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Enable Remote Desktop

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Applies To: Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2008 R2

You can use this procedure to enable Remote Desktop on the server that you are installing as a domain controller so that service administrators can manage the domain controller remotely. Remote Desktop is disabled by default in Windows Server 2008.

You can enable Remote Desktop on the Windows Server 2008 server directly, or you can enable it remotely from another server or workstation computer.

Membership in local Administrators, or equivalent, is the minimum required to complete these procedures if Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS) is not installed. Membership in Domain Admins, or equivalent, is the minimum required to complete this procedure if AD DS is installed. Review details about using the appropriate accounts and group memberships at Local and Domain Default Groups (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=83477).

To enable Remote Desktop locally by using Server Manager

  1. Open Server Manager. To open Server Manager, click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Server Manager.

  2. In Computer Information, click Configure Remote Desktop.

  3. In the System Properties dialog box, under Remote Desktop, click one of the following options:

    • Allow connections from computers running any version of Remote Desktop (less secure). Use this option if you do not know the version of Remote Desktop Connection that will be used to connect to this server.

    • Allow connections only from computers running Remote Desktop with Network Level Authentication (more secure). Use this option if you know that the users who will connect to this server are running Windows Vista or Windows Server 2008.

  4. Review the information in the Remote Desktop dialog box, and then click OK twice.

To enable Remote Desktop remotely by using the registry

  1. On any computer that is running a version of Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2008, Windows XP Professional, or Windows Vista, open Regedit as an administrator. To open Regedit as an administrator, click Start, and then, in Start Search, type regedit. At the top of the Start menu, right-click regedit, and then click Run as administrator. In the User Account Control dialog box, provide Domain Admins credentials, and then click OK.

  2. On the File menu, click Connect Network Registry.

  3. In the Select Computer dialog box, under Enter the object name to select, type the computer name, and then click Check Names.

  4. After the computer name resolves, click OK.

  5. In the computer node that appears in the Registry Editor, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Terminal Server.

  6. In the console tree, click Terminal Server, and then, in the details pane, double-click fDenyTSConnections.

  7. In the Edit DWORD Value box, in Value data, type 0, and then click OK.

    This value enables connections at the level that allows connections from computers running any version of Remote Desktop.

  8. To implement the change, restart the server remotely, as follows:

    • Open a Command Prompt as an administrator: On the Start menu, right-click Command Prompt, and then click Run as administrator. In the User Account Control dialog box, provide Domain Admins credentials, and then click OK.

    • At the command prompt, type the following command, and then press ENTER:

      shutdown /m \\<DomainControllerName> /r

    Value Description

    /m \\<DomainControllerName>

    The name of the computer to be shut down or restarted.

    /r

    Shuts down and then restarts the computer.