Running forced Remote Desktop at startup

[bkoopers]

I have a number of Windows XP and Windows 2000 computers on an Active Directory network at my office that I want to configure so when a user logs into Windows, a Remote Desktop session is automatically run. The user is prompted to login to a terminal server. After he logs into the terminal server and then logs off or disconnects from the terminal server, I want to local computer to restart. If the user tries to cancel the Remote Desktop session login instead of logging in, the login window should either remain (so he cannot do anything else) or the computer should restart. The intent is for the user not to be able to run anything on the computer except the Remote Desktop session.

If I just run the Remote Desktop executable in the Startup folder, the user can just cancel the login window and get to the local desktop so that does not work.

Is there a way to set this up? Are the steps different for the Windows 2000 computers then the Wiondows XP computers?

Thanks to anyone who can help me out.

 

[vacunita]

You may be able to use regedit and cahnge the following key:

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon] "Shell"="explorer.exe"


Replace it with the path to the Remote Desktop executable.

mstsc.exe in system32 folder.

That should then make it so the only thing running when the machine boots up is the Remote desktop app.


Now this does not remove the cntrl-alt-del ability so users can still pull up the task manager and run things from there.


If you want something more limited you can look into Kiosk mode for Windows.

Or Microsofts new product for limiting access to Windows Based PC's called Steady State.






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Ignorance is not necessarily Bliss, case in point:
Unknown has caused an Unknown Error on Unknown and must be shutdown to prevent damage to Unknown.

 

[bkoopers]

Thanks for your response.

Kiosk mode for Windows is just a command line switch to run Internet Explorer in full screen mode (it does not appear to be for running other programs) and it is easy to exit out of.

Windows SteadyState requires Windows XP or Vista. I have about 150 old Windows 2000 computers that I want to do this with so SteadyState is not an option.

I will try your registry command suggestion in the morning at the office and see if that works (although that method, as you said, is not 100% secure).

 

[bkoopers]

Apparently, SteadyState replaces the Gates Foundation’s Public Access Computer Security Tool (which works with Windows 2000). I have searched but cannot locate a download link for this old software. Does anbody know where I can download it?

 

[bkoopers]

I tried changing "Shell"="explorer.exe" with "mstsc.exe". It does bring you to the rdp prompt but when you log off the rdp session, you just get a black screen and mouse pointer. You can only press [Ctrl-Alt-Del] to get to log off, restart, shutdown or run Task Manager. Even if you restart in "Safe Mode", you only get to rdp. You can never reverse the registry change to do any kind of maintenance on the computer (it would have to be re-imaged).

Although technically this meets my initial requirements, there would be too much "user training" involved to explain to users what to do at the blank screen.

I will continue searching for a more "elegant" solution (unless somebody else can offer another suggestion).

 

[vacunita]

Of course you can, using the control-Alt-del sequence to bring up taskmanager you can run regedit from there again and change the key. restart and presto you get explorer back.

Yes its not the most elegant of solutions, but its quite close to the initial requirements.

It would be good, if the RDP would re-run itself when you closed it.

I guess if you were so inclined you could run a vbscript that runs the rdp executable and when its done it executes the shutdown -s command on the machine.

however not really that versed in vbscript but you can try
forum329 for that.


----------------------------------
Ignorance is not necessarily Bliss, case in point:
Unknown has caused an Unknown Error on Unknown and must be shutdown to prevent damage to Unknown.