Windows Server 2008’s RemoteApp

Executive Summary:

Windows Server 2008’s RemoteApp feature lets you configure terminal applications to run in the same manner as locally installed applications. RemoteApp enhances end users’ experience while using terminal applications and gives administrators more detailed control over terminal resources and security.

A big disadvantage of using Windows Terminal Services–based applications is the need to open multiple desktops on one computer. Especially for less-experienced users, connecting to another (remote) desktop to run an application while still using the host desktop for other tasks, such as reading email or surfing the Web, can be confusing. And the confusion grows if a user needs to run multiple terminal applications at once, or save files from remote applications. Moreover, users typically need to connect to a VPN to run terminal applications from a location outside the local network (e.g., from a hotel, from home)—which can be time consuming and in some cases impossible (e.g., if the VPN ports are closed on the user’s network). A new Windows Server 2008 feature, Terminal Services (TS) RemoteApp, solves these problems by letting you configure terminal applications to run in the same manner as locally installed applications.

Benefits
Rather than residing on the remote terminal server’s desktop, a RemoteApp program integrates with the client's desktop; it runs in its own window and has its own entry in the taskbar, just like a local application. Users can run RemoteApp programs simultaneously with local programs. If a user is running more than one RemoteApp program on a terminal server, the RemoteApp programs will share the same Terminal Services session and license. If RemoteApp is combined with Server 2008’s Terminal Services Gateway (TS Gateway) feature, users can run terminal applications from any Internet connection without first establishing a VPN connection because TS Gateway allows connection to a terminal server through port 443. For more information about TS Gateway in Server 2008, see “Terminal Services Gateway in Windows Server 2008,” http://www.securityprovip.com/articles/articleid/97209/97209.html. . . .