Install Terminal Server

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

To install Terminal Server

Open Configure Your Server Wizard.
Click Next and follow the instructions on the Preliminary Steps screen.
Click Next, and on the Server Role screen, select Terminal Server.
Click Next and follow the instructions in the wizard.
Some programs might not work correctly when Terminal Server is installed. If so, you must reinstall these programs for multisession access using Add or Remove Programs after Terminal Server is installed. For more information, see Program Compatibility.

Warning

Terminal Server Licensing is a required component that licenses clients on a terminal server. You must install Terminal Server Licensing or your terminal server will stop accepting connections from unlicensed clients 120 days from the date of the first client logon.

You should not install Terminal Server Licensing on the same computer with Terminal Server.

For more information on Terminal Server Licensing, see Terminal Server Licensing.

Important

When you install Terminal Server using the Configure Your Server Wizard, as a security precaution the Internet Explorer Enhanced Security Configuration is set by default to prevent Administrators from downloading files or running ActiveX controls from the Web. If you want to change this setting to either permit all users to download files or run ActiveX controls or prevent all users from doing so, use Add/Remove Windows Components in Add or Remove Programs. This setting applies to servers running one of the Windows Server 2003 family operating systems. For more information, see Terminal server role: Configuring a terminal server and Internet Explorer Enhanced Security Configuration.

Important

You must use the Remote Desktop Users group to control remote connection permissions for Terminal Server. For more information, see Managing Terminal Services users and Add users to the Remote Desktop Users group.

Important

It is not necessary to install Terminal Server for remote administration of your server. Remote Desktop for Administration is installed by default. To use Remote Desktop for Administration, you must first enable remote connections. For more information on enabling remote connections, see Enable or disable Remote Desktop and Enabling users to connect remotely to the server.

Notes

To perform this procedure, you must be a member of the Administrators group on the local computer, or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. If the computer is joined to a domain, members of the Domain Admins group might be able to perform this procedure. As a security best practice, consider using Run as to perform this procedure. For more information, see Default local groups, Default groups, and Using Run as.
To open the Configure Your Server Wizard, click Start, click Control Panel, double-click Administrative Tools, and then double-click Configure Your Server Wizard.
Certain Windows components require configuration before they can be used. If you installed one or more of these components but did not configure them, when you click Add/Remove Windows Components, a list of components that need to be configured is displayed. To start the Windows Components Wizard, click Components.
You can also use Add or Remove Programs to install Terminal Server.

Your server might function differently based on the version and edition of the operating system that is installed, your account permissions, and your menu settings. For more information, see Viewing Help on the Web.