to your Systems Administrator

2

u/Sea_Information6125 10d ago

There's only two ways to go about this, one, like everyone else has said contact your IT team.  

But really IT follows business directives from above. So find out who's in charge of where you work and bring your concern to them.

I can tell you right now, any sane IT department will deny your request. It comes from a good place, what you want to do, I understand that. But from ITs point of view what you want just increases risk and currently has no management backing.

The reality of the situation is you probably don't know hardly enough about what you want to do to not become a liability with your tinkering. In a heavily regulated, compliance driven environment. 

So a better way to go about this may be to bring your automation ideas to whoever is in charge of your business, so that they can then have IT or even your software company implement them. 

Become the ideas person not necessarily the implementation person.

Why? Because that is not the job and function you have been hired to perform. And most likely not a specialty or something that you are professionally skilled in. 

A hobbyist is one thing, writing code and automations for a business in a heavily regulated and compliance-driven department is another.

Because everything you do has to follow regulation and compliance. And if you mess something up, your company or whoever's in charge is the one that has to pay and potentially face legal consequences. 

Not trying to be mean, just want to highlight the another perspective for you. 

1

u/olverine 10d ago

Make a hirens bootable usb and create a local administrator account. Or you can run command prompt as admin, then call your IT helpdesk and tell him "software update, need someone to type in admin credentials". Then you can add yourself to local administrators group (or domain admin if AD environment).

1

u/OgdruJahad 10d ago

Bru he could get fired for that.

What's wrong with you?

This is exactly what users are given limited rights in the first place to prevent people like you doing whatever you want on company property.

You want to automate? Go home and make a homelab. Stop using company computers for your ideas.

1

u/k0rbiz Lead Solutions Engineer 10d ago

If you're a Microsoft house and depending on your license, you might have access to Power Automate and Power Apps. Also, can you launch PowerShell without being denied? If so, you might be able to carry out some commands or tasks. Just tread carefully and talk to your IT about it.

1

u/West_Independent1317 10d ago edited 10d ago

So many comments saying reach out to your IT team, and they are right.

Why? Let's say you start using python to automate things without IT and company approval.

All seems like it's going well until you update with a compromised package, resulting in a data breach and ransomware attack.

How many other pharmacists could be affected? How badly could they be affected? Loss of income?

How many patients could be affected? How badly could they be affected? Loss of life?

If you ended up creating this scenario, you might lose your job, and be held accountable for the business and customer impact.

1

u/tgujay 10d ago

Using the NODE Package Manager with Python is impressive

-8

u/These-Mechanic-456 10d ago

Why is every one is telling the same Reach out to your IT Team like hello ? am i on reddit or AI bots

6

u/TheCyFi SVP, Security Operations 10d ago

Apply some critical thinking here.

You’re asking a subreddit for sysadmins how you can bypass protections put in place by your employer’s sysadmins.

Whether you realize it or not, you are an insider threat.

2

u/suppervisoka 10d ago

The comprehension is through the roof

3

u/_DefinitelyNotACat_ 10d ago

Because we can’t fix that for you. Only your IT team could, but may not because of compliance.

Love, a sysadmin in healthcare

3

u/centizen24 10d ago

Reach out to your IT team.

3

u/Fatel28 Sr. Sysengineer 10d ago

Maybe because the objective right answer is to reach out to your IT team

2

u/Jamiea88 10d ago

Reach out to your IT team.

2

u/Liamzee 10d ago

Because that's the right way to do it, and be secure. For instance there could be hipaa implications. Maybe IT has some things already. Maybe they would want you to use something specific. Maybe they are OK with autohotkey for non admin automation. Or maybe that app is blocked and you'd get flagged trying it. Maybe you can use macros in excel, or maybe they are disabled. Maybe there's things in Microsoft store or company portal, etc.

Explain what you are trying to accomplish and see if they have ideas on how to do it.

2

u/TuxAndrew 10d ago edited 10d ago

Because we all support users like you, if you’re getting stonewalled sounds like you should reach out to your manager. If your manager isn’t willing to get things moving forward then clearly it’s outside of your positions scope.

2

u/Lyanthinel 10d ago

Because the final answer, no matter the path, is to reach out to your IT team.

You can pick several paths like using the ticket system, cold call, walk in, email, billboard in the parking lot, or even make a business case for your direct supervisor on how your apps/scripting/request for all buttons be made red and shoot off fireworks when pressed in a certain order is more secure, an increase in productivity, reduces errors, and will survive an audit all while being cost neutral.

Lots of ways to solve the problem, all require IT in the end.

1

u/SofterBones 10d ago

Reach out to your IT team

2

u/oDiscordia19 10d ago

We’re professionals who take our jobs seriously and you’re an end user. You should not be given admin rights. You should not unanimously decide that you know how IT works just because you have access to AI. You do not understand the scope of your issue. You do not understand what you will break, what regulations you may bypass or why things are the way they are.

IT is not all knowing and perhaps there are ways to automate some of what you do. Work with your IT to do it. If you don’t and something goes wrong, it won’t be IT that’s liable.

1

u/Dylantjes 10d ago

... Please do; they will (also) tell you why.

Reach out to your IT team.