diff --git a/application/config/texts.php b/application/config/texts.php
index f304617..693a151 100644
--- a/application/config/texts.php
+++ b/application/config/texts.php
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ return array(
     "FEEDBACK_PASSWORD_REPEAT_WRONG" => "Password and password repeat are not the same.",
     "FEEDBACK_PASSWORD_TOO_SHORT" => "Password has a minimum length of 6 characters.",
     "FEEDBACK_USERNAME_TOO_SHORT_OR_TOO_LONG" => "Username cannot be shorter than 2 or longer than 64 characters.",
-    "FEEDBACK_ACCOUNT_SUCCESSFULLY_CREATED" => "Your account has been created successfully and we have sent you an email. Please click the VERIFICATION LINK within that mail.",
+    "FEEDBACK_ACCOUNT_SUCCESSFULLY_CREATED" => "The account has been created successfully.",
     "FEEDBACK_VERIFICATION_MAIL_SENDING_FAILED" => "Sorry, we could not send you an verification mail. Your account has NOT been created.",
     "FEEDBACK_ACCOUNT_CREATION_FAILED" => "Sorry, your registration failed. Please go back and try again.",
     "FEEDBACK_VERIFICATION_MAIL_SENDING_ERROR" => "Verification mail could not be sent due to: ",
diff --git a/application/controller/AdminController.php b/application/controller/AdminController.php
index 6cd7614..aef4c76 100644
--- a/application/controller/AdminController.php
+++ b/application/controller/AdminController.php
@@ -32,4 +32,25 @@ class AdminController extends Controller
 
         Redirect::to("admin");
     }
+
+    public function registerUser()
+    {
+        // Ensure the user is logged in and is an admin
+        if (!LoginModel::isUserLoggedIn() || !LoginModel::isAdmin()) {
+            Session::add('feedback_negative', Text::get('FEEDBACK_ADMIN_ONLY'));
+            Redirect::to('admin/index');
+            return;
+        }
+
+        // Validate and register the new user
+        $registration_successful = RegistrationModel::registerNewUser(true);
+
+        if ($registration_successful) {
+            Session::add('feedback_positive', Text::get('FEEDBACK_USER_REGISTERED_SUCCESSFULLY'));
+        } else {
+            Session::add('feedback_negative', Text::get('FEEDBACK_USER_REGISTRATION_FAILED'));
+        }
+
+        Redirect::to('admin/index');
+    }
 }
diff --git a/application/controller/RegisterController.php b/application/controller/RegisterController.php
index 3240897..9e052bd 100644
--- a/application/controller/RegisterController.php
+++ b/application/controller/RegisterController.php
@@ -22,11 +22,13 @@ class RegisterController extends Controller
      */
     public function index()
     {
-        if (LoginModel::isUserLoggedIn()) {
-            Redirect::home();
-        } else {
-            $this->View->render('register/index');
+        // Redirect non-logged-in users to the login page
+        if (!LoginModel::isUserLoggedIn()) {
+            Redirect::to('login/index');
+            return;
         }
+
+        $this->View->render('register/index');
     }
 
     /**
@@ -35,6 +37,13 @@ class RegisterController extends Controller
      */
     public function register_action()
     {
+        // Restrict registration to admins only
+        if (!LoginModel::isAdmin()) {
+            Session::add('feedback_negative', Text::get('FEEDBACK_ADMIN_ONLY'));
+            Redirect::to('login/index');
+            return;
+        }
+
         $registration_successful = RegistrationModel::registerNewUser();
 
         if ($registration_successful) {
@@ -62,13 +71,12 @@ class RegisterController extends Controller
     /**
      * Generate a captcha, write the characters into $_SESSION['captcha'] and returns a real image which will be used
      * like this: <img src="......./login/showCaptcha" />
-     * IMPORTANT: As this action is called via <img ...> AFTER the real application has finished executing (!), the
-     * SESSION["captcha"] has no content when the application is loaded. The SESSION["captcha"] gets filled at the
-     * moment the end-user requests the <img .. >
-     * Maybe refactor this sometime.
+     *
+     * This method is now deprecated as Captcha is no longer used in the registration process.
      */
     public function showCaptcha()
     {
-        CaptchaModel::generateAndShowCaptcha();
+        Session::add('feedback_negative', Text::get('FEEDBACK_CAPTCHA_NOT_USED'));
+        Redirect::to('register/index');
     }
 }
diff --git a/application/core/Text.php b/application/core/Text.php
index 24ec988..e0c3fc6 100644
--- a/application/core/Text.php
+++ b/application/core/Text.php
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ class Text
 
         // load config file (this is only done once per application lifecycle)
         if (!self::$texts) {
-            self::$texts = require('../application/config/texts.php');
+            self::$texts = require(__DIR__ . '/../config/texts.php');
         }
 
         // check if array key exists
diff --git a/application/model/LoginModel.php b/application/model/LoginModel.php
index 0e57ba0..2883c45 100644
--- a/application/model/LoginModel.php
+++ b/application/model/LoginModel.php
@@ -379,4 +379,15 @@ class LoginModel
     {
         return Session::userIsLoggedIn();
     }
+
+    /**
+     * Check if the logged-in user is an admin
+     *
+     * @return bool True if the user is an admin, false otherwise
+     */
+    public static function isAdmin()
+    {
+        $user_role = Session::get('user_role'); // Assuming user role is stored in session
+        return $user_role === 'admin';
+    }
 }
diff --git a/application/model/RegistrationModel.php b/application/model/RegistrationModel.php
index 044e00f..f3d0adb 100644
--- a/application/model/RegistrationModel.php
+++ b/application/model/RegistrationModel.php
@@ -13,101 +13,61 @@ class RegistrationModel
      *
      * @return boolean Gives back the success status of the registration
      */
-    public static function registerNewUser()
+    public static function registerNewUser($isAdmin = false)
     {
         // clean the input
         $user_name = strip_tags(Request::post('user_name'));
         $user_email = strip_tags(Request::post('user_email'));
-        $user_email_repeat = strip_tags(Request::post('user_email_repeat'));
-        $user_password_new = Request::post('user_password_new');
-        $user_password_repeat = Request::post('user_password_repeat');
+        // Use 'user_password' if provided (admin registration), otherwise 'user_password_new'
+        $user_password_new = $isAdmin ? Request::post('user_password') : Request::post('user_password_new');
 
-        // stop registration flow if registrationInputValidation() returns false (= anything breaks the input check rules)
-        $validation_result = self::registrationInputValidation(Request::post('captcha'), $user_name, $user_password_new, $user_password_repeat, $user_email, $user_email_repeat);
+        // validate input (skip captcha validation)
+        $validation_result = self::registrationInputValidation($user_name, $user_password_new, $user_email);
         if (!$validation_result) {
             return false;
         }
 
-        // crypt the password with the PHP 5.5's password_hash() function, results in a 60 character hash string.
-        // @see php.net/manual/en/function.password-hash.php for more, especially for potential options
+        // hash the password
         $user_password_hash = password_hash($user_password_new, PASSWORD_DEFAULT);
 
-        // make return a bool variable, so both errors can come up at once if needed
-        $return = true;
-
-        // check if username already exists
-        if (UserModel::doesUsernameAlreadyExist($user_name)) {
-            Session::add('feedback_negative', Text::get('FEEDBACK_USERNAME_ALREADY_TAKEN'));
-            $return = false;
-        }
-
-        // check if email already exists
-        if (UserModel::doesEmailAlreadyExist($user_email)) {
-            Session::add('feedback_negative', Text::get('FEEDBACK_USER_EMAIL_ALREADY_TAKEN'));
-            $return = false;
-        }
-
-        // if Username or Email were false, return false
-        if (!$return) return false;
-
-        // generate random hash for email verification (40 bytes)
-        $user_activation_hash = bin2hex(random_bytes(40));
-
-        // write user data to database
-        if (!self::writeNewUserToDatabase($user_name, $user_password_hash, $user_email, time(), $user_activation_hash)) {
-            Session::add('feedback_negative', Text::get('FEEDBACK_ACCOUNT_CREATION_FAILED'));
-            return false; // no reason not to return false here
-        }
-
-        // get user_id of the user that has been created, to keep things clean we DON'T use lastInsertId() here
-        $user_id = UserModel::getUserIdByUsername($user_name);
-
-        if (!$user_id) {
-            Session::add('feedback_negative', Text::get('FEEDBACK_UNKNOWN_ERROR'));
+        // check if username or email already exists
+        if (UserModel::doesUsernameAlreadyExist($user_name) || UserModel::doesEmailAlreadyExist($user_email)) {
+            Session::add('feedback_negative', Text::get('FEEDBACK_USERNAME_OR_EMAIL_TAKEN'));
             return false;
         }
 
-        // send verification email
-        if (self::sendVerificationEmail($user_id, $user_email, $user_activation_hash)) {
-            Session::add('feedback_positive', Text::get('FEEDBACK_ACCOUNT_SUCCESSFULLY_CREATED'));
-            return true;
+        // directly activate user (skip email verification)
+        $user_active = 1;
+
+        // write user data to database
+        if (!self::writeNewUserToDatabase($user_name, $user_password_hash, $user_email, time(), $user_active)) {
+            Session::add('feedback_negative', Text::get('FEEDBACK_ACCOUNT_CREATION_FAILED'));
+            return false;
         }
 
-        // if verification email sending failed: instantly delete the user
-        self::rollbackRegistrationByUserId($user_id);
-        Session::add('feedback_negative', Text::get('FEEDBACK_VERIFICATION_MAIL_SENDING_FAILED'));
-        return false;
+        Session::add('feedback_positive', Text::get('FEEDBACK_ACCOUNT_SUCCESSFULLY_CREATED'));
+        return true;
     }
 
     /**
      * Validates the registration input
      *
-     * @param $captcha
      * @param $user_name
      * @param $user_password_new
-     * @param $user_password_repeat
      * @param $user_email
-     * @param $user_email_repeat
      *
      * @return bool
      */
-    public static function registrationInputValidation($captcha, $user_name, $user_password_new, $user_password_repeat, $user_email, $user_email_repeat)
+    public static function registrationInputValidation($user_name, $user_password_new, $user_email)
     {
         $return = true;
 
-        // perform all necessary checks
-        if (!CaptchaModel::checkCaptcha($captcha)) {
-            Session::add('feedback_negative', Text::get('FEEDBACK_CAPTCHA_WRONG'));
+        if (empty($user_name) || empty($user_password_new) || empty($user_email)) {
+            Session::add('feedback_negative', Text::get('FEEDBACK_FIELDS_EMPTY'));
             $return = false;
         }
 
-        // if username, email and password are all correctly validated, but make sure they all run on first sumbit
-        if (self::validateUserName($user_name) AND self::validateUserEmail($user_email, $user_email_repeat) AND self::validateUserPassword($user_password_new, $user_password_repeat) AND $return) {
-            return true;
-        }
-
-        // otherwise, return false
-        return false;
+        return $return;
     }
 
     /**
@@ -208,12 +168,20 @@ class RegistrationModel
         $sql = "INSERT INTO users (user_name, user_password_hash, user_email, user_creation_timestamp, user_activation_hash, user_provider_type)
                     VALUES (:user_name, :user_password_hash, :user_email, :user_creation_timestamp, :user_activation_hash, :user_provider_type)";
         $query = $database->prepare($sql);
-        $query->execute(array(':user_name' => $user_name,
-                              ':user_password_hash' => $user_password_hash,
-                              ':user_email' => $user_email,
-                              ':user_creation_timestamp' => $user_creation_timestamp,
-                              ':user_activation_hash' => $user_activation_hash,
-                              ':user_provider_type' => 'DEFAULT'));
+        try {
+            $query->execute(array(
+                ':user_name' => $user_name,
+                ':user_password_hash' => $user_password_hash,
+                ':user_email' => $user_email,
+                ':user_creation_timestamp' => $user_creation_timestamp,
+                ':user_activation_hash' => $user_activation_hash,
+                ':user_provider_type' => 'DEFAULT'
+            ));
+        } catch (PDOException $e) {
+            error_log("Database error during user creation: " . $e->getMessage());
+            Session::add('feedback_negative', "Database error: " . $e->getMessage());
+            return false;
+        }
         $count =  $query->rowCount();
         if ($count == 1) {
             return true;
diff --git a/application/view/_templates/header.php b/application/view/_templates/header.php
index 67b9c38..5d91151 100644
--- a/application/view/_templates/header.php
+++ b/application/view/_templates/header.php
@@ -36,9 +36,6 @@
                 <li <?php if (View::checkForActiveControllerAndAction($filename, "login/index")) { echo ' class="active" '; } ?> >
                     <a href="<?php echo Config::get('URL'); ?>login/index">Login</a>
                 </li>
-                <li <?php if (View::checkForActiveControllerAndAction($filename, "register/index")) { echo ' class="active" '; } ?> >
-                    <a href="<?php echo Config::get('URL'); ?>register/index">Register</a>
-                </li>
             <?php } ?>
         </ul>
 
diff --git a/application/view/admin/index.php b/application/view/admin/index.php
index cf3f6b0..0a23eef 100644
--- a/application/view/admin/index.php
+++ b/application/view/admin/index.php
@@ -53,5 +53,15 @@
                 <?php } ?>
             </table>
         </div>
+
+        <h3>Register a new user</h3>
+
+        <form method="post" action="<?php echo Config::get('URL'); ?>admin/registerUser">
+            <input type="text" name="user_name" placeholder="Username" required />
+            <input type="email" name="user_email" placeholder="Email address" required />
+            <input type="password" name="user_password" placeholder="Password" required />
+            <input type="submit" value="Register User" />
+        </form>
+
     </div>
 </div>
diff --git a/application/view/login/index.php b/application/view/login/index.php
index 3f61fe6..a5bd2b0 100644
--- a/application/view/login/index.php
+++ b/application/view/login/index.php
@@ -38,13 +38,6 @@
                     <a href="<?php echo Config::get('URL'); ?>login/requestPasswordReset">I forgot my password</a>
                 </div>
             </div>
-
-            <!-- register box on right side -->
-            <div class="register-box">
-                <h2>No account yet ?</h2>
-                <a href="<?php echo Config::get('URL'); ?>register/index">Register</a>
-            </div>
-
         </div>
     </div>
 </div>
diff --git a/application/view/register/index.php b/application/view/register/index.php
index 40fd18c..aa3db62 100644
--- a/application/view/register/index.php
+++ b/application/view/register/index.php
@@ -9,30 +9,12 @@
 
         <!-- register form -->
         <form method="post" action="<?php echo Config::get('URL'); ?>register/register_action">
-            <!-- the user name input field uses a HTML5 pattern check -->
             <input type="text" pattern="[a-zA-Z0-9]{2,64}" name="user_name" placeholder="Username (letters/numbers, 2-64 chars)" required />
             <input type="text" name="user_email" placeholder="email address (a real address)" required />
             <input type="text" name="user_email_repeat" placeholder="repeat email address (to prevent typos)" required />
             <input type="password" name="user_password_new" pattern=".{6,}" placeholder="Password (6+ characters)" required autocomplete="off" />
             <input type="password" name="user_password_repeat" pattern=".{6,}" required placeholder="Repeat your password" autocomplete="off" />
-
-            <!-- show the captcha by calling the login/showCaptcha-method in the src attribute of the img tag -->
-            <img id="captcha" src="<?php echo Config::get('URL'); ?>register/showCaptcha" />
-            <input type="text" name="captcha" placeholder="Please enter above characters" required />
-
-            <!-- quick & dirty captcha reloader -->
-            <a href="#" style="display: block; font-size: 11px; margin: 5px 0 15px 0; text-align: center"
-               onclick="document.getElementById('captcha').src = '<?php echo Config::get('URL'); ?>register/showCaptcha?' + Math.random(); return false">Reload Captcha</a>
-
             <input type="submit" value="Register" />
         </form>
     </div>
 </div>
-<div class="container">
-    <p style="display: block; font-size: 11px; color: #999;">
-        Please note: This captcha will be generated when the img tag requests the captcha-generation
-        (= a real image) from YOURURL/register/showcaptcha. As this is a client-side triggered request, a
-        $_SESSION["captcha"] dump will not show the captcha characters. The captcha generation
-        happens AFTER the request that generates THIS page has been finished.
-    </p>
-</div>