Configure remote control settings

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

To configure remote control settings

Open Group Policy.
In Computer Configuration, Administrative Templates, Windows Components, Terminal Services, double-click the Set rules for remote control of Terminal Services user sessions setting, and then click Enabled.
In the Options box, click the desired remote control permissions, and then click OK.

Important
- You should thoroughly test any changes you make to Group Policy settings before applying them to users or computers. For more information on testing policy settings, see Resultant Set of Policy.

Notes

Use the above procedure to configure the local Group Policy object. To change a policy for a domain or an organizational unit, you must log on to the primary domain controller as an Administrator. Then, you must invoke Group Policy through the Active Directory Users and Computers snap-in.
These policies affect every client that connects to the terminal server. To configure Remote Control on a per-user basis, use the corresponding policy under User Configuration.

Open Terminal Services Configuration.
In the console tree, click Connections.
In the details pane, right-click the connection for which you want to configure remote control, and then click Properties.
On the Remote Control tab, click Use remote control with the following settings to configure remote control for the connection.
To display a message on the client, asking permission to view or take part in the session, select the Require user's permission check box.
Under Level of control, click View the session to specify that the user's session can be viewed only, or click Interact with the session to specify that the user's session can be actively controlled with your keyboard and mouse.

Note
- To open Terminal Services Configuration, click Start, click Control Panel, double-click Administrative Tools, and then double-click Terminal Services Configuration.

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.
Group Policy overrides the configuration set with the Terminal Services Configuration tool.
Configuring remote control on a per-connection basis affects all sessions that use the connection. You can configure remote control on a per-user basis using the Terminal Services User Configuration Group Policies, or by using the Terminal Services Extension to Local Users and Groups and Active Directory Users and Computers.
Changes to remote control permissions are not applied to sessions that are connected when the change is made.

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.