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16 changes: 15 additions & 1 deletion reference/fleet/elastic-agent-unprivileged.md
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Beginning with {{stack}} version 8.15, {{agent}} is no longer required to be run by a user with superuser privileges. You can now run agents in an `unprivileged` mode that does not require `root` access on Linux or macOS, or `admin` access on Windows. Being able to run agents without full administrative privileges is often a requirement in organizations where this kind of access is often limited.

:::{note}
Unprivileged mode is not supported for {{agent}} installed using RPM or DEB packages. To use unprivileged mode on Linux, you must install {{agent}} using the tarball (`.tar.gz`) distribution.
:::

In general, agents running without full administrative privileges will perform and behave exactly as those run by a superuser. There are certain integrations and data streams that are not available, however. If an integration requires root access, this is [indicated on the integration main page](#unprivileged-integrations).

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Elastic.FutureTense: 'will perform' might be in future tense. Write in the present tense to describe the state of the product as it is now.

You can also [change the privilege mode](#unprivileged-change-mode) of an {{agent}} after it has been installed.

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### Considerations

If you installed {{agent}} using an RPM or DEB package, the commands related to unprivileged mode will not work. To use unprivileged mode on Linux, you must install {{agent}} using the tarball (`.tar.gz`) distribution.

When running {{agent}} in `unprivileged` mode on Linux systems, consider the following:

* You must use `sudo` to run the `elastic-agent install` command because only the root user can install new services. After {{agent}} is installed with the `--unprivileged` flag, the service does not run as root, and you can run {{agent}} commands without being the root user.
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## Changing an {{agent}}'s privilege mode [unprivileged-change-mode]

For any installed {{agent}} you can change the mode that it’s running in by running the `privileged` or `unprivileged` subcommand.
For any installed {{agent}} you can change the mode that it's running in by running the `privileged` or `unprivileged` subcommand.

:::{note}
Changing privilege modes is not supported for {{agent}} installed using RPM or DEB packages.

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Elastic.Acronyms: 'DEB' has no definition.

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:::

Change mode from privileged to unprivileged:

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In certain cases you may want to install {{agent}} in `unprivileged` mode, with the agent running as a pre-existing user or as part of a pre-existing group. For example, on a Windows system you may have a service account in Active Directory and you'd like {{agent}} to run under that account.

:::{note}
This functionality is not supported for {{agent}} installed using RPM or DEB packages.

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:::

:::{admonition} Active Directory to determine user group
:applies_to: stack: preview
The ability to interface with Active Directory to determine the user group is in technical preview and may be changed or removed in a future release. Elastic will work to fix any issues, but features in technical preview are not subject to the support SLA of official GA features.
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