What is your position on remotely installing software over RDP/Terminal Services?

[Spin]

Gurus,

What is your position on remotely installing software via RDP/Terminal
Services? In other words, sitting at your desk somewhere, logging into a
remote server using the Remote Desktop protocol, and installing software. I
believe ""shadow key corruption" could occur in this manner and advise
against it. I am looking for other thoughts however.

--
Spin

 

[Betelgeuse]

Re: What is your position on remotely installing software over RDP/Terminal Services?

It depends upon the software...some packages I have found will not install
correctly. Others I have installed successfully.
If I am going to try, I usually grab the console using the /console
switch......


"Spin" <Spin@invalid.com> wrote in message
news:6i5875Fom3anU1@mid.individual.net...
> Gurus,
>
> What is your position on remotely installing software via RDP/Terminal
> Services? In other words, sitting at your desk somewhere, logging into a
> remote server using the Remote Desktop protocol, and installing software.
> I believe ""shadow key corruption" could occur in this manner and advise
> against it. I am looking for other thoughts however.
>
> --
> Spin
>

 

[Danny Sanders]

Re: What is your position on remotely installing software over RDP/Terminal Services?

Upgraded many servers from Win 2k to Win 2k3, then up graded many servers
from Win 2k3 to Win 2k3 R2 and not had a problem on a single one. Also
install Backup software and Virus software on over 100 servers with out a
single problem, all using RDP.

We use RDP for just about all installs on our servers with no problems.

hth
DDS

"Spin" <Spin@invalid.com> wrote in message
news:6i5875Fom3anU1@mid.individual.net...
> Gurus,
>
> What is your position on remotely installing software via RDP/Terminal
> Services? In other words, sitting at your desk somewhere, logging into a
> remote server using the Remote Desktop protocol, and installing software.
> I believe ""shadow key corruption" could occur in this manner and advise
> against it. I am looking for other thoughts however.
>
> --
> Spin
>

 

[Vera Noest [MVP]]

Re: What is your position on remotely installing software over RDP/Terminal Services?

Yes, it sounds as if you are just using Remote Desktop for
Administration, not full-blown Terminal Services. So you cannot
even put the server into install mode, and you don't have a shadow
key.

Spin, I know that it will work OK for a lot of applications, but
you don't know for sure before you have tested the installation
procedure itself (before even being able to test the application).
I always walk over to the console, but then my server room is only
15 minutes away.

If you install through an rdp session, you still have to make sure
that no users are connected to the server, and put it into install
mode. Then I would also take a snapshot of the registry before and
after the installation and compare the 2, to check what was written
where. A utility like RegShot does a fantastic job at that:

http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=965

_________________________________________________________
Vera Noest
MCSE, CCEA, Microsoft MVP - Terminal Server
TS troubleshooting: http://ts.veranoest.net
___ please respond in newsgroup, NOT by private email ___

"Danny Sanders" <DSanders@NOSPAMciber.com> wrote on 02 sep 2008 in
microsoft.public.windows.terminal_services:

> Upgraded many servers from Win 2k to Win 2k3, then up graded
> many servers from Win 2k3 to Win 2k3 R2 and not had a problem on
> a single one. Also install Backup software and Virus software on
> over 100 servers with out a single problem, all using RDP.
>
> We use RDP for just about all installs on our servers with no
> problems.
>
> hth
> DDS
>
> "Spin" <Spin@invalid.com> wrote in message
> news:6i5875Fom3anU1@mid.individual.net...
>> Gurus,
>>
>> What is your position on remotely installing software via
>> RDP/Terminal Services? In other words, sitting at your desk
>> somewhere, logging into a remote server using the Remote
>> Desktop protocol, and installing software. I believe ""shadow
>> key corruption" could occur in this manner and advise against
>> it. I am looking for other thoughts however.
>>
>> --
>> Spin

 

[Hank Arnold (MVP)]

Re: What is your position on remotely installing software over RDP/TerminalServices?

Re: What is your position on remotely installing software over RDP/TerminalServices?

I am pretty much in agreement (my server room is 6 feet away...). I
will, though, usually test it out on a test server first and if that's
OK, I'll do it via RDP. I can't be sitting at a server console for long
and walking back and forth several times can be a real hassle as well as
a huge waste of time when the install is waiting for a response... If,
for example, I wan to set up a SQL 2005 server w/2003, I have to insert:

- The Dell server installation CD
- The 2003 R2 CD1
- the 2003 R2 CD2
- the SQL 2005 CD
- the SQL 2005 SP2 Cd
- the Misys HomeCare (our medical database program) CD

Add in the reboots and pauses and it's just not practical.... Once I've
done it remotely, I do it that way from then on...

--

Regards,
Hank Arnold
Microsoft MVP
Windows Server - Directory Services

Vera Noest [MVP] wrote:
> Yes, it sounds as if you are just using Remote Desktop for
> Administration, not full-blown Terminal Services. So you cannot
> even put the server into install mode, and you don't have a shadow
> key.
>
> Spin, I know that it will work OK for a lot of applications, but
> you don't know for sure before you have tested the installation
> procedure itself (before even being able to test the application).
> I always walk over to the console, but then my server room is only
> 15 minutes away.
>
> If you install through an rdp session, you still have to make sure
> that no users are connected to the server, and put it into install
> mode. Then I would also take a snapshot of the registry before and
> after the installation and compare the 2, to check what was written
> where. A utility like RegShot does a fantastic job at that:
>
> http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=965
>
> _________________________________________________________
> Vera Noest
> MCSE, CCEA, Microsoft MVP - Terminal Server
> TS troubleshooting: http://ts.veranoest.net
> ___ please respond in newsgroup, NOT by private email ___
>
> "Danny Sanders" <DSanders@NOSPAMciber.com> wrote on 02 sep 2008 in
> microsoft.public.windows.terminal_services:
>
>> Upgraded many servers from Win 2k to Win 2k3, then up graded
>> many servers from Win 2k3 to Win 2k3 R2 and not had a problem on
>> a single one. Also install Backup software and Virus software on
>> over 100 servers with out a single problem, all using RDP.
>>
>> We use RDP for just about all installs on our servers with no
>> problems.
>>
>> hth
>> DDS
>>
>> "Spin" <Spin@invalid.com> wrote in message
>> news:6i5875Fom3anU1@mid.individual.net...
>>> Gurus,
>>>
>>> What is your position on remotely installing software via
>>> RDP/Terminal Services? In other words, sitting at your desk
>>> somewhere, logging into a remote server using the Remote
>>> Desktop protocol, and installing software. I believe ""shadow
>>> key corruption" could occur in this manner and advise against
>>> it. I am looking for other thoughts however.
>>>
>>> --
>>> Spin