Admin Toolbox

A unified Windows desktop dashboard for launching RSAT and built-in administration tools under domain admin credentials — sign in once, launch everything.

Built with WPF (.NET 9) and WPF UI for a native Windows 11 Fluent Design look and feel.

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Screenshots

Login	Dashboard

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Features

• Credential-gated launch — Sign in once with your domain admin account (UPN or SAM format). All MMC snap-ins are launched using CreateProcessWithLogonW with LOGON_NETCREDENTIALS_ONLY (equivalent to runas /netonly).
• Dynamic tool detection — Automatically scans the system for installed .msc snap-ins and only shows available tools. Hit the refresh button to re-scan after installing new features.
• 21 admin tools — Covers both RSAT role administration tools (AD, DHCP, DNS, GPO, Print, Certificates, DFS) and built-in Windows tools (Services, Event Viewer, Task Scheduler, Computer Management, and more).
• System tray integration — Minimize to the notification area. Double-click to restore. Tray context menu for Show, Lock, and Exit.
• Lock / credential wipe — Lock button clears credentials from memory (SecureString, zeroed on disposal) and returns to the login screen.
• Smooth scrolling — The tool grid uses frame-rate-synced lerp scrolling for fluid navigation.
• Single-instance enforcement — Launching the shortcut while the app is already running (even when minimized to tray) brings the existing window to the foreground.
• Remember last username — The login screen pre-fills the username from the previous session.
• Double-click protection — Tool tiles are temporarily disabled after click to prevent duplicate launches.

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Included Tools

RSAT Role Administration Tools

These require the corresponding RSAT Windows capability to be installed:

Tool	Snap-in	RSAT Capability
AD Users & Computers	dsa.msc	Rsat.ActiveDirectory.DS-LDS.Tools
AD Domains and Trusts	domain.msc	Rsat.ActiveDirectory.DS-LDS.Tools
AD Sites and Services	dssite.msc	Rsat.ActiveDirectory.DS-LDS.Tools
DHCP Server Management	dhcpmgmt.msc	Rsat.DHCP.Tools
DNS Server Management	dnsmgmt.msc	Rsat.Dns.Tools
Group Policy Management	gpmc.msc	Rsat.GroupPolicy.Management.Tools
Print Management	printmanagement.msc	Rsat.PrintManagement.Tools
DFS Management	dfsmgmt.msc	Rsat.FileServices.Tools
Certification Authority	certsrv.msc	Rsat.CertificateServices.Tools
Certificate Templates	certtmpl.msc	Rsat.CertificateServices.Tools

Built-in Windows Admin Tools

Always available on Windows 10/11 — no additional installation required:

Tool	Snap-in
Computer Management	compmgmt.msc
Event Viewer	eventvwr.msc
Services	services.msc
Task Scheduler	taskschd.msc
Disk Management	diskmgmt.msc
Device Manager	devmgmt.msc
Shared Folders	fsmgmt.msc
Local Users and Groups	lusrmgr.msc
Windows Firewall (Advanced)	wf.msc
Local Group Policy Editor	gpedit.msc
Local Security Policy	secpol.msc

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Prerequisites

• Windows 10 version 1809+ or Windows 11 (x64)
• .NET 9 runtime is bundled (self-contained publish)
• Administrator rights (required for CreateProcessWithLogonW and RSAT installation)

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Installation

Download

Download the latest AdminToolbox-Setup.exe from the Releases page.

Windows SmartScreen: Since the installer is not code-signed, Windows SmartScreen may show a warning on first run. Click "More info" → "Run anyway" to proceed. You can verify the download integrity using the SHA256SUMS.txt file included in each release.

Using the Installer

Run AdminToolbox-Setup.exe. The installer will:

1. Install the application to %ProgramFiles%\IT-BAER\Admin Toolbox
2. Create Start Menu and Desktop shortcuts
3. Optionally install selected RSAT features (checkboxes on the Tasks page)

Silent Installation

# Silent install with progress bar
AdminToolbox-Setup.exe /SILENT

# Fully silent (no UI)
AdminToolbox-Setup.exe /VERYSILENT /SUPPRESSMSGBOXES

# Silent with specific RSAT features only
AdminToolbox-Setup.exe /VERYSILENT /TASKS="rsat\ad,rsat\dns,rsat\gpo"

# Silent without any RSAT features
AdminToolbox-Setup.exe /VERYSILENT /TASKS=""

# With install log
AdminToolbox-Setup.exe /VERYSILENT /SUPPRESSMSGBOXES /LOG="C:\temp\install.log"

Available /TASKS values: rsat\ad, rsat\dhcp, rsat\dns, rsat\gpo, rsat\print, rsat\cert, rsat\fileservices

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Building from Source

Requirements

• .NET 9 SDK
• Inno Setup 6 (auto-installed via winget if missing)

One-Click Build

.\build-installer.ps1

This runs dotnet publish (Release, win-x64, self-contained, single-file) and compiles the Inno Setup installer. Output: bin\Installer\AdminToolbox-Setup.exe.

Manual Build

# 1. Publish
dotnet publish AdminToolbox.csproj -c Release -r win-x64 --self-contained true -p:PublishSingleFile=true -o bin\Publish

# 2. Compile installer
& "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Programs\Inno Setup 6\ISCC.exe" installer\AdminToolbox.iss

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Project Structure

Admin-Toolbox/
├── AdminToolbox.csproj        # .NET 9 WPF project
├── app.manifest               # UAC elevation (requireAdministrator)
├── App.xaml / App.xaml.cs     # Application startup, global error handler
├── GlobalUsings.cs            # WPF/WinForms type disambiguation
├── Assets/
│   └── AdminToolbox.ico       # Multi-resolution app icon
├── Models/
│   ├── AdminTool.cs           # Tool definitions + dynamic detection
│   └── CredentialStore.cs     # SecureString credential vault
├── Services/
│   └── ProcessLauncher.cs     # CreateProcessWithLogonW P/Invoke
├── Views/
│   ├── LoginWindow.xaml/.cs   # Domain admin login dialog
│   └── MainWindow.xaml/.cs    # Dashboard with tool tiles
├── installer/
│   ├── AdminToolbox.iss       # Inno Setup 6 script
│   └── install-rsat.ps1       # RSAT capability installer
├── build-installer.ps1        # One-click build script
└── generate-icon.ps1          # Icon generation (System.Drawing)

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Security

• Credentials are stored in memory only using SecureString — never written to disk, registry, or any persistent storage
• The SecureString is zeroed and disposed on app exit, lock, or credential clear
• The unmanaged BSTR used for CreateProcessWithLogonW is zeroed via Marshal.ZeroFreeGlobalAllocUnicode immediately after the API call
• The app manifest requires administrator elevation; UAC fires once at launch

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Technology Stack

Category	Technology	Version
Runtime	.NET	9.0
UI Framework	WPF + WPF UI (Lepo)	4.2.0
Credential API	CreateProcessWithLogonW	P/Invoke
Installer	Inno Setup	6
Publish	Self-contained, single-file	x64

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📄 License

MIT

💜 Support

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