To install the Terminal Services Licensing service, perform the following steps: Start the Add or Remove Programs Control Panel applet. Click the Add/Remove Windows Components button. Select the 'Terminal Server Licensing' check box, as the figure shows, and click Next. You'll be prompted to.

1. Terminal Services Licensing 2008
2. Terminal Server Licensing Server
3. Windows Server 2012 R2 Terminal Services Licensing Cost
4. Terminal Server Licensing Service
5. Windows Server 2012 Terminal Services Licensing

Applies to: Windows Server (Semi-Annual Channel), Windows Server 2019, Windows Server 2016

The Remote Desktop Services license server issues client access licenses (CALs) to users and devices when they access the RD Session Host. You can activate the license server by using the Remote Desktop Licensing Manager.

Install the RD Licensing role

1. Sign into the server you want to use as the license server using an administrator account.
2. In Server Manager, click Roles Summary, and then click Add Roles.Click Next on the first page of the roles wizard.
3. Select Remote Desktop Services, and then click Next, and then Next on the Remote Desktop Services page.
4. Select Remote Desktop Licensing, and then click Next.
5. Configure the domain - select Configure a discovery scope for this license server, click This domain, and then click Next.
6. Click Install.

Activate the license server

1. Open the Remote Desktop Licensing Manager: click Start > Administrative Tools > Remote Desktop Services > Remote Desktop Licensing Manager.
2. Right-click the license server, and then click Activate Server.
3. Click Next on the welcome page.
4. For the connection method, select Automatic connection (recommended), and then click Next.
5. Enter your company information (your name, the company name, your geographic region), and then click Next.
6. Optionally enter any other company information (for example, email and company addresses), and then click Next.
7. Make sure that Start Install Licenses Wizard now is not selected (we'll install the licenses in a later step), and then click Next.

Your license server is now ready to start issuing and managing licenses.

Terminal Services Licensing 2008

Applies to: Windows Server (Semi-Annual Channel), Windows Server 2019, Windows Server 2016

Each user and device that connects to a Remote Desktop Session host needs a client access licenses (CAL). You use RD Licensing to install, issue, and track RDS CALs.

When a user or a device connects to an RD Session Host server, the RD Session Host server determines if an RDS CAL is needed. The RD Session Host server then requests an RDS CAL from the Remote Desktop license server. If an appropriate RDS CAL is available from a license server, the RDS CAL is issued to the client, and the client is able to connect to the RD Session Host server and from there to the desktop or apps they're trying to use.

Although there is a licensing grace period during which no license server is required, after 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.

Use the following information to learn about how client access licensing works in Remote Desktop Services and to deploy and manage your licenses:

• License your RDS deployment with client access licenses (CALs)

Understanding the CALs model

There are two types of CALs:

• RDS Per Device CALs
• RDS Per User CALs

The following table outlines the differences between the two types of CALs:

When you use the Per Device model, a temporary license is issued the first time a device connects to the RD Session Host. The second time that device connects, as long as the license server is activated and there are available CALs, the license server issues a permanent RDS Per Device CAL.

Terminal Server Licensing Server

When you use the Per User model, licensing is not enforced and each user is granted a license to connect to an RD Session Host from any number of devices. The license server issues licenses from the available CAL pool or the Over-Used CAL pool. It's your responsibility to ensure that all of your users have a valid license and zero Over-Used CALs—otherwise, you're in violation of the Remote Desktop Services license terms.

To ensure you are in compliance with the Remote Destkop Services license terms, track the number of RDS Per User CALs used in your organization and be sure to have a enough Per User CALs installed on the license server for all of your users.

You can use the Remote Desktop Licensing Manager to track and generate reports on RDS Per User CALs.

Note about CAL versions

The CAL used by users or devices must correspond to the version of Windows Server that the user or device is connecting to. You can't use older CALs to access newer Windows Server versions, but you can use newer CALs to access earlier versions of Windows Server.

Windows Server 2012 R2 Terminal Services Licensing Cost

The following table shows the CALs that are compatible on RD Session Hosts and RD Virtualization Hosts.

Terminal Server Licensing Service

Windows Server 2012 Terminal Services Licensing

Any RDS license server can host licenses from all previous versions of Remote Desktop Services and the current version of Remote Desktop Services. For example, a Windows Server 2016 RDS license server can host licenses from all previous versions of RDS, while a Windows Server 2012 R2 RDS license server can only host licenses up to Windows Server 2012 R2.