Terminal Server is unable to locate a License Server

After you install and activate Terminal Server License Server, Terminal Server clients that do not have a valid Terminal Server license are unable to obtain a license from the license server. When this occurs, clients cannot establish a connection to a Terminal Server.

This issue can occur if the Terminal Server Licensing Server is installed as an Enterprise License server.

WARNING: If you use Registry Editor incorrectly, you may cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that you can solve problems that result from using Registry Editor incorrectly. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

Verify that your Terminal Services License Server is installed as an Enterprise License Server by checking the following registry key (do not modify this key): The Role value has either a '0' (Domain/Workgroup License Server) or a '1' (Enterprise License Server).


If you are not willing to lose licenses and have them reissued from the clearinghouse, use the following steps to switch to domain license server without removing the license server:

1. In the following registry key, change the Role value from '1' to '0':
   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\TermServLicensing\Parameters
2. Start ADSI Edit, and then expand the Configuration container.
3. Expand CN=Configuration,DC=<domain>,DC=<com>.
4. Expand CN=Sites.
5. Click the container for the site that houses the Enterprise License Server, for example, CN=Default-First-Site-Name.
6. In the right-side pane, delete the "CN=TS-Enterprise-License-Server" object.
7. Quit ADSI Edit, and then replicate the changes to the other domain controllers.

If your license server is installed as an enterprise license server, follow these steps:

1. Start Terminal Services Licensing Manager, and then record the number of available client access licenses.
2. Remove the license server:
   1. In the Add/Remove Programs tool in Control Panel, click Add/Remove Windows Components.
   2. Click to clear the Terminal Services Licensing check box, and then click Next.
   3. At the Terminal Services Setup screen, leave the default selections, and then click Next.
   4. Click Finish.
3. Reinstall the license server as a domain license server:
   1. In the Add/Remove Programs tool in Control Panel, click Add/Remove Windows Components.
   2. Click to select the Terminal Services Licensing check box, and then click Next.
   3. Click the Domain or Workgroup option, and then click Next.
   4. At the Terminal Services Setup screen, leave the default selections, and then click Next.
   5. Click Finish.

After the installation is complete, contact the Microsoft Clearinghouse at 1-888-571-2048 to reactivate the server and reclaim the licenses that were lost because of the uninstallation.

Windows 2000 Terminal Server Enterprise License servers only serve terminal servers that are located within the same site, but Domain License servers serve terminal servers throughout the domain. For more information about this, refer to Chapter 16 (Deploying Terminal Services) of the Windows 2000 Server Deployment Planning Guide (Windows 2000 Server Resource Kit).