Terminal Server License Error!

membership

This solution is only available to members.

To access this solution, you must be a member of Experts Exchange.

Start Free Trial

SOLUTION

membership

This solution is only available to members.

To access this solution, you must be a member of Experts Exchange.

Start Free Trial

SOLUTION

membership

This solution is only available to members.

To access this solution, you must be a member of Experts Exchange.

Start Free Trial

Thanks eh... I am coming to you when my event logs start filling up with licensing events... :) MS need to have a certification just for this..!!!

FE

LOL :-) Licensing gives me a headache.

ASKER

hmmm all very intersting.. but...
All these servers have terminal server CALS installed already!
And this started suddenly on more than one server - started at 11 days left in the temp license.

craigmusgrove,

I know you've probably done this all correctly, but it is worth a review. If you ran this in evaluation mode for any period of time, it is possible that this device is still somehow operating with a token instead of a license.

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;823313

Just to add a little more complexity to the issue ehammersley, actually there is a variable to be added to your XP Pro licensing explanation. Depending upon when the XP Pro machine was purchased, it may indeed have a TS license already as a qualifier for the "transition plan" MS instituted. Microsoft offers a Windows Server 2003 TS CAL for each Windows XP Professional license that you owned before April 24, 2003. Read more here: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;823313 under Transitional CALs for Windows XP Professional-Based Client Computers.

This whole this is worth a read as it gives some great links to drill down to some of the complex issues of TS licensing. Also check out http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;813052 to get clarity on that grace period business I was talking about.

I know that you say that you have CALs installed on all of these servers, but with the complexity of how the licenses were acquired and what mode they we installed in [Per User vs Per Device], there could have been some minor oversight that has this XP machine thinking that it has CALs when it may only have tokens that are expiring at different times on each of the servers.

Worse case, you have a legitimate problem and it is recommended that you contact PSS. Contact Microsoft PSS if you experience issues that are related to either of the following:
1. You cannot connect to a terminal server when valid TS CALs are installed on the Terminal Server Licensing Server.
2. You cannot obtain a license when valid TS CALs are installed on the Terminal Server Licensing Server.
3. You receive an error message when you enter the required alphanumeric license ID or Keypack.

You may be possibly categorized as #2.

Again though, I would review the whole licensing architecture once more and confirm that yours is set up as expected. Confirm Licensing Modes [Per Device vs Pe rUser] and that they are consistent across servers. Calculate the grace period windows and see if it is possible that this XP box is running on a token from these servers as opposed to a genuine CAL-- unless it qualifies under the "transition plan".

Sorry to suggest you read, but you will know better than us the details of your scenario.

King,

Thanks for the great XP license information. What a kick in the face since the official Microsoft Licensing Site www.microsoft.com/licensing specifically says it doesn't work that way. Hmmm... well I should have expected it, after all it's MS licensing. At least it's good news for a change. :-)

I added feedback to MS on that KB article asking them to either link or change the information so the KB article and the TS licensing guide match. Nice catch King.

ehammersley,

No worries. This whole MS licensing thing is as enigmatic as it comes! FE and I were just discussing on another post how tomorrow I am supposed to be a part of a MS sponsored focus group discussing their licensing "situation". I will be sure to mention this little unknown obscurity! Good on you for submitting the feedback on that deceptive KB article!

Perhaps we should ask the owners of EE to create an area just for MS licensing... What a pain in the ______!!!! :)

BTW KH... that was a great explanation..!!

FE

What a fabulous idea! We absolutely need a Microsoft Licensing TA [for all the obvious reasons!] as well as a SBS one because they are just different enough from the Server OS that they deserve their own TA! How do we suggest this?

Oh, and beware, word around the campfire is that MS is getting ready to change the licensing structure yet again! So don't get comfortable!!

-----------------------
craigmusgrove,
Please forgive FE, e, and I for sort of jackin' your post. It's just that this licensing stuff is sooo exciting! Where are we on your deal? Any progress?

Just one more comment to KH... I agree.. see here:

https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/20878932/Microsoft-Licensing-TA-Small-Business-Server.html

I, too, do apologize for getting off topic here..

FE

ASKER

Ha!
Thats ok guys... Microsoft and their licensing has always been a joke in my mind!
No worries... not to much off topic.

But all the reading i have done, I have not found what I am looking for.

Are you saying that a windows 2003 server running in admin terminal services mode will time out on a windows xp pro system as a client after 120 days?

Cuz this is kinda what is happening to me... except... I connect to these comptuers nearly everyday and was not getting this error message until i played with the registry as listed in the first posting... then i was getting 11 days ... 10 days until temp license expiration..

If i connect on nearly a daily basis, I would expect to have a 90 day or 60 day or 30 day or 14 day notice.. but nothing of the sort...

I am thinking I should find that doucment I have someplace or another to remove the licenses out of the registry (if it exists in my case) when a computer is retired or a messup in the licence it pulls from the server... something to do with a LICENSE00 and LICENSE01 in the registry.

whatcha think?

Craig

craigmusgrove,

No, with Admin Mode, you are allowed only two simultaneous connections and no license is required for this.

craigmusgrove,

Did setting the registry entry fix your printer issue?
Have you tried removing the registry entry?

ASKER

Thats what I thought..

But my windows xp pro computer has this same issue with 2 seperate windows 2003 servers... both in admin terminal server mode... both saying I only have 8 days left in my temp license!

This is not making sense! Sounds like somehting is amuck with my xp pro system.

Help!

Craig

Also, something to look out for is perhaps another of your machines has taken two licenses. A great set of tools to audit your licensing situation is Terminal Services License Reporter and the Terminal Services License Server Viewer. Both come with the Windows 2000 Server Resource Kit and are meant to be used on Win2K Server, but you may be able to run them in a 2003 environment. You can also run these tools from Windows 2000 Professional if you copy the executable (Lsreport.exe and/or Lsviewer.exe) and another file from the same folder, Mstlsapi.dll, to a folder on your Win2K Pro system.

Lsreport.exe is a great utility for both simple and complex networks. It allows you to interrogate your Windows 2000 Terminal Services Licensing database(s) and output the information to a tab-delimited text file, which you can then import to a spreadsheet or database for further analysis or graphical representation.

You can use this tool to monitor one or more license servers, and it will report back the FQDN of the license server(s), the workstation name and the user who initiated the license, when it was issued, and the type of license. The type of license is important and is probably the element you most want to monitor. For example, it shows whether a client has a temporary license, a built-in Windows 2000 license, or a Windows 2000 Terminal Services Client Access license.

Go here for more details: http://techrepublic.com.com/5100-6268-1058268.html

Again, it says that it's for Windows 2000, but it may work for Windows 2003 as well.

Yep, they are both part of the Windows Server 2003 Resource Kit.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=9d467a69-57ff-4ae7-96ee-b18c4790cffd&DisplayLang=en

Nice.. thanks KH..!!

Better save some of this stuff for the Licensing TA, huh? <wink!>

ASKER

King,

No the registry entry did not fix any printing issues...only indroduced problems with this licensing (as I connect to numerous servers during the day - the moment I applied this "fix", the next login ended up with the temp license error).

I have since removed the key with no resolution.

I am not down to 4 days then I am out of time...

This is no fun!! WIll have to look at the utils to audit this mess... unfortunatly, I use this machine to conenct to more than one terminal server, and the trail could be quite long and complex!

Craig

The pressure of a time limit... Argh..!! Not what we in the IT world like to experience.. Feel your pain, my friend..!!

FE

I feel your pain as well! But, I think that until you get that audit trail narrowed, you are never going to be able to finger what's going on here.

ASKER

Ha!!
So this morning doing my morning rounds (I am an administrator / consultant for hire - fixing / patching /tweaking various customers), I am NOT getting this error message at all!!!

I have dialed into windows 2000 server in admin mode and app mode as well as windows 2003 server running admin and app mode... I have dialed into them all, and there is no error message this morning!!

C-r-a-z-y!!!

I have changed NOTHING!

Ha! This is nuts..

thanks for all the info / effort you guys put into this!! get group effort!

Craig

Watch out for them Gremlins... Will be keeping my fingers crossed for tomorrow.. :)

FE

We're blinkin' Gremlin bounty hunters!!!

ASKER

Thanks Guys!!
Good group effort!
Sweep this garbage under the rug and carry on!!

Craig

Thanks...!!!

FE

craigmusgrove,

Thanks for your consideration and best of luck!

Just a follow up. I am having the same situation. I even called MS. According to their tech, if a client PC (device) acquired a TS "token" before the TS CAL was actually installed, then the client will use the token until the 120 days expire. Afterwards if the TS licensing server is configured correctly w/ CALs then the TS server will begin to release CAL to replace the token. I guess the token is a temp CAL for 120 days. And if a new client has logged on to TS after the TS license server was configured then that client will get a CAL from the start. TYPICAL Microsoft! Anyway, the MS tech told me to let the temp token expire and the TS will issue me a CAL automatically. Looks like this is the same thing that happened to craigmusgrove.

Thanks Eagle.. will definitely keep that in mind..

FE

joeycastaneda

Hi everyone,

Can I jump in......I'm also getting the same messge.

"Your terminal services temporary license will expire in 9 days"

We are in the starting a rollout converting from a Windows NT 4.0/Citrix system to a Windows 2003 TS system...no more Citrix. We started to see this message today in our labs. We have 5 Windows 2003 TS servers and have added 5 20 pack TCALs. We are only getting the message on 3 of the servers. We changed the date on one of the servers to 15 days later and the message stopped and we can still log on to a RDP session. Will my users still be able to log on to a RDP session in 9 days or is there something we need to do?

joeycastaneda

I saw the message above about letting the temp license expire and the system will issue a new one but is there any way of turning the message off.

Joey.. once a question is closed, you need to open a new one to really get a good response.. but I believe the answer is no.. but as long as you have installed the new licenses, you should be okay..

FE

Yesterday my temporary license finally expired. Had to call MS license activation AGAIN!. Had to go thru the process of activating the TS license server all over again. Since Server 2003 is "supposed" to be so much better than server 2000, seems like MS could have made the code to remove the temp licenses whenever the CALs installed. Now off of my tangent...after activating the TS license server once again the message goes away. Just a bit aggrivating having to perform the CAL istallation twice. Only took about 10 minutes w/ MS over the phone.

Did they charge you..?? :)

But tell you the truth, I am not surprised at this... Need to get that fixed right away..!!

No charge. I did figure out one issue. The CALs we have are "per user". So the terminal server for each server that you will be connecting will need ot be set to, as in our case, per user not per device.
Go to:
on w2003: start>administrative tools>terminal server configuration. Then >server settings and change/verify that the "licensing" is set to per user or per device depending on the type of license you have. That might have been my problem all along.

ASKER

I have decided months ago (for whatever reason) to install all my TS CALS as per user and not per device... what is the opinions on that?
Craig

AFAIK, the licensing depends on the type of TS license purchased from MS. If you have a server denoted as an application server instead of remote administration then the licensing can be a real headache. By default MS allows 2 remote admin connectionw w/out any TS license. Application servers require TS license for remote connection. If you are using server 2003 and exchange 2003 then by default the server is an application server. The cost is the main factor when determining the per user of per device option.
check out this site for overview of win2003server cals:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2003/howtobuy/licensing/caloverview.mspx

ASKER

Ok... I know I should be starting a new question... but everyone is already paying attention to this topic here....

Accessing TS thru the web - ts web - does this pull a license from the server? Cant see how it could

Info on tsweb here:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=e2ff8fb5-97ff-47bc-bacc-92283b52b310&DisplayLang=en

Craig

Good question, but I doubt it.. Never asked that before... :)

Why wouldn't it? The license pull is a server side action, be it TSAC or TSWEB clients. Once the ActiveX control is downloaded and installed on the clients machine all comms are between the client and Term Server, not the web server. The web server only provides an easy method to distribute the AX component. As long as the TS and the License Server have comms it will pull, the client need not have access.

I think! ;-) Just throwing in my thought process.

Gotta love licensing.. wonder if anyone really knows for sure.. :)