What does "running with a full administrator token" or "running with an elevated token" mean in User Account Control?

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Applies To: Windows Server 2008 R2

Applications normally run with the level of access granted in a standard user access token, even if the applications are started by a user that is a member of the local Administrators group. "Running with a full administrator access token," sometimes referred to as "running with an elevated access token," means that an application is allowed to use the user's full administrator access token, which includes the administrator security identifiers (SIDs).

Note

The user must be logged on as a local administrator or be able to provide credentials for a member of the local Administrators group.