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Vista SP1 and Windows 2008: No /console switch with MSTSC

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I've ran into this a few times here and each time I stare at my screen for some time (depends on how much coffee I've had) and then remember this change.  When you install Vista SP1 or install Win2k8 the console switch for MSTSC will be ignored (it's gone).  They've made a change that requires the use of the /admin switch now.  So if you want to connect the console on a Win2k3 server then instead of using MSTSC /console /v:<servername> now use MSTSC /admin /v:servername.

Why the change?  Check Nick's post for further details and a link to the TS team blog with more info.

The more you know...

 Here is the TS teams blog post with all the details you'd ever want to know: https://blogs.msdn.com/ts/archive/2007/12/17/changes-to-remote-administration-in-windows-server-2008.aspx

Comments

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    PingBack from http://geeklectures.info/2008/01/14/vista-sp1-and-windows-2008-no-console-switch-with-mstsc/

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    Yep, Jay we had that same sort of discussion intenrally about the change.  Nothing we could do about it apparently.  Sorry you wasted so muc time!

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    Just some random stuff as you get ready for 2k8... Getting the Classic cluster logs: Clustering in Win2k8

  • Anonymous
    June 24, 2008
    You rock!  Thank you!  I just installed SP1 on my Vista machine yesterday, and completely rebuilt my wife's machine.  The sounds stopped working on our server (have to use /console for them to work) thru RDP (don't ask why we need this). At first I figured it was just some difference with her reloaded PC, but then tried mine and had the same issue.  Then I figured it must be due to the June '08 patches that had just been installed on the server.   When I hit a brick wall I wondered how I could check, when connected, to make sure that I was actually connected to the /console session?  I still don't know how to check that, but my search brought me to the answer I needed, right here.  I had seen the /admin switch in the /? screen, but didn't really think twice about it or realize that /console was no longer shown there.  Would have been nice for them to have said "(replaces /console)" or something like that, eh?  That was a couple hours of wasted time for me. THANK YOU!