Win2K Post-SP2 Hotfixes
Microsoft has created a cumulative list of the articles that discuss hotfixes since Windows 2000 Service Pack 2 (SP2). Several of these hotfixes are specific to terminal services (including the licensing hotfix I mentioned last week), so this list is worth checking out. You'll find the complete list on Microsoft's Web site.
Terminal Services Considerations on a Server Cluster
Microsoft article Q294926 describes the factors to consider when you install Win2K Server Terminal Services on a server cluster, including the fact that the cluster service coexists with Terminal Services only if you install the service in Remote Administration mode. The article links to a second article that describes how to use Win2K Advanced Server's load balancing rather than clustering to load-balance application servers.
Migrating an Existing DNS Infrastructure from a Bind-Based Server to a Win2K-Based DNS Server
Microsoft article Q301192 contains a step-by-step guide for replacing an existing DNS infrastructure with a new Win2K DNS infrastructure. This process includes installing the Win2K-based DNS server and configuring it to perform name resolution and dynamic updates; you can then centrally locate resources and servers and use zone transfers to migrate BIND-based server zones to the Win2K DNS server.
Dumping Memory Contents with Terminal Servers
If your Windows NT Server 4.0, Terminal Server Edition (TSE) or Win2K Terminal Services server contains more than 4GB of RAM, you might not be able to perform a complete memory dump in a memory.dmp file because the paging file size is limited to 4048MB. See Microsoft article Q241046 to learn how to increase the size of memory.dmp on Win2K and TSE terminal servers. On a related subject, Microsoft article Q241215 explains how to use userdump.exe to generate a user dump of a process that terminates unexpectedly or hangs.
Default Registry Key Permissions Might Allow Privilege Elevation
A malicious user might be able to gain additional privileges on a TSE terminal server if the user can interactively log on to the computer—which is generally the case with terminal servers. The unauthorized privileges include the ability to make code run in a local system context or run the next time a user logs on to the computer, or disable security protection for other vulnerabilities. See Microsoft article Q250625 to learn how to get a fix for this problem.
Setting the Path to Post-Service Pack Installation Files
Microsoft article Q271484 describes the files and folders service packs add to computers and explains how you can edit the registry to point to the updated files when you make changes to the OS after applying the service pack.
Terminal Server Client Shortcut Key Combinations
Task-switching hotkeys operate on the local computer level and don't pass through to the terminal server. However, the RDP Client provides alternative hotkeys. Microsoft article Q186624 contains a list of shortcut keys you can use from an RDP session on a Win2K or TSE terminal server.
Can't Send Outlook Mail with Terminal Services
When you configure Microsoft Outlook 98 or 97 for Internet mail, you might receive a nondelivery report (NDR) that says, "No transport provider was available for delivery to this recipient. The service is installed but doesn't show up in Tools/Check for new mail on . . ." According to Microsoft article Q194878, Outlook clients need to create an RHC file in the %systemroot%\system32 directory. See the article to learn how to edit the \System32 folder's permissions to create the file.
Organization Chart Fails to Open When Called from Office Application
When you attempt to open an organizational chart in Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, or Microsoft Excel (all Office 97 editions) from within a terminal session running on a TSE terminal server, an error message might tell you that the application can't load the chart. You won't be able to use the application, and the terminal server client session might become unresponsive. See Microsoft article Q196747 to learn how to resolve this problem.
Win2K Terminal Services Doesn't Support Outlook Offline Storage
We've covered this subject before, but Microsoft must think it bears repeating. You can't use offline files with Terminal Services because the offline file cache exists on a per-machine basis, not a per-user basis. When you add a Microsoft Exchange server to an Outlook profile, the system doesn't ask whether you travel with the computer. When you view or modify the properties for the Microsoft Exchange Server service, the Offline folder settings on the Advanced tab aren't present. As Microsoft article Q242195 notes, the only way you can add Outlook Offline folder settings is to uninstall Terminal Services component in Win2K (or run it in remote administration mode).
Terminal Server Client Can't Perform "Send To/Mail Recipient" Action if Outlook Isn't Already Started
If you run a TSE client session and try to send a file from Windows Explorer as an attachment to an email message by right-clicking the file, clicking Send To, and then clicking Mail Recipient, Outlook 98 might not start and an error message might tell you that the object couldn't be found. However, you can use the Send To option if Outlook is already open. Microsoft article Q255192 explains how to resolve this problem.
Terminal Services in Remote Administration Mode Doesn't Switch to Install Mode
In the past, you might have been able to use the CHANGE USER /INSTALL command to put a Win2K terminal server running in remote administration mode into Install Mode. However, after you apply SP2 to the server, if you try to use CHANGE USER an error message will tell you that Install Mode doesn't apply to a terminal server configured for remote administration. As Microsoft article Q290519 notes, this change is a fix, not an introduced problem.
Troubleshooting TCP Ports That Stay in the Syn_Received State
If you use Winsock TCP ports with TSE, you might experience performance problems such as programs that stop responding (hang). You might also notice that some TCP ports stay in the SYN_RECEIVED state for long periods of time. Microsoft article Q296692 describes how to proceed if you experience these problems.
Terminal Server Random "Stop 0x0000001e" Error Message with an Invalid Palette Reset
A TSE terminal server might blue screen in win32k.sys if it tries to flush the palette while destroying the thread info. The window pointer is partially destroyed and returns a NULL value when referenced. See Microsoft article Q282228 to learn how to get a fix for this problem.
"Stop 0x0000001e" Error Message When Printing with HP DesignJet Printer Driver
According to Microsoft article Q301330, when you print from a Win2K or TSE terminal server or Terminal Services client, you might receive a "Stop 0x0000001E" error message on a blue screen. This issue can occur if you use the Hewlett-Packard (HP) DesignJet driver (HPGL2/RTL) version 4.4 for Win2K and NT 4.0. The article includes a list of printers that might experience this problem. You can resolve this problem by using the Win2K printer driver or by editing the terminal server's registry to disable one function of the printer driver. See the Reader Tip in this issue of Application Service Provider UPDATE (June 20, 2001) for a link to an HP document about HP LaserJet printers and terminal services.