RDS Connection Broker High Availability
We're starting to plan for a fully available Windows Server 2025 RDS farm. We already have a SQL Server cluster on Linux Ubuntu in the environment. I couldn't find any Microsoft documentation stating whether a SQL Server cluster on Linux can be used. Does anyone have any official references on this topic? Current SQL Server cluster environment: 2 SQL Server Standard 2022 Linux Ubuntu 22.04, Linux cluster (Pacemaker + Corosync) Thank you.MVP & RD Impact at the 2025 Microsoft Global Hackathon
Produced by The Garage, the Microsoft Global Hackathon is the largest private hackathon on the planet. Since its launch in 2014, it has grown into a company-wide, multi-day event that empowers employees, interns, and invited guests to innovate across disciplines, roles, and geographies. With over 73,000+ participants this year and thousands of projects annually, the Hackathon fosters a culture of experimentation, inclusion, and bold thinking. This year’s Global Hackathon took place during the week of September 15 and was more than just a coding event — it was a global celebration of creativity, collaboration, and community. Almost one hundred MVPs and RDs joined forces with employees and innovators from around the world to tackle challenges that matter — from reimagining customer support to shaping the future of AI. Global Collaboration — Local Impact MVPs and RDs from every corner of the globe participated virtually, forming diverse, cross-functional teams that reflected the depth and breadth of Microsoft’s global community. Whether launching new ideas or joining existing projects, these community leaders brought fresh perspectives, deep technical expertise, and a passion for impact. “We’re thrilled to see MVPs and RDs driving meaningful collaboration across Microsoft. Their energy and expertise elevate the Hackathon experience for everyone involved.” — Alice Piras, Microsoft MVP Program Engagement Lead. Innovation in Action MVP- and RD-led or supported projects spanned a wide range of themes — each aligned with real-world challenges. Some were even recognized with awards for their ingenuity and impact. Here are just a few general examples: Customer Service Innovation: Projects explored how AI agents could assist customer support teams by retrieving information, managing documents, and streamlining workflows. Financial Services Transformation: Hackathon teams developed solutions to simplify complex processes like insurance claims and policy management using intelligent automation. Security & Compliance: Participants experimented with proactive security assessments and AI-powered frameworks to help organizations strengthen their digital posture. Sustainability & IoT: Several teams focused on environmental optimization, using data and AI analytics to improve system performance in areas like aquaponics and smart farming. Digital Identity & Inclusion: Community-led projects addressed secure onboarding and compliance challenges, with a focus on accessibility and user experience. These projects exemplify not only technical excellence but also a commitment to inclusive innovation and community-driven problem solving. Voices from the Community “Hackathon wasn’t just about building, but about creating something that could make an impact — and agentic retrieval made that possible for us.” — Shrushti Shah, MVP “It was an incredible experience collaborating with three MVPs from across the globe on a shared mission for this Hackathon. We didn’t just work together — we learned together, exchanging diverse perspectives to create something amazing in just three days.” — Maya Stewart, Microsoft, Sr. Product Manager "My Global Hackathon experience this year was nothing short of amazing! I decided to work on two projects: one where I made major contributions to an open-source project I’ve long been interested in — and another where I saw firsthand how GitHub Copilot excels at boosting productivity. Overall, I’m still energized after the Hackathon and deeply appreciate the collaborative spirit of working with fellow MVPs and Microsoft employees to achieve shared goals." — Jeremy Sinclair, MVP “It was inspiring to see how diverse backgrounds and ideas came together to build something meaningful. The culture of openness and support made this Hackathon one of the best experiences I’ve had.” — Thomas Schissler, MVP “The Garage Hackathon team engaged with the MVP/RD team again this year to invite Microsoft Most Valuable Professionals and Regional Directors to participate as hackers and advisors in the global event. The industry experts and influencers brought their knowledge and insights about Microsoft products — adding value to hacking teams from across the company.” — Susie Kandzor, Microsoft, Sr. Director of Hacking. Building Bridges Across Microsoft Beyond the code, the Hackathon was a powerful networking catalyst. MVPs and RDs expanded their circles of collaborators, mentors, and speakers — building bridges across product groups, engineering teams, and regional communities. “I’m incredibly grateful to our MVPs and RDs for their energy and contributions during this year’s Hackathon. Their technical depth and collaborative spirit made a real impact — and I’m excited to see how we can make next year’s experience even bigger and better.” — Justin Garrett, Microsoft, MVP Program Principal Program Manager. Inspired by Their Stories? MVPs and RDs are at the heart of Microsoft’s global community — driving innovation, mentoring others, and building solutions that make a difference. Want to learn more about the MVP Program or nominate someone who’s making an impact? Check out the MVP Communities site. Follow us on social media on X and LinkedIn. Learn More Take a peek at the history behind the Microsoft Hackathon — where thousands of innovators from around the world unite to turn bold ideas into real-world breakthroughs.
Users "Status" fields blank on RDS with Windows Server 2025
Hi, we have two RDS Server with Windows Server 2025 installed (In-Place Upgrade from Server 2019). In Task-Manager under the "Users" Tab all fields of the "Status" row are blank. We cant see if a user is connected or disconnected. In cmd with "query user" it works. Someone else discovered this problem?
Remote Desktop Services Licensing Oddness
Hi all, hoping someone might have some insight on this. I configured a new remote desktop services setup on Windows Server 2025. Everything appears to be working just as it did in our previous RDS environment which was on 2016, and it seems like the licensing is/should be working properly, but I keep getting a warning when logging in on the broker/license server that a license will expire soon, etc. The license diagnoser seems to show the same or a similar warning. I want to ensure that we won't have any disruption in service. I believe I have everything configured properly, but maybe I've missed something? Or is this some sort of red herring message due to the built in temporary license? In RD licensing diagnoser I see this message: In the licensing manager everything appears like it should be good to go, though: Even shows the licenses being assigned to active connections: The license server is set within the RDS config as such: Thanks in advance for any help or advice. I've tried looking at everything I could find off general searching.
Remote Desktop Services Deployment fails with exceptions
I'm trying to deploy Remote Desktop Services on a single server on Windows Server 2019 Standard. I've tried both Standard Deployment and Quick Start with a Session-based desktop development but I'm getting the following error during the installation: Unable to add server REMOTEAPP.AD.DOMAIN.COM to the list of servers on the RD Connection Broker server REMOTEAPP.AD.DOMAIN.COM..Exception of type 'System.Runtime.InteropServices.COMException' was thrown. I searched for some hint about this problem but I had not find anything useful. I cannot even find any useful log into the events log, and I tried one more time after reinstalling the server from scratch. Could you help me please? Thank you very much!
TSplus as an alternative to RDS without paying RDS license fees to microsoft
Hello, We are evaluating whether to use TSplus (https://www.terminalserviceplus.eu/) as an alternative to Microsoft RDS/Terminal Server. According to TSplus we can not install or uninstall the RDS role, so we do not use RDS CALs and use TSplus CALs. This way it would not be necessary to pay for Windows Remote Desktop licenses. Is this correct? I can't find any information from Microsoft about it reading documentation. As I see it is correct that using TSPlus without installing Microsoft RDS it would not be necessary to pay Remote Desktop licenses. Could someone confirm me that it is so?
Windows Server 2025 Terminal Servers - start menu pinned icons
I'm designing the config for some terminal servers running Server 2025. I want to pin specific icons to the start menu. In Server 2022 (or Windows 10), this was simply a process of setting up the reference machine how I wanted it, then Export-StartLayout -Path "C:\Export\MStartMenuLayout.xml" to generate the config file, whcih was then applied using the GPO Computer Configuration\Policies\Administrative Templates\Start Menu and Taskbar\Start Layout - this worked fine. On Server 2025 (and Windows 11), however, it appears that this doesn't work the same any more. Although the export command works, it generates a JSON file now rather than an XML. OK, so I saved the file with the JSON extension, and copied the old GPO, amending the name of the config file to point to the new one. However, it still doesn't work and this documentation: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/configuration/start/layout?tabs=intune-10%2Cintune-11&pivots=windows-11 Would appear to indicate that it can only be done using Intune. If it was Windows 11 I could do that, but as this is Server 2025 it isn't an option - Intune cannot manage server OSs even if I wanted to do that. Can anyone suggest any alternative methods of doing this? All I want to do is configure a common set of pinned apps for all users - I'm not bothered about configuring any other aspects of the start menu as the defaults are OK. Thanks2012 R2 License Server issuing Built-in OverUsed CALs for 2008 R2 Session Host Servers
First published on TECHNET on May 07, 2015 Hello AskPerf! My name is Prachi Singh and today I will be talking about a behavior that can occur when users attempt to pull licenses from a 2012 R2 License server via a 2008 R2 Session Host.RDS Farm with FIDO2 Key
Hello everyone, I'm trying to install an RDS farm with fido2 (Yubikey). I think I have created the conditions. The farm is onPrem (hybrid joined), the FIDO2 key is registered in Entra. The farm works correctly with normal credentials. However, setting up the FIDO2 key is giving me a headache. If I log in directly to one of the session hosts, FIDO2 works. But if I want to log in via the session broker, as it should be. I am connected to the session broker as a host and not forwarded to the hosts. But I only found this out by chance when I added the user to the Remodesktopuser group on the broker as a test. Otherwise you just get the message: "Access to the session was denied" and the broker's event log says "Couldn't find the file" #################### redirectclipboard:i:1 redirectprinters:i:0 redirectcomports:i:1 redirectsmartcards:i:1 devicestoredirect:s:* drivestoredirect:s: session bpp:i:32 prompt for credentials on client:i:1 server port:i:3389 allow font smoothing:i:1 promptcredentialonce:i:1 gatewayusagemethod:i:2 gatewayprofileusagemethod:i:1 gatewaycredentialssource:i:4 full address:s:RDS-TEST-BR.xxxxxxxxxxxxx gatewayhostname:s:rds-test.xxxxxxxxxxxxx workspace id:s:RDS-Test-BR.xxxxxxxxxxxxx use redirection server name:i:1 loadbalanceinfo:s:tsv://MS Terminal Services Plugin.1.Test use multimon:i:1 alternate full address:s:RDS-TEST-BR.xxxxxxxxxxxxx screen mode id:i:2 desktopwidth:i:800 desktopheight:i:600 winposstr:s:0,3,0,0,800,600 compression:i:1 keyboardhook:i:2 audiocapturemode:i:0 videoplaybackmode:i:1 connection type:i:7 networkautodetect:i:1 bandwidthautodetect:i:1 displayconnectionbar:i:1 enableworkspacereconnect:i:0 disable wallpaper:i:0 allow desktop composition:i:0 disable full window drag:i:1 disable menu anims:i:1 disable themes:i:0 disable cursor setting:i:0 bitmapcachepersistenable:i:1 audiomode:i:0 redirectlocation:i:0 redirectwebauthn:i:1 redirectposdevices:i:0 autoreconnection enabled:i:1 authentication level:i:2 prompt for credentials:i:0 negotiate security layer:i:1 remoteapplicationmode:i:0 alternate shell:s: shell working directory:s: gatewaybrokeringtype:i:0 rdgiskdcproxy:i:0 kdcproxyname:s: enablerdsaadauth:i:1 username:s:yubikey@xxxxxxxxxxxxx ####################
Maximum number of concurrent shells for the Remote Desktop Services plug-in has been exceeded
Server 2019 Standard (2 each) When opening Server Manager, it takes quite awhile to read the RDS servers and eventually comes back for the local server with the error: Maximum number of concurrent shells for the Remote Desktop Services plug-in has been exceeded. Restart Server Manager, and then try again. I have increased the MaxConcurrentUsers to 2147483647, as well as the MaxShellsPerUser just to make sure: On a Server 2012 R2 server, I have both of the 2019 servers in the server list and open the RDS portion of server mgr and do NOT get this error. It ONLY happens when opening RDS in Server Mgr on the 2019 servers. I have scoured all over the Inter-webs for an answer to no avail. Anyone have a fix for this?
