Update RemoteApp and Desktop Connections

We're having problem in our environment and need to trigger the update for RemoteApp and Desktop Connections.

If i manually click the button, it prompts for credentials, the user enters them, and it updates correctly.

We would like to have a command for this, so I'm using :

Start-Process rundll32 -ArgumentList "tsworkspace,TaskUpdateWorkspaces2"

[Powershell]

The command triggers the update but it fails saying the credentials to this connection aren't valid.

I am running this command in the user environement with his credentials [so the same that work when clicking the button manually]

Even tried

Start-Process rundll32 -ArgumentList "tsworkspace,TaskUpdateWorkspaces2" -Credential $env:userdomain\$env:username

I put in the correct credential, command runs without error but RemoteApp complains about credentials and fails again. If i click the button providing the EXACT same info, it works. Weird! Really would need an automated solution instead of clicking buttons...

Do you know why clicking the button prompts for credentials but the command doesn't and fails? I'm assuming the command runned from the user environement would use his credential? Is there another command to pop-up the exact same box that appears when clicking the button manually?

Hey all,

My department has a small RDS farm [probably 50ish users, a small handful of RemoteApp collections and associated session hosts] and everything's been going quite well for the most part.

However, I'm noticing an odd issue when granting individuals access to resources on the farm [we do it via security groups, but that's probably beside the point] - users' RemoteApp and Desktop Connection workspaces aren't updating in a timely fashion. It's happened on my machine before - it's sometimes gone several weeks without updating itself.

I know that RADC connections can be updated manually [or automated via tsworkspace.dll], but I wanted to get other people's insight on what might be causing this issue. How long is the RADC client supposed to wait between updating its list of resources by-default? Can this be changed in some way, without hamfistedly shoving in a scheduled task to run every 12 hours?

Thanks!

Windows may report an error if Oxford VPN is not active during scheduled remote app / desktop connection checks

• Can you not in the Task properties just set this to repeat every 30 mins ?

• yes well, that is possible. The issue is doing that on each client takes ALOT of time. Theres got to be a better solution than doing every single one manually.

• Sorry, I assumed you had created the task in GPO and just missed this bit out.

  So

  Create the task in GPO\[Computer][User] Config\Preferences\Control Panel Settings\Scheduled Tasks and let it push it out to the clients - give a slightly diff name e.g Task-Every-30

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• There we go, thank you.Typical Monday brainfarts, just had to create a scheduled task that had the same settings as the user-local one but with refresh set to 30 min instead.

• no problem

Hi John,

1. Does the problem occur for non-admin accounts?  If possible, please test with a regular user with existing profile.  This "regular" user should not be a member of any of the "enhanced rights" local built-in groups.  Being a member of Users and Remote Desktop Users is okay.

2. Related to #1, what local built-in groups is the user a member of?  If possible, please log on as one of the "problem" users, open a command prompt, and run the following commands:

whoami /groups>whoami.txt

notepad whoami.txt

If you could copy/paste the list of groups here it might be helpful.

3. Have you tried removing all remnants from the profile and then having the user log on and allowing the policy to apply?  By "all remnants" I mean the RADC-related keys in HKCU, folder for feed .rdp files within the user's profile, etc.  There are some other threads where I have listed out most of the elements.

The idea is to make the profile appear completely clean in terms of RADC so that at next logon the group policy setting will hopefully apply correctly as it does for fresh profile.  If you can get it working for one profile you could develop script to fix all of the existing profiles going forward.

In the tests I've seen an existing profile that wasn't working [no tasks] works fine after the update is installed.  There must be something different in your environment but I don't know what it is.

Thanks.

-TP

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This article describes the Remote Desktop Connection [RDC] 8.1 client update that lets you use the new Remote Desktop Services features. These features were introduced in Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2, and they are now available for computers that are running Windows 7 Service Pack 1 [SP1].

The following new features in the RDC 8.1 client update are available when you establish a Remote Desktop Connection session to Windows 8.1 or Windows Server 2012 R2.

This update reduces the time that RDC 8.1 client takes to reconnect to a remote session compared to the time that is taken by the RDC 8.0 client and earlier versions of the client. The actual time that the client takes to reconnect depends on the network and deployment configuration.

• Full support for transparent windows
  Some applications such as Microsoft Office 2013 draw transparent windows or borders. RemoteApp programs that draw transparent windows or borders are now displayed the same as local applications.

• Moves and resizes of RemoteApp windows
  These operations are more responsive, and appear and behave like local applications. Specifically, the content in the application is displayed while the application is moved.

• Thumbnails, aero peek, and live taskbar
  These features work the same in a RemoteApp program as they work locally.

After the update is installed, RemoteApp programs and desktop sessions behave like local programs when you add, remove, rotate, or change the resolution of the local client. For example, when you apply rotation, the width and height is changed accordingly on any RemoteApp programs, and the resolution of a desktop session is also adjusted.

Windows Server 2012 R2 and Windows 8.1 let administrators use the session-shadowing feature on a session-based or virtual machine-based desktop or on a RemoteApp application. This is very useful for the support and troubleshooting of an end-user problem. By using RDC 8.1, administrators can now use the session-shadowing feature from the command line on Windows 7 SP1-based computers.

The following new features in the RDC 8.1 client update are available when the clients connect to all versions of Windows.

Remote Desktop Gateway pluggable authentication and authorization [PAA] let you use custom authentication routines with Remote Desktop Gateway. Since RDC 8.1, the PAA cookie can be provided as an RDP file property in addition to the existing ActiveX API and Internet Explorer cookie-based methods. This can be used to provide custom two-factor authentication that works seamlessly with Remote Desktop Web Access [RD Web Access] across multiple browsers. This functionality lets you use RDP files to start connections. Note This feature requires the Remote Desktop Gateway server to be running Windows Server 2008 R2 or a later version.

For more information about PAA, go to the following Microsoft website:

General information about PAA

This update is available from Windows Update.

The following files are available for download from the Microsoft Download Center:

Important After the update is installed, install update 2913751 to fix a smartcard redirection issue. For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

2913751 Smart card redirection in remote sessions fails in a Windows 7 SP1-based RDP 8.1 client For more information about how to download Microsoft support files, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

119591 How to obtain Microsoft support files from online servicesMicrosoft scanned this file for viruses. Microsoft used the most current virus-detection software that was available on the date that the file was posted. The file is stored on security-enhanced servers that help prevent any unauthorized changes to the file.

To apply this update, you must be running Windows 7 SP1. Additionally, the following updates must be installed:

• 2574819 An update is available that adds support for DTLS in Windows 7 SP1 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1

• 2857650 Update that improves the RemoteApp and Desktop Connections features is available for Windows 7

This update does not include Remote Desktop Protocol 8.1 server-side components for Windows 7 virtual desktops. In other words, this update includes only the new client. Therefore, the update applies only to computers that will be used as client computers. The RDP 8.0 update includes both the RDC 8.0 client and the RDP 8.0 server-side protocol components for Windows 7 SP1 virtual desktops. If you want to have both the RDP 8.0 server-side components and the RDC 8.1 client installed on the same computer, you must first install the RDP 8.0 update and then later install this update.

For more information about the Remote Desktop Protocol 8.0 update, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

2592687 Description of the Remote Desktop Protocol 8.0 update for Windows 7 SP1 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1

To apply this update, you do not have to make any changes to the registry.

You may be prompted to restart the computer after you apply this update.

This update does not replace a previously released update.

For more information about software update terminology, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

824684 Description of the standard terminology that is used to describe Microsoft software updates