Tag Archives: disconnect

Remote Desktop Web – Session Timeouts (Altering)

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KB ID 0001215 

Problem

Timeouts for the RDWeb portal are defined by the choice you made when you logged in, if you selected ‘private’ or ‘public’ on the PC options, this sets the timeout. The default is 240 mins for private, and 20 minutes for public connections.

Solution

To alter these values you need to make changes in the ‘Internet Information Services Management Console’ on the RDWeb server.

Navigate to {Server-name} > Sites > Default Web Site > RDWeb > Pages > Application Settings.

You need to alter;

PrivateModeSessionTimeoutIn… AND PublicModeSessionTimeoutIn…

Edit the values according to your requirements.

If you find that the changes don’t take effect immediately drop to command line and issue an ‘iisreset’ command.

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Deploying VMware View 5 – Part 3: Creating a ‘Manual Pool’ and Connecting a View Client

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KB ID 0000598

Problem

Note: This is an old post for VMware view version 5, you might want to read Deploying VMware Horizon View instead.

In Part 2 we got our machine ready to be delivered via VMware View. Now we need to create a ‘Pool’, grant users access to that pool, and finally connect to it from a VMware View Client.

Solution

VMware View – Creating a Manual Pool

1. Open a connection to your VMware View Administrator console (https://{connection-server-name}admin). Log in and navigate to Inventory > Pools > Add.

2. We are going to create a manual pool (Note: An automated pool will create machines dynamically as required).

3. I’m selecting dedicated (the machine will get allocated to the first user that connects to it, and remains theirs). With a floating Pool machines are returned to the pool after they are finished with to be given to the next user that requires a machine.

4. My machine is in vCenter.

5. And there’s my vCenter

6. Give the new pool a sensible name.

7. Change the settings for the pool as required, I pretty much accept the defaults, but I allow the users to “reset” their desktop.

8. Select the machine(s) you are going to add to the pool, and complete the wizard.

9. Now you have a new pool, you need to grant users/groups an ‘entitlement’ to use it.

10. Simply add in the users or groups from Active Directory as required.

VMware View – Installing the VMware View Client

11. You will find that there are x32 and x64 bit VMware client software installs. There are available in two flavours, (with local mode, or without local mode).

Note: Local Mode: This is a mechanism where users can ‘check out’ their virtual machines and work on them remotely, then ‘sync’ them back to the network when they return, it requires a VMware Transport Server (use the connection server install media and change the server type to Transport Server).

12. During setup it will ask you the name of your connection server.

13. Normally you would tick “Set default option to login as current user”. If not you will see the login option in step 16 below.

14. When you launch the software, you may want to change the certificate options. The Connection server will have installed with a ‘self signed’ certificate, (which is fine) but you might want to change the ‘Configure SSL” options.

15. Here I’ve set them to allow, it says not secure – but its still encrypted, it should really say ‘least secure’.

16. If you didn’t tick the box in step 13 above you will need to login again.

17. Now you will see all the pools you have an entitlement to, select as appropriate and click connect.

18. All being well the desktop will connect and dynamically resize to fit.

19. Whist connected you will can control your connection with the menu on the view client bar at the top of the screen, also here you will see options for connecting USB Devices (Note: USB will only be available if you had it selected when you installed the client, it IS selected by default).

Related Articles, References, Credits, or External Links

VMware View 5 – Part 4 Installing and Configuring SQL 2008 R2 and VMware Composer

VMware – Cannot Delete an ‘Orphaned’ Replica

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KB ID 0000601 

Problem

After some messing about on my test network I was left with a ‘replica’ machine that I needed to get rid of, this was easier said than done, as it was in an orphaned state.

Solution

1. Find out which host in the cluster the replica is on, In my case that’s simple (I only have one). In a live environment click the replica machines summary tab, and it will tell you which host it is on. Connect directly to the host with the VI client software. (Remember the username this time will probably be root!), then right click the replica and select ‘Delete form Disk’.

2. Log back into your Virtual Center Server with the VI client. Right click the host that had the replica on it and select ‘Disconnect’.

Note: We actually need to remove it from the cluster, but to to that it would need to be in maintenance mode (not good if you have live servers running) that’s why we are disconnecting it first (the VM‘s will stay online).

3. Once disconnected, right click the host again, and this time ‘Remove”. Don’t panic the guest machines will stay online.

4. Then simply add the ESX host back into the cluster once again, this time its updated inventory (Minus the deleted replica) will be added back.

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Windows – Location Based Printing with con2prt

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KB ID 0000510

Problem

Yes these days we would prefer to use GPO or GPP to do this, but some printers simply refuse to be farmed out this way, and a lot of clients don’t want to install their network printers in that manner.

Con2prt is a very old piece of software it’s part of the Windows NT4 ZAK (Yep it’s that old!). Its purpose in life is to connect clients to printers. So how can we do that based on location? We use a system variable, you may or may not be familiar with system variables (%username% and %userprofile% are commonly used). We will create one called Location and set it to a value e.g. accounts-office. Then when you log into a machine with this variable set to accounts-office you get all the printers in the accounts office.

It’s a great solution for schools where pupils travel all over the school/campus and always need the printer in the classroom they are in.

Solution

1. First download con2prt and put it in a shared folder on your network that has Read/Execute rights (For the rest of this example, I’ll useprintservercon2prt).

2. The easiest way to get an environment variable on the target machines is to create a Group Policy Preference to create it. Go to your domain controller, Start > Administrative tools > Group Policy management console > either create a new policy and link it to the OU containing your target COMPUTERS or edit an existing policy. Then navigate to:

[box]Computer configuration > Preferences > Windows Settings > Environment[/box]

Create a new system variable called Location, and set it to a sensible value that reflects the machines location.

3.  Then either get the clients to reboot, wait a couple of hours, or manually run “gpupdate /force” on them. You can check on the client machines if the system variable was successful, by looking in the system properties > Advanced system settings > Advanced > Environment Variables > And check that Location has been created with the correct value we created above.

4. OR drop to command line and issue an “echo %Location%” command, make sure it returns the correct value.

5. Now install the printer on your print server, and share it on the network (Remember if it’s an x64 bit server, and your clients are x32 you will need to ALSO import the x32 bit drivers. (Printer Properties > Sharing > Additional Drivers).

6. Now make sure the user has a login script > In the example below I’ve set it in AD on the user object (So the login script will live in the NETLOGON share of your domain controller(s)). But you can specify login scripts with group policy, (User Configuration > Policies > Windows Settings > Scripts > Logon) should you prefer.

7. Edit/Amend the script using the example below, (Note: always start with the /F option to remove printers, or users will travel round collecting more and more printers, that will never get removed!).

8. Then when the user logs in, the printers will install in the background.

Note: If they see and error that says “Do you Trust This Printer” then you will need to do this.

 

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