Quick Fixes for Terminal Server Licensing

  • Article

Applies To: Windows Server 2000, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

This section provides a summary of the most common Terminal Server Licensing problems and the solutions to those problems. You can use the information in this section to resolve problems in the same way you would use a FAQ to find answers to common questions. Read this section before you begin any advanced troubleshooting.

Common Terminal Server Licensing Problems

Listed below are common Terminal Server Licensing problems and quick fixes:

The Terminal Server licensing mode on the terminal server is set to Per Device, but the license server is set to issue Per User CALs

Windows-Based Terminal devices (thin clients) cannot connect to terminal servers

Clients connecting to a Windows 2000 terminal server cannot obtain a permanent Windows 2000 Terminal Server CAL

The Terminal Server licensing mode on the terminal server is set to Per Device, but the license server is set to issue Per User CALs

When there is a mismatch between the Terminal Server Licensing mode configuration on the terminal server and the configuration on the license server, remote sessions can be disconnected prematurely. You can resolve this problem by making sure that the Terminal Server licensing mode on the terminal server matches the type of licenses installed on the license server. For more information, see Change the Terminal Server Licensing mode.

Note

If you are running a Windows Server 2003 terminal server, after you use the Windows Components Wizard in Add or Remove Programs to add or to remove a Windows component, an invalid registry value might be set in the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\TerminalServer\Licensing Core\PolicyAcOn subkey on the terminal server. This invalid value may unexpectedly change the Terminal Server Licensing mode and cause the terminal server to obtain only temporary licenses. To resolve this problem contact Microsoft Product Support Services to obtain the hotfix described in Knowledge Base article 834651, Terminal Services licensing mode changes from Per User or from Per Device to an invalid value after you add or remove a Windows component (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48173) on the Microsoft Web site. This hotfix is applied to the terminal server.

Windows-based terminal devices (thin clients) cannot connect to terminal servers

If you try to connect to connect to a terminal server from a Windows-based terminal device, the connection might be denied if:

  • You update the electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM) of the Windows-based terminal device

  • You delete the following registry subkey: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\MSLicensing\Store

  • The Windows-based terminal device has been issued a new temporary license

  • You installed the hotfix described in Knowledge Base article 287687, Terminal Services Licensing Enhancements (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48172) on the Microsoft Web site.

In such cases, the connection is denied because the license is treated as expired.

To resolve this problem, contact Microsoft Product Support Services to obtain the hotfix described in Knowledge Base article 287687 to apply to the terminal server, the license server, or both. For information about how to contact Microsoft Product Support Services, see Help and Support (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48149) on the Microsoft Web site. If you are using a Citrix ICA client, you might also need to contact Citrix to obtain an appropriate fix.

Clients connecting to a Windows 2000 terminal server cannot obtain a permanent Windows 2000 Terminal Server CAL

In an environment with Windows 2000 terminal servers and Windows Server 2003 license servers, clients that connect to a Windows 2000 terminal server cannot obtain a permanent Windows 2000 client access license (CAL), even though Windows 2000 CALs are installed on the license server. Instead, the clients receive a Windows Server 2003 Terminal Server temporary license. This problem might occur because the CAL was not upgraded or renewed correctly.

To resolve this problem, do the following:

  1. Install CALs automatically on the license server. Client computers can successfully upgrade from a temporary Windows Server 2003 Terminal Server license to a permanent Windows Server 2003 Terminal Server CAL.

  2. Verify whether the clients can receive the new temporary licenses. If the clients cannot receive the new licenses, the terminal server might not be able to locate the license server. For troubleshooting procedures to resolve this issue, see The terminal server cannot locate the license server.

  3. If the clients can connect to the terminal server, and if licenses are available on the license server and this problem still occurs, then contact Microsoft Product Support Services to obtain the hotfix described in Knowledge Base Article 837211, Client computers cannot obtain a permanent Windows 2000 Terminal Services Client Access License (CAL) from a Windows Server 2003 Terminal Services Licensing server (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48146) on the Microsoft Web site, and then apply this hotfix to the license server. For information about how to contact Microsoft Product Support Services, see Help and Support (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=48149) on the Microsoft Web site.