Problems accessing server with Windows Admin Center for Azure

Question

Hello,

I'm not sure whether this is a limitation of having an Azure for Students license. I can access my virtual machine (with a Windows Server installed on it) using an RDP connection, but I don't see any graphical interface (this is, the desktop) of my server, I only get a CMD-looking, SConfig window with a few options to interact with.

I tried out through the WAC connection with no joy. I added up a WAC login administrator role to my account but when a try to connect to my public IP, all the server services/info get the little wheel spinning and after a few seconds it throws a connection fail from all of them.

I don't know what to do to have access to my virtual machine's desktop.

Thanks

Answer 1

Hello,

Could you verify if the correct version of the Azure Virtual Machine has been deployed? Typically, the core version doesn't require a Graphical User Interface (GUI).

Server (Core) vs Server with Desktop Experience

When you install Windows Server, you install only the server roles that you choose - this helps reduce the overall footprint for Windows Server. However, the Server with Desktop Experience installation option still installs many services and other components that are often not needed for a particular usage scenario.

That's where Server Core comes into play: the Server Core installation eliminates any services and other features that are not essential for the support of certain commonly used server roles. For example, a Hyper-V server doesn't need a graphical user interface (GUI), because you can manage virtually all aspects of Hyper-V either from the command line using Windows PowerShell or remotely using the Hyper-V Manager.

What is Server Core? | Microsoft Learn

Kind Regards,

Karlie

Answer 2

Hello Karlie,

Thanks for your reply. Now I know why I had no GUI with my VM.

Apart from your link, this one could also be of interest:

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/get-started/install-options-server-core-desktop-experience

Best regards