Windows Terminal Services


Microsoft's Windows Terminal Services (built into Windows Server 2003 and Windows Server 2008) and Windows XP's Remote Desktop, which is based on Terminal Services, provide an easy, convenient way for administrators to implement thin computing within an organization or for users to connect to their XP desktops from a remote computer and run applications or access files.

Windows Terminal Services allows low end PC's to connect to a designated server and use the servers processing power to run applications and store data (similar to "dumb terminals" that were used years ago). The new integration into Windows 2003 / 2008 allows Remote Administration possibilities without using third party software.

The terminal services work differently than traditional remote control software. When a terminal-enabled client attaches to the server, it doesn't see the actual server screen, but rather a reproduction of it. Therefore, if a terminal-enabled client is at work, the server screen appears as though no one is using it.

During Terminal Secession the Terminal Server sends screen updates to client terminals. The server itself performs every bit of the processing. Any time a user enters information, the information is sent to the Server and processed, and a screen update is passed back to the client terminal to acknowledge the processing.

Everyone who's attached to the Terminal Server has her own individual session. This makes it possible for everyone to work independently. Just because the Terminal Server is sending everyone screen updates doesn't mean all the screens are the same. Instead, the Terminal Server maintains an independent session for each attached user, which allows users to work independently of each other. USmibn can setup Terminal Server access in any kind of Network environment.

Citrix Access Infrastructure:


Citrix, the company that actually developed the underlying technology behind Windows Terminal Services, wisely chose not to rest on its laurels but to continue refining and enhancing their product line until today they have a compelling suite of applications called Citrix MetaFrame Access Suite. This package consists of a handful of key products that run on Windows Server 2003 and go beyond what Windows Terminal Services itself can do. Here's the lineup:

  • Citrix MetaFrame XP Presentation Server
  • Citrix MetaFrame Secure Access Manager
  • Citrix MetaFrame Password Manager
  • Citrix MetaFrame Conferencing Manager

What gives Presentation Server a lot of its power is its ICA (Independent Computing Architecture) protocol, the presentation protocol used on the Citrix platform for transmitting keystrokes, mouse movements, and screen updates between thin clients and the presentation server. ICA is the Citrix counterpart of Microsoft's Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) used by Terminal Services, and it's illuminating to compare their capabilities:

Client Support ICA RDP
Windows 95/98/NT/2000/XP Yes Yes
Windows for Workgroups 3.11 Yes Yes
Windows 3.1 Yes No
DOS Yes No
Windows CE Yes Yes
Macintosh Yes No
UNIX Yes No
Linux Yes No
Java Yes No
Web browser Yes Yes

So do you need the Citrix MetaFrame Access Suite, or will Windows Server 2003 Terminal Services be enough? Time and money--weigh the benefits of each solution and consider the costs, then decide. Don't just jump on the bandwagon by thinking you can deploy a terminal server, keep your old desktop PCs, save desktop licensing costs and walk away a winner. Both Terminal Services and Presentation Server have their own licensing requirements and they're complex.

USmibn can help you choose and decide to see which one gives you the most bang for your buck or whether you'll even be saving any money at all moving your business from a client/server to a terminal server computing environment.