How can I install a Windows Server 2003 Terminal Services licensing server?

A. If you require full terminal server functionality beyond the basic two administrative sessions to a server, you must install the Windows 2003 Terminal Services Licensing service on a server in the environment before the 120-day grace period expires. After 120 days, users will no longer be able to connect to the terminal server.

In small environments, both the terminal server and the terminal server licensing server can be the same box, but for larger environments, this isn't advised. Windows 2003 terminal servers must communicate with a Windows 2003 licensing server; a Windows 2000 licensing server isn't suitable.

You can use most any machine to host the Terminal Services Licensing service because the overhead involved is minimal. The service uses only 10MB of memory and increments by only 5MB for each additional 6000 licenses added. In the case of a domain/workgroup terminal server licensing server, installing on a domain controller (DC) helps the terminal servers locate the licensing server. To install the Terminal Services Licensing service, perform the following steps:

1. Start the Add or Remove Programs Control Panel applet (Start - Settings - Control Panel - Add or Remove Programs).
2. Click the Add/Remove Windows Components button.
3. Select the "Terminal Server Licensing" check box, as the figure shows, and click Next.
4. You'll be prompted to enter the scope of the licensing server, enterprise, or domain/workgroup, as the figure shows. An enterprise licensing server will service any terminal server in the local Active Directory (AD) site, even from other domains (although the terminal servers must be a member of a domain and not a workgroup, and those domains must trust the domain that has the licensing server). A domain/workgroup licensing server will service only terminal servers from its local domain/workgroup but will service terminal servers in that domain from any site.
5. Click Finish.

Next, start the Microsoft Management Server (MMC) Terminal Server Licensing snap-in (Start - Programs - Administrative Tools - Terminal Server Licensing). The local server will show as "Not activated." Right-click the server and select Activate, which will initiate the License Server Activation Wizard.

1. Click Next to the wizard's welcome page.
2. You'll be prompted to select the activation method. The options are Automatic connection, Web Browser, or Telephone. In this example, we'll select Automatic connection, as the figureshows. Click Next. Whichever method that you select will facilitate the connection to the Microsoft License Clearinghouse, allowing license server activation.
3. Enter the company name and contact information, then click Next.
4. You can add optional information such as email address and physical address. Click Next.
5. You'll see a dialog box confirming activation, and by default, the licensing wizard will start when you click Next.

After the licensing service is installed for an enterprise server, a record is written to the sites container in the form of a TS-Enterprise-License-Server object, as the figure shows. The siteServer attribute identifies the name of the license server.