Installation Question

[Matt]

I'm installing terminal services on a windows 2003
server. This server has a new version of our financial
application that we want users to test via TS. When I
install TS with Add/Remove i get this message:

"Program Installation: If you continue with this
installation, programs that are already installed on your
server will no longer work and will have to be
reinstalled. You must use Add or Remove Programs in
Control Panel whenever you install programs to use on a
Terminal Server."

Does that mean it's going to leave my finance app
unusable? If so, is there a workaround?

 

[Guest]

In most cases yes (meaning you'll need to uninstall the app & reinstall after the server has TS Installed), or it won't function correctly for anyone other than the installer. The reason for this is that when a TS is in Application Server Mode (Terminal Server) using "Add Remove/Programs" or "change user /install" tells the TS to copy individual registry entries that are normally written to HKLM to a shadow key. When a user opens the application for the first time these registry entries are copied from this shadow key to the user's Registry Hive (HKCU). If the application normally uses an ini file to store configuration info, instead of storing it in the Windows Directory, this file is copied into each user's Profile\Windows directory

Since your program was installed before you installed Terminal Server the shadow key does not exist, and any ini files this program uses are stored in the default location where the app expects only one concurrent user to access

Which program are you planning to deploy, i.e. Navision Financials, Great Plains, Solomon...

I highly recommend reading some of these before proceding, or hiring a consultant that specializes in Terminal Server Application Deployment (or Citrix) to help you out

Application installation help here
http://www.workthin.com/tsai.ht

Terminal Server planning, setup, deployments & admin FAQ here
http://www.workthin.com/tshta.ht

Terminal Services Books
http://www.workthin.com/tsbooks.ht

Patrick Rous
Microsoft MVP - Terminal Serve
http://www.workthin.co

----- Matt wrote: ----

I'm installing terminal services on a windows 2003
server. This server has a new version of our financial
application that we want users to test via TS. When I
install TS with Add/Remove i get this message

"Program Installation: If you continue with this
installation, programs that are already installed on your
server will no longer work and will have to be
reinstalled. You must use Add or Remove Programs in
Control Panel whenever you install programs to use on a
Terminal Server.

Does that mean it's going to leave my finance app
unusable? If so, is there a workaround

 

[Joe Snuffy]

There's no definitive answer to your question other than "most
probably, yes." The "workaround" would be to uninstall your financial
app, install Terminal Services and then reinstall your app.

Even if it doesn't break it, you'll always wonder if an issue down the
road was caused because the app was installed prior to making the box
a TS.