Concluding Services enables users running a Terminal Services client (Remote Desktop Connection) on their reckoner to initiate a remote session on the Terminal Server. The session and its applications run on the server and the input/output and display occur at the client workstation. Terminal Services Manager provides the interface through which you manage Terminal Servers, client connections, users, and processes. You can use Last Services Manager to manage the local Terminal Server, systems in trusted domains, or standalone servers.

Terminal Services Manager in a nutshell
Final Services Director is installed by default when y'all install Windows Server 2003. You lot tin as well run the Terminal Services Managing director on a Windows XP workstation by installing the Windows Server 2003 Administration Pack, bachelor from Microsoft's Spider web site. To install the Administration Pack on Windows XP, you lot must accept installed Service Pack one or hot fix QFE Q329357 on the Windows XP Professional figurer.

In addition to managing Concluding Servers, users, processes, and sessions, you lot can also connect to a specific session on the target Terminal Server. For case, let's say you've performed a few management tasks on a server but now need to leave an awarding running while you work on something else on a different server. Y'all disconnect the session, which leaves the applications running. Later, you lot decide to check on the condition of the applications, so y'all connect to that session again. In a style, this capability is like Fast User Switching in Windows XP, which enables you to log on with a different account without logging off from the current account. You can switch betwixt sessions on any available Terminal Server. Terminal Services Manager also gives y'all the adequacy to remotely control another user's session, which makes it possible to monitor the user or provide assistance with software or other issues.

Terminal Services Manager provides several other capabilities, besides. For example, yous can use it to send messages to another user's session, log off a user, reset a session, view session-related counters, and finish processes.

Touring Terminal Services Managing director
Terminal Services Managing director is non an MMC console snap-in, but when you open it, yous'll find that it looks a lot like a standard MMC snap-in, every bit seen in Figure A. The navigation pane at the left of the window shows the local computer past default, a branch that shows all connected servers, and a Favorite Servers branch that enables y'all to quickly access frequently used servers.

Figure A
The Terminal Services Director window

The right pane shows data nearly the particular selected in the left pane. For example, when you lot click a server, the right pane shows a iii-tabbed view that displays users, sessions, and processes for that server. If you click the All Listed Servers tab, the right pane shows these same iii tabs, but for all servers.

Figure B
You lot tin can easily view all users, processes, and sessions for all listed servers.

The Users tab, shown in Figure B, includes the following columns:

  • Server—This column lists the server on which the specified user's session is running. This column does not appear if you lot click a server in the left pane, but does appear if you click the All Listed Servers co-operative.
  • User—This cavalcade shows the user who is logged onto the specified session.
  • Session—This column lists the session names. The Console session is the system console session (the session to which you would log on locally to the target computer).
  • ID—This column shows the numeric ID of the session. The Panel session is always session 0.
  • Country—This column shows the session's country. I discuss the different states later in this article.
  • Idle Time—This columns shows the number of minutes that accept passed without keyboard or mouse input to the session.
  • Logon Fourth dimension—This column shows the fourth dimension the user logged on to the session.

The Sessions tab (Figure C) shows much of the same information as the Users tab but organizes the information by session and shows additional session-specific information.

Figure C
The Sessions tab shows information about sessions on the target server (or on all servers).

These additional columns include:

  • Type—The Type cavalcade identifies the client session blazon, such as Console or Microsoft RDP.
  • Client Name—This column shows the client estimator name from which the session was initiated.
  • Annotate—This column shows an optional comment for the session.

The Processes tab (Figure D) shows all processes running on the selected server, or on all servers if y'all click the All Listed Servers branch.

Figure D
Utilize the Processes tab to view the processes running on a target server or on all servers.

The Process tab includes some of the aforementioned information equally found on the Users and Sessions tab, with the following additional columns:

PID—This cavalcade displays the process ID (PID) of the specified process. The PID uniquely identifies the process.

Image—This column shows the executable program that created the process.

Viewing all processes on the server can be confusing when you're trying to place the processes running in a particular session, and the problem only gets worse when yous click the All Listed Servers branch. That's not a problem, considering you can easily view just the processes running in a particular session. Expand the server in the navigation pane, click the session whose processes yous want to view, and those processes appear in the right pane (Figure E). This view shows the session ID, the PID, and the prototype name.

Figure Eastward
You can view the processes running in a single session.

Session status
Terminal Services Manager offers a couple of means to view sessions' status and statistics. Beginning, you lot can click on a session in the navigation pane then click the Information tab in the right pane (Figure F). This tab shows a scattering of properties for the session including the IP address, hardware properties, and related data. Clicking Help displays a dialog box with explanation about each item.

Figure F
The Information tab shows information most the client associated with the session.

You tin as well view statistics about the session. Correct-click the session in either the navigation pane or the Sessions tab in the right pane and cull Status. Final Services Managing director displays the Status dialog box shown in Figure Thousand, which shows network I/O information about the session. You tin besides force a condition refresh and reset the counters through this dialog box. The default session condition refresh period is i second.

Effigy G
You tin view network I/O condition for a session.

Session states
A given session can be in one of several states, and the Land column in the various tabs lists each session's land. The possible states are:

  • Active—This indicates that the session is continued and a user is logged on to the server.
  • Connected—In the Connected state, the session is connected but no user is logged on to the server.
  • ConnectQuery —This indicates that the session is in the process of connecting. If this land persists, there is likely a trouble with the session or connectedness.
  • RemoteControl —The target session is remotely controlling another session.
  • Mind—When a session is in the Heed state, it is set up to accept connections.
  • Asunder—This state indicates that the user has disconnected from the session merely that the session is notwithstanding active and tin be reconnected.
  • Idle—This country indicates that the session is fix to accept connections.
  • Downward—This land indicates that the session could not be initialized or terminated.
  • Init—This state indicates that the session is initializing.

Menu and toolbar
The Final Services Manager menu should be familiar territory to anyone who has used a typical MMC panel or standalone Windows Server management awarding. The Actions menu lists several commands that are either enabled or dimmed co-ordinate to the item selected in the navigation pane or details pane. You lot can also access most of these commands through an detail'south context menu (correct-click) or through the toolbar.

The View menu enables you to bear witness or hide the toolbar and status bar, refresh the display, and expand or collapse the navigation pane contents. Use the Prove System Processes control to turn on or off inclusion of organization processes in the Processes tab.

The Tools card offers a single command that opens the Options dialog box, where yous set options for Terminal Services Director (Figure H). Yous can use this dialog box to configure refresh settings for the Processes list and status dialog boxes.

Figure H
The Options dialog box

The dialog box too offers these boosted options:

  • Confirm Actions—When this option is selected, Last Services Manager prompts you to confirm certain actions, such equally disconnecting a session. Clear this option if yous don't want to be prompted for confirmation.
  • Salve Settings on Exit—When this option is enabled, Terminal Services Manager saves several properties, such as window location and navigation pane width.
  • Call up Server Connections—Enable this option to take the list of connected servers stored in the registry so they tin can exist automatically reconnected in the next Terminal Services Manager session.

The toolbar, whose buttons dim if the target action is not supported by the selected detail, includes the following buttons:

  • Connect
  • Disconnect
  • Send Message
  • Remote Control
  • Reset
  • Status
  • Log Off
  • End Process
  • Refresh Now

Mutual Tasks
Tabular array A lists common tasks you tin reach with Terminal Services Director and explains how to accomplish them.
Tabular array A


Task

Action
Connect to a server Expand the domain, locate the server, right-click the server, and cull Connect.
Connect to an unlisted server Correct-click All Listed Servers and choose Connect To Computer.
Disconnect from all servers in a domain Right-click the domain and choose Disconnect.
Disconnect from a specific server Right-click the server and choose Disconnect.
Browse for Terminal Servers in the domain Right-click the domain and choose Refresh Servers In Domain.
Scan for Terminal Servers in all domains Right-click All Listed Servers and choose Refresh Servers In All Domains.
Disconnect from all servers in a domain Right-click the domain and choose Disconnect From All Servers.
View users connected to a server Click the server and click the Users tab.
View sessions on a server Click the server and click the Sessions tab.
View processes on a server Click the server and click the Processes tab.
View all users, sessions, or processes for all servers Click All Listed Servers and click the Users, Sessions, or Processes tab.
Add a server to the Favorite Servers co-operative Correct-click the server and choose Add To Favorites.
Send a message to a session Click the session and then click the Send Message toolbar button.
Remotely control a session Click the session and so click Remote Control on the toolbar.
Log off a user Click the Users tab, click the user, and click Log Off on the toolbar.
Cease a process Click the process on the Processes tab and and then click Stop Process on the toolbar.
View client data Click a session under a server and click the Data tab.
View network statistics Right-click a session and choose Status.