What's happening with my TS licensing??

[lavagirl]

OH, my, what a mess. I was having some performance issues with some of my
clients connecting to the terminal server. So, I called Microsoft. To make
a long story short, they uninstalled and reissued my licenses for me (after 2
hours on the phone).

So, clean slate with the license manager, 50 licenses, none issued yet. So,
I went to the computers to start connecting them to make sure they were
getting the licenses, and very strange things are happening! First of all,
some of them are being issued a license, but the license server shows the
wrong computer name for the license! (ie: perhaps an old name for the
computer? we changed around some computers this summer and changed the
name). Then, some of the computers are connecting, but are not being issued
a license. So, I connect computer "xyz", it goes through fine, but nothing
shows in the license manager for that computer. There are no temporary
licenses being issued either. What on earth is happening???

I read in a few posts that a registry key is created when a computer is
issued a license. Should I go to all the computers and delete it before
trying to connect again? Where is it located?
Thanks for ANY help!! This TS stuff is really confusing.

 

[lavagirl]

I've been doing much reading on this forum and think I need to provide a
little more detail. We have 2 computer rooms where students need to connect
to the TS. This summer, we took many of the computers from one of the rooms
(the computer room) and moved them to the other room (the English room), and
then got new computers for the computer room. We renamed the old computers
using the naming convention for that room (ie: "eng1", "eng2", etc...).
Then, the new computers we put in the first room we named according to the
naming convention of that room ("cmp1", "cmp2", etc...). The reason I'm
mentioning this is because the names of those new computers were all names of
the old computers that went to the English lab. Could I be having a problem
because I'm using the old names on the new computers? Sorry for the
ignorance, but well, I am!

"lavagirl" wrote:

> OH, my, what a mess. I was having some performance issues with some of my
> clients connecting to the terminal server. So, I called Microsoft. To make
> a long story short, they uninstalled and reissued my licenses for me (after 2
> hours on the phone).
>
> So, clean slate with the license manager, 50 licenses, none issued yet. So,
> I went to the computers to start connecting them to make sure they were
> getting the licenses, and very strange things are happening! First of all,
> some of them are being issued a license, but the license server shows the
> wrong computer name for the license! (ie: perhaps an old name for the
> computer? we changed around some computers this summer and changed the
> name). Then, some of the computers are connecting, but are not being issued
> a license. So, I connect computer "xyz", it goes through fine, but nothing
> shows in the license manager for that computer. There are no temporary
> licenses being issued either. What on earth is happening???
>
> I read in a few posts that a registry key is created when a computer is
> issued a license. Should I go to all the computers and delete it before
> trying to connect again? Where is it located?
> Thanks for ANY help!! This TS stuff is really confusing.

 

[lavagirl]

Okay, don't laugh, I think I'm starting to understand this now. I can see
that my new machines are being issued temp licenses, and then when I log back
in, they are allocated a real license. My question is, what about the old
machines that already had a license allocated (and thus, the registry key)?
Now that MS has cleared all of the issued licenses from the server, what
happens to those machines that already had a license when they try to connect
again? Why aren't they showing up in the TS manager? From what I'm reading,
I'm thinking that they connect using the old license, and because TS doesn't
validate with the license server, the license mgr is not showing them????
Well, it's showing some of them, but under a different name. For example,
"eng19" connects, but the TS license manager shows "comp13" (this was the
first one I connected, so I saw the license get created). In that case, does
the registry hold the name, and that's why they're showing up under, possibly
the old machine name, rather than their current name? Is there any benefit
to deleting the registry keys on the remaining old machines that haven't
connected (again) so that a new license is created? Is this whole thread
clear as mud?

"lavagirl" wrote:

> OH, my, what a mess. I was having some performance issues with some of my
> clients connecting to the terminal server. So, I called Microsoft. To make
> a long story short, they uninstalled and reissued my licenses for me (after 2
> hours on the phone).
>
> So, clean slate with the license manager, 50 licenses, none issued yet. So,
> I went to the computers to start connecting them to make sure they were
> getting the licenses, and very strange things are happening! First of all,
> some of them are being issued a license, but the license server shows the
> wrong computer name for the license! (ie: perhaps an old name for the
> computer? we changed around some computers this summer and changed the
> name). Then, some of the computers are connecting, but are not being issued
> a license. So, I connect computer "xyz", it goes through fine, but nothing
> shows in the license manager for that computer. There are no temporary
> licenses being issued either. What on earth is happening???
>
> I read in a few posts that a registry key is created when a computer is
> issued a license. Should I go to all the computers and delete it before
> trying to connect again? Where is it located?
> Thanks for ANY help!! This TS stuff is really confusing.

 

[Vera Noest [MVP]]

As far as I can see, there is no mess, there is no problem, all
works as by design.

Every first connection from a new client always results in a
temporary license. On the second connection of the same client, it
is issued a permanent license.

Your old clients, which still have a valid license stored in their
local registry, are still connection on this license.
That's why you don't see them in LS Manager, the TS sees the valid
license and doesn't even try to contact the LS when these clients
connect.

When these old licenses expire, they will be renewed, and that's
when you will see these clients take a license in LS Manager.

So have some patience, in at the most 89 days you will see all of
your clients in LS Manager.

Oh, and the LS doesn't care at all about the computer name. You can
change it as many times as you like.
_________________________________________________________
Vera Noest
MCSE, CCEA, Microsoft MVP - Terminal Server
TS troubleshooting: http://ts.veranoest.net
*----------- Please reply in newsgroup -------------*

=?Utf-8?B?bGF2YWdpcmw=?= <lavagirl@discussions.microsoft.com>
wrote on 10 aug 2007:

> Okay, don't laugh, I think I'm starting to understand this now.
> I can see that my new machines are being issued temp licenses,
> and then when I log back in, they are allocated a real license.
> My question is, what about the old machines that already had a
> license allocated (and thus, the registry key)? Now that MS has
> cleared all of the issued licenses from the server, what happens
> to those machines that already had a license when they try to
> connect again? Why aren't they showing up in the TS manager?
> From what I'm reading, I'm thinking that they connect using the
> old license, and because TS doesn't validate with the license
> server, the license mgr is not showing them???? Well, it's
> showing some of them, but under a different name. For example,
> "eng19" connects, but the TS license manager shows "comp13"
> (this was the first one I connected, so I saw the license get
> created). In that case, does the registry hold the name, and
> that's why they're showing up under, possibly the old machine
> name, rather than their current name? Is there any benefit to
> deleting the registry keys on the remaining old machines that
> haven't connected (again) so that a new license is created? Is
> this whole thread clear as mud?
>
> "lavagirl" wrote:
>
>> OH, my, what a mess. I was having some performance issues with
>> some of my clients connecting to the terminal server. So, I
>> called Microsoft. To make a long story short, they uninstalled
>> and reissued my licenses for me (after 2 hours on the phone).
>>
>> So, clean slate with the license manager, 50 licenses, none
>> issued yet. So, I went to the computers to start connecting
>> them to make sure they were getting the licenses, and very
>> strange things are happening! First of all, some of them are
>> being issued a license, but the license server shows the wrong
>> computer name for the license! (ie: perhaps an old name for the
>> computer? we changed around some computers this summer and
>> changed the name). Then, some of the computers are connecting,
>> but are not being issued a license. So, I connect computer
>> "xyz", it goes through fine, but nothing shows in the license
>> manager for that computer. There are no temporary licenses
>> being issued either. What on earth is happening???
>>
>> I read in a few posts that a registry key is created when a
>> computer is issued a license. Should I go to all the computers
>> and delete it before trying to connect again? Where is it
>> located? Thanks for ANY help!! This TS stuff is really
>> confusing.

 

[lavagirl]

Thanks, Vera. I think I am finally getting this. This whole thing
started because I am having issues with clients freezing when trying to
connect to the TS. That problem I am still having...I understand now why
reissuing the licenses didn't help that, but I'm baffled as to why they are
freezing. Does the TS get "confused" if mutliple clients connect at the same
time?

"Vera Noest [MVP]" wrote:

> As far as I can see, there is no mess, there is no problem, all
> works as by design.
>
> Every first connection from a new client always results in a
> temporary license. On the second connection of the same client, it
> is issued a permanent license.
>
> Your old clients, which still have a valid license stored in their
> local registry, are still connection on this license.
> That's why you don't see them in LS Manager, the TS sees the valid
> license and doesn't even try to contact the LS when these clients
> connect.
>
> When these old licenses expire, they will be renewed, and that's
> when you will see these clients take a license in LS Manager.
>
> So have some patience, in at the most 89 days you will see all of
> your clients in LS Manager.
>
> Oh, and the LS doesn't care at all about the computer name. You can
> change it as many times as you like.
> _________________________________________________________
> Vera Noest
> MCSE, CCEA, Microsoft MVP - Terminal Server
> TS troubleshooting: http://ts.veranoest.net
> *----------- Please reply in newsgroup -------------*
>
> =?Utf-8?B?bGF2YWdpcmw=?= <lavagirl@discussions.microsoft.com>
> wrote on 10 aug 2007:
>
> > Okay, don't laugh, I think I'm starting to understand this now.
> > I can see that my new machines are being issued temp licenses,
> > and then when I log back in, they are allocated a real license.
> > My question is, what about the old machines that already had a
> > license allocated (and thus, the registry key)? Now that MS has
> > cleared all of the issued licenses from the server, what happens
> > to those machines that already had a license when they try to
> > connect again? Why aren't they showing up in the TS manager?
> > From what I'm reading, I'm thinking that they connect using the
> > old license, and because TS doesn't validate with the license
> > server, the license mgr is not showing them???? Well, it's
> > showing some of them, but under a different name. For example,
> > "eng19" connects, but the TS license manager shows "comp13"
> > (this was the first one I connected, so I saw the license get
> > created). In that case, does the registry hold the name, and
> > that's why they're showing up under, possibly the old machine
> > name, rather than their current name? Is there any benefit to
> > deleting the registry keys on the remaining old machines that
> > haven't connected (again) so that a new license is created? Is
> > this whole thread clear as mud?
> >
> > "lavagirl" wrote:
> >
> >> OH, my, what a mess. I was having some performance issues with
> >> some of my clients connecting to the terminal server. So, I
> >> called Microsoft. To make a long story short, they uninstalled
> >> and reissued my licenses for me (after 2 hours on the phone).
> >>
> >> So, clean slate with the license manager, 50 licenses, none
> >> issued yet. So, I went to the computers to start connecting
> >> them to make sure they were getting the licenses, and very
> >> strange things are happening! First of all, some of them are
> >> being issued a license, but the license server shows the wrong
> >> computer name for the license! (ie: perhaps an old name for the
> >> computer? we changed around some computers this summer and
> >> changed the name). Then, some of the computers are connecting,
> >> but are not being issued a license. So, I connect computer
> >> "xyz", it goes through fine, but nothing shows in the license
> >> manager for that computer. There are no temporary licenses
> >> being issued either. What on earth is happening???
> >>
> >> I read in a few posts that a registry key is created when a
> >> computer is issued a license. Should I go to all the computers
> >> and delete it before trying to connect again? Where is it
> >> located? Thanks for ANY help!! This TS stuff is really
> >> confusing.
>

 

[Vera Noest [MVP]]

No, it doesn't get "confused". All my 1000+ users logon between
7:55 AM and 8:05 AM, and that's no problem.

But it means an increase in the work load, of course.

You'll have to do some real detective work. Some questions that you
need to be able to answer to narrow down the problem:

* are there any errors or warning in the EventLog?
* is is a resource problem on the server? Does this only happen
when you have a high workload, like when all users logon
simultaneously, or does it happen at other times as well, when the
server isn't highly used?
* use Performance Monitor on the server to monitor CPU and memory
usage (to start with).
* does the server also freeze when you try to logon to the console
of the server?
* when a client session freezes, are other users, who are already
connected, able to continue working or are their sessions also
frozen?
* if you let the client wait for a long time, like 30 minutes, does
the session eventually become responsive again or not?
* at what point does the session freezes? Are users able to
complete the logon process, but never get to the desktop, or at
some other point?
* does this happen to all users, from all workstations? If not,
what is the common factor for the clients or users who experience
the problem? Many redirected printers? Redirected local drives?
Audio? Starting application defined? Is the problem solved when you
give such a user a fresh profile?
_________________________________________________________
Vera Noest
MCSE, CCEA, Microsoft MVP - Terminal Server
TS troubleshooting: http://ts.veranoest.net
___ please respond in newsgroup, NOT by private email ___

=?Utf-8?B?bGF2YWdpcmw=?= <lavagirl@discussions.microsoft.com>
wrote on 10 aug 2007 in
microsoft.public.windows.terminal_services:

> Thanks, Vera. I think I am finally getting this. This
> whole thing started because I am having issues with clients
> freezing when trying to connect to the TS. That problem I am
> still having...I understand now why reissuing the licenses
> didn't help that, but I'm baffled as to why they are freezing.
> Does the TS get "confused" if mutliple clients connect at the
> same time?
>
> "Vera Noest [MVP]" wrote:
>
>> As far as I can see, there is no mess, there is no problem, all
>> works as by design.
>>
>> Every first connection from a new client always results in a
>> temporary license. On the second connection of the same client,
>> it is issued a permanent license.
>>
>> Your old clients, which still have a valid license stored in
>> their local registry, are still connection on this license.
>> That's why you don't see them in LS Manager, the TS sees the
>> valid license and doesn't even try to contact the LS when these
>> clients connect.
>>
>> When these old licenses expire, they will be renewed, and
>> that's when you will see these clients take a license in LS
>> Manager.
>>
>> So have some patience, in at the most 89 days you will see all
>> of your clients in LS Manager.
>>
>> Oh, and the LS doesn't care at all about the computer name. You
>> can change it as many times as you like.
>> _________________________________________________________
>> Vera Noest
>> MCSE, CCEA, Microsoft MVP - Terminal Server
>> TS troubleshooting: http://ts.veranoest.net
>> *----------- Please reply in newsgroup -------------*
>>
>> =?Utf-8?B?bGF2YWdpcmw=?= <lavagirl@discussions.microsoft.com>
>> wrote on 10 aug 2007:
>>
>> > Okay, don't laugh, I think I'm starting to understand this
>> > now. I can see that my new machines are being issued temp
>> > licenses, and then when I log back in, they are allocated a
>> > real license. My question is, what about the old machines
>> > that already had a license allocated (and thus, the registry
>> > key)? Now that MS has cleared all of the issued licenses
>> > from the server, what happens to those machines that already
>> > had a license when they try to connect again? Why aren't
>> > they showing up in the TS manager? From what I'm reading, I'm
>> > thinking that they connect using the old license, and because
>> > TS doesn't validate with the license server, the license mgr
>> > is not showing them???? Well, it's showing some of them, but
>> > under a different name. For example, "eng19" connects, but
>> > the TS license manager shows "comp13" (this was the first one
>> > I connected, so I saw the license get created). In that
>> > case, does the registry hold the name, and that's why they're
>> > showing up under, possibly the old machine name, rather than
>> > their current name? Is there any benefit to deleting the
>> > registry keys on the remaining old machines that haven't
>> > connected (again) so that a new license is created? Is
>> > this whole thread clear as mud?
>> >
>> > "lavagirl" wrote:
>> >
>> >> OH, my, what a mess. I was having some performance issues
>> >> with some of my clients connecting to the terminal server.
>> >> So, I called Microsoft. To make a long story short, they
>> >> uninstalled and reissued my licenses for me (after 2 hours
>> >> on the phone).
>> >>
>> >> So, clean slate with the license manager, 50 licenses, none
>> >> issued yet. So, I went to the computers to start connecting
>> >> them to make sure they were getting the licenses, and very
>> >> strange things are happening! First of all, some of them
>> >> are being issued a license, but the license server shows the
>> >> wrong computer name for the license! (ie: perhaps an old
>> >> name for the computer? we changed around some computers
>> >> this summer and changed the name). Then, some of the
>> >> computers are connecting, but are not being issued a
>> >> license. So, I connect computer "xyz", it goes through
>> >> fine, but nothing shows in the license manager for that
>> >> computer. There are no temporary licenses being issued
>> >> either. What on earth is happening???
>> >>
>> >> I read in a few posts that a registry key is created when a
>> >> computer is issued a license. Should I go to all the
>> >> computers and delete it before trying to connect again?
>> >> Where is it located? Thanks for ANY help!! This TS stuff is
>> >> really confusing.