[THIN] MSTerminalServices.org - April 2006 Newsletter
- From: "MSTerminalServices.org" <info@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "thin@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <thin@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 27 Apr 2006 09:26:00 -0500
MSTerminalServices.org Newsletter of April 2006
Sponsored by: 2X Software Ltd
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In this issue:
What's up?
KB Articles of the Month
Ask our MVPs!
Learning Zone
On the Spot
Rumours on the SBC Space
Welcome to the MSTerminalServices.org newsletter! Each month we will bring you
interesting and helpful information on MS Terminal Services and server based
computing. We want to know what all *you* are interested in hearing about.
Please send your suggestions for future newsletter content to:
CRodrigues@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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1. What's up?
By Claudio Rodrigues, Terminal Server MVP
Hi there!
It is almost May and this month was great for TS/Citrix geeks out there. :-)
Everyone got together at BriForum (http://www.briforum.com/) at the beginning
of the month for the best technical conference out there. Three days, sixty
plus sessions and tons of drinks later, we were all more than happy. Brian even
managed to get us a fire going on to test our evacuation skills. That was cool.
BriForum is now going to Europe at the end of the year, more precisely in
October and in Germany.
Next month we also have PubForum (http://www.pubforum.net/), this time in
Brussels, Belgium. Unfortunately, thanks to my well known on-going battle with
Immigration Canada I will not be able to go anywhere anytime soon. :-( Too bad
because the beer content at PubForum seems higher (is that possible???).
On the Application Virtualization/Isolation end, two cool things I have seen
this morning. First, Softricity finally announced their SoftGrid Platform V4
with many improvements (actually we were testing it specifically for DDE
support and it worked as expected!). And finally Altiris has been doing a great
job with their 'Software Virtualization Solution' (SVS). Although not the same
as SoftGrid, I think everyone should check it out. First because it is free for
personal use; secondly because you can get some apps already prepackaged for
you! Really cool stuff. The apps are available at http://www.svsdownloads.com.
Cheers!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Application Publishing burning a hole in your pocket? - switch to 2X
ApplicationServer - its Free
2X ApplicationServer allows you to publish any Windows application onto remote
desktops, saving on administration & support. Install the application once on
the server and eliminate the administration hassle of deploying the
applications on all workstations. Allow users outside the firewall secure
access to corporate applications by tunneling the applications onto their
remote desktop/notebook via SSL!
Download your 5 FREE application license
(http://www.2x.com/applicationserver/application-publishing.htm)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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2. KB Articles of the Month
Here are some interesting and useful Terminal Services related articles posted
by Microsoft in the last month:
You receive a "Not enough memory" error message when you search for clips in an
Office document during a Terminal Services session
(821257) - When you search for clips in a Microsoft Office document (on the
Insert menu, point to Picture, and then click Clip Art) during a Microsoft
Windows 2000 Terminal Services session, you may receive the following error
message?
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/821257/en-us
FIX: Non-Admin Windows 2000 Users Cannot Create Global Objects by Using
Terminal Services
(823317) When you try to create global objects by using Windows 2000 Terminal
Services server with Windows user credentials that are different from
administrator credentials or LocalSystem credentials, the operation may fail.
For example, when you try to insert a ClipArt picture in a Microsoft Word
document, the operation may fail, and you receive the following error message?
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/823317/en-us
PPT2002: Colors Appear Corrupted on a Terminal Services Client Session
Connection
(328104) - When you run PowerPoint 2002 on a Terminal Services client session
connection (which runs at 256 colors - Windows 2000 TS), colors may appear
corrupted.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/328104/en-us
Terminal Server License Server Activation Wizard generates a product ID that
does not work
(832794) - In Microsoft Windows Server 2003, when you use Terminal Server
License Server Activation Wizard to activate a Terminal Services license server
by telephone, you may find that you cannot use the product ID that appears on
the License Server Activation page of the wizard to complete the activation of
the license server. The product ID that is generated by the wizard does not
work.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/832794/en-us
A remote desktop session may experience a long delay when you try to log off an
Advanced Client computer
(831962) - After you install the Microsoft Systems Management Server (SMS) 2003
Advanced Client software on a Terminal Server computer, it may take several
minutes for you to log off a Terminal Services session on the Advanced Client
computer. Additionally, changes to your profile may not be saved.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/831962/en-us
HOW TO: Use the Terminal Services Licensing Reporter Tool (Lsreport.exe)
(317592) - This step-by-step article describes how to use the Terminal Services
Licensing Reporter tool (Lsreport.exe) to display and analyze the license
information that is contained in the database of Terminal Services license
servers.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/317592/en-us
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3. Ask our MVPs a question
This is simple and straight forward: shoot us your TS/Citrix question and we
will get some of the top Terminal Services MVPs together and get you an answer,
from everyone?s point of view!
The best question of the month will be published here with all the answers from
these guys.
Just email us at CRodrigues@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
QUESTION: Well no one can say I have not tried. I asked for questions last
month and again, nothing showed up (well I got some but they are more related
to particular environments/problems than something that I think is applicable
to the whole community out there). So we had to get another question from our
hidden treasure chest?
'Dear TS MVPs. We are thinking about rolling out some of our applications using
a TS environment. I have talked to a couple people and they are saying that TS
has so many problems with printing that it is not worth doing it at all. They
even say TS is the worst thing after the Toronto Maple Leafs? Is that true?'
Ottawa Senators Fan, Nepean
ANSWER: Dear Smart Person, you are correct. There is nothing worse than the
Toronto Maple Leafs. Not even the Dutch National Soccer team. But about
printing, this is not completely true. Printing is for sure one of the top
headaches in a TS environment but not because TS is flawed as a technology. The
main problem is most people doing Terminal Services deployments do not
understand TS at all and simply think about it as a regular workstation. And
here is where the problems will start to appear.
Certain evil administrators simply get the drivers CD that came with the
printer, put on the TS CD drive and install them! Bad administrator, bad
administrator!
Thanks to great driver developers out there that know nothing about TS, these
well written pieces of art, when running on a TS, may behave in ways the
developer never expected and then?. Well many things can happen, from spoolers
that suddenly stop and no one prints, to servers that turn blue (actually just
the screen. So far I am not aware of any chameleon server available. It could
be interesting. I should patent that I guess).
So the first rule of thumb with TS is NEVER INSTALL ANY PRINTER DRIVER ON A TS.
Before doing that, try to look for alternative options (like drivers listed on
a standard, out-of-the-box Windows 2000/2003 Server). Or if you are really
going to install the driver, TRY on a TEST server first.
And do not forget to read websites like http://www.printingsupport.com and even
my old article, available on the Microsoft website at:
4. Learning Zone
To Citrix or Not to Citrix?
http://www.msterminalservices.org/articles/Citrix-Not-Citrix.html
Date - Apr 5, 2006; Author - Cláudio Rodrigues; Section - Articles :: General
The main question most companies just starting to use SBC technology have is if
Citrix is needed or not. This article is for everyone that is now looking at
Terminal Services/Citrix as a new technology to be used in-house and are now at
a crossroad, having to decide/justify if such an expensive add-on like Citrix
is required or not.
Buying Your First Terminal Server
http://www.msterminalservices.org/articles/Buying-First-Terminal-Server.html
Date - Apr 11, 2006; Author - Stefan Vermeulen; Section - Articles :: General
The use of Server Based Computing for home workers or connecting a small branch
office is very appealing to small companies. However this often means that most
companies buy their first Terminal Server without any prior knowledge of the
technology. Here are some useful recommendations to keep in mind when
purchasing your first Terminal Server.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Application Publishing burning a hole in your pocket? - switch to 2X
ApplicationServer - its Free
2X ApplicationServer allows you to publish any Windows application onto remote
desktops, saving on administration & support. Install the application once on
the server and eliminate the administration hassle of deploying the
applications on all workstations. Allow users outside the firewall secure
access to corporate applications by tunneling the applications onto their
remote desktop/notebook via SSL!
Download your 5 FREE application license
(http://www.2x.com/applicationserver/application-publishing.htm)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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5. On The Spot
This month we talked to Jeff Pitsch. If you do not know him, he is the guy
behind the SBCGateKeeper (http://www.sbcgatekeeper.com/mambo/) website, a
fellow Microsoft MVP and now, an independent consultant.
Cláudio: Hey Jeff! Thanks for taking the time to be 'On the Spot' this month
and my apologies for not being as high tech as Brian and his BrianMaddenLive
show. We will get there eventually!
Jeff: No problem, Cláudio. We can't all be Brian Madden. :-)
Cláudio: Well, first of all I guess everyone probably wants to know how you
ended up on the Dark Side of the Force, doing TS/Citrix stuff. What was the
deal?
Jeff: It was about 10 years ago or so when I was given my first exposure to a
Citrix product. It was back in the WinFrame days and I was working for a
hospital and we were implementing a wireless ER system that used WinFrame to
deliver the application. At the time, I remember thinking, this is kind of
cool but it will never go anywhere. Heh, if only I knew then what I know now.
At the time, I was trying to master 'systems management'. I was working on
things like SMS 1.0, LanDesk, etc. Then Microsoft and Citrix came to their
agreement for NT4 terminal services and Metaframe 1.0 was released. This got
me to look at the technology again and I immediately saw so many advantages to
this type of deployment. This was, at the time, the ultimate systems
management tool. Centralized deployment, centralized administration, the whole
nine yards. At that point, I was working for a consulting company and my
interest took off from there. Two or three years ago I decided to become more
involved in the community and that's where I am today.
Cláudio: From what I remember, the SBC GateKeeper website was geared mostly
towards TS Security. Was that intentional or simply because you were more
involved with the security aspects of TS deployments? Or simply a personal
choice?
Jeff: It was really a personal choice. I wanted to start up a website but it
seemed that many of the angles were taken. Thomas Koetzing had the FAQ, Stefan
Vermeulen had the printing, Doug Brown had MIAB, Brian Madden had a little bit
of everything. As well, everyone was asking questions in the various forums on
how to lock down sessions, how to prevent users from doing one thing or another
and there just didn't seem to be anywhere I could point users too for easy
reference. So, I decided to try to fill that niche.
Cláudio: And of course I guess I need to ask you what everyone asks me all the
time. What are the main issues with the SBC approach?
Jeff: I think the main issue with the SBC approach is that administrators are
typically thrown into terminal services. A vendor, consultant or management
tells them they are going to be using this solution and they suddenly have to
learn a new product. What happens is the administrators treat the box like any
other server and as you well know Cláudio, terminal services is not like any
other server service. Many problems can simply be attributed to the fact that
the administrator didn't take the time to learn the technology and has
therefore not implemented it correctly.
Cláudio: Oh, please do not forget this question as well: 'Do I need Citrix or
not?'. What do you think? :-)
Jeff: This question does get asked all the time in the forums, and I'll say
what I always tell them: There is no way anyone can answer that question
without first sitting down and creating a business case. It seems like such a
simple question but in reality, as with any piece of technology, you need to be
able to justify it. What are the business drivers for Presentation Server?
What problem are you trying to solve? What features do you require? Etc. That
question just cannot be answered without a more in-depth analysis of the
business requirements.
Cláudio: Great. So after all these years on the SBC arena, I guess, like me,
you are very keen on what will happen to the SBC industry when technologies
like application streaming, application virtualization and cheap, always on,
ultra high speed internet access go mainstream. What are your thoughts on this?
Are we doomed?
Jeff: No, we are hardly doomed. A lot has been made of these technologies
especially web applications but they are taking a lot longer to come about than
people thought. I always love reading magazines, websites, etc that try to
predict what will happen over the next year, two years, etc because they almost
always get it wrong. Web applications were going to doom the traditional
application developers. This has been prophesized for, what, 5 years now?
Shoot, I'm still waiting on the paperless office. The fact is, no matter how
great a technology, companies are very slow to adopt them. There are very,
very few true web applications out there. By true web application, I mean an
application that requires nothing more than a browser frontend. Most 'web
applications' still require a client installation. If I have to manage a
client side piece, what have you really gained?
As well, I think many of the new technologies are really great and compliment
the SBC arena as opposed to replacing it. I think people tend to forget the
reasons why the SBC space became so popular and they think the grass will be
greener on the other side. Now after saying that, SBC doesn't fix everything,
nothing ever does. I think people tend to look at some of these technologies
as all or nothing and that has never been the case for anything. Everything
has its place; it's just a matter of finding the correct place in each
organization.
Cláudio: Good. So now you are on your own. What was the main driving force that
made you take the leap and start a TS Consulting business? I know you just
started but you seem very happy so far!
Jeff: I've wanted to go out on my own for quite a while and this year seemed to
be the perfect year for it. I was getting many requests from people that know
my work from the various forums so I figured this was a good time. The biggest
advantage I bring to the table is that I'm a known quantity. I cannot hide
what I do or do not know. That gives business peace of mind because, let's be
honest, most of time with consulting firms, you have no idea who you're going
to get. I know many companies that were burned by a firm promising they had an
expert in one field or another to find out that the person was definitely not
an expert. Another advantage I bring is the world wide set of contacts I have
with the other experts in the SBC field and at companies like Citrix and
Microsoft.
And yes, I'm very happy with this. It really is a great feeling to be finally
on my own but to also be able to spend more time with family. I know my kids
love it.
Cláudio: Well I guess that is all from my end Jeff. Again, many thanks for your
time this month and we will keep in touch for sure!
Jeff: Thank you Cláudio.
If you guys are looking for an experienced Citrix/TS consultant in the
Chicago/Detroit area (or from what I gathered, he works pretty much anywhere in
US), Jeff can be reached through his website at
http://www.JeffPitschConsulting.com.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Application Publishing burning a hole in your pocket? - switch to 2X
ApplicationServer - its Free
2X ApplicationServer allows you to publish any Windows application onto remote
desktops, saving on administration & support. Install the application once on
the server and eliminate the administration hassle of deploying the
applications on all workstations. Allow users outside the firewall secure
access to corporate applications by tunneling the applications onto their
remote desktop/notebook via SSL!
Download your 5 FREE application license
(http://www.2x.com/applicationserver/application-publishing.htm)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6. Rumors on the SBC Space
Well some good news out there. Almost every single company in the SBC space is
ready to release a newer version of their products. I guess it has something to
do with spring. :-)
2X is coming out with a much improved ApplicationServer (seamless windows,
application publishing, etc) and Provision Networks is revamping their product
a lot and even adding some amazing things like Virtual IP support and so on!
And to wrap this month up, a cool announcement from my own end. :-) We have
been working on a new company and a new product and it is now time to show it
to the world. We will soon be releasing a product for recording RDP sessions.
Yes, exactly like Citrix was talking at BriForum for their upcoming
Presentation Server. The difference is ours is real and it is actually
something that works and that you can try if you want! The idea is to allow
companies to record all terminal services activities for auditing/archiving
purposes. If you are interested in trying the software, just send me a quick
email.
See you next month!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Application Publishing burning a hole in your pocket? - switch to 2X
ApplicationServer - its Free
2X ApplicationServer allows you to publish any Windows application onto remote
desktops, saving on administration & support. Install the application once on
the server and eliminate the administration hassle of deploying the
applications on all workstations. Allow users outside the firewall secure
access to corporate applications by tunneling the applications onto their
remote desktop/notebook via SSL!
Download your 5 FREE application license
(http://www.2x.com/applicationserver/application-publishing.htm)
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