Server RDP Device License?

JohnP 0 Reputation points
2024-03-25T17:23:19.77+00:00

I have two questions that are related so thanks ahead of time:

I have paid for and am using an RDP Device license on a Windows 2019 server and everything is working fine. My question is, Will this license work for the life of the server or will it unexpectedly turn off after a fixed amout of time, which indirectly will affect my customers?

Secondly, if I clone the server via a VM image, how is the license effected both on the original server and the cloned VM?

Thanks

John

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  1. Jing Zhou 2,085 Reputation points Microsoft Vendor
    2024-03-28T04:46:47.7466667+00:00

    Hello,

     

    Thank you for posting in Q&A forum.

    To answer your questions:

    1.Question: Will this license work for the life of the server or will it unexpectedly turn off after a fixed amout of time, which indirectly will affect my customers?

    Answer: No, the RDP CAL (Client Access License) will not expire due to server lifetime. It only depends on the client that launch the RDP session.

    Meanwhile, please kindly notice there's a limitation regarding CAL:

    There's a licensing grace period of 120 Days during which no license server is required. Once the grace period ends, clients must have a valid RDS CAL issued by a license server before they can log on to an RD Session Host server.

    REF: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/remote/remote-desktop-services/rds-client-access-license

    2.Question: Secondly, if I clone the server via a VM image, how is the license effected both on the original server and the cloned VM?

    Answer: The original server will not be impacted, but for the new cloned server, you need to activate the license again to ensure it works.

    REF: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/remote/remote-desktop-services/rds-activate-license-server

    To help other customers who may be facing the same issue, please don't forget to vote if the reply is helpful.

    Hope this answer can help you well.

     

    Best regards，

    Jill Zhou