[alexander7567]

I am running Windows 2003 server for a decent sized business and i need to share programs. For example, say i would like to install openoffice on the server. I want all the clients to be able to use openoffice without installing it on the client computer. I need to know how to do this. I was guessing Application Server might do it, but i am not even sure what it is. Any help would be great! thx!

[alexander7567]

Ok, so here is what i decided... i want to run basically remote desktop from anywhere in the world. I have tried free vnc but i cannot get it to work out of the network after setting up the router. Any suggestions?

[DoubleHelix]

The only way to run an application from a server is to use remote desktop or terminal service or use a product designed for central application management such as Citrix. Any option other than Citrix is likely going to perform poorly if you have more than 5-10 concurrent users.

[alexander7567]

ok well i misunderstood what was being asked of me 2 do.. all i need is one person to access a computer remotely. Do you kno of any good, preferably free, programs i can use?

[DoubleHelix]

Is it really necessary to have a person log into a server to run a program like OpenOffice which is completely free and can be easily installed on a local system? Allowing a user to log into a server remotely and run an application carries a significant risk to the integrity of the server.

[alexander7567]

openoffice was merely an example. what i rly need it for is working on the server and things like that. i am aware of the security risk involved.

[DoubleHelix]

This doesn't sound like a legitimate, professional project. If you just want to try different technologies for fun, then there's nothing wrong with that. Your first post implied that you're trying to set this up for a business. A company would not want people logging into a server using a free remote desktop service to share applications. There are real security and performance concerns that can't be simply dismissed.

[Squashman]

If you want remote access to a business network, your best bet is use have a VPN setup.

[avisitor]

If you're actually looking to do something like this well, either go with Citrix or Windows Server 2008 Terminal Services.

http://download.microsoft.com/downlo...n2008TSTWP.doc

I personally like Windows Server 2008 Terminal Services, and I think it has a lot of flexibility in this regard, but it definitely must run on dedicated servers. However, it may be cheaper than Citrix, in that you need Windows Server anyway to run a Presentation Server solution. TS also integrated into Windows nicer, IMHO. I think the TSRemoteApp idea is really, really cool. I wrote a blog post about this, but my I'm working on my server, so that's may or may not be available (here's the google cache of it: http://74.125.77.132/search?q=cache:...ient=firefox-a)

If this is something you'd like to play with, PM me, and I can give you an account on my test TS system.

[avisitor]

Originally Posted by alexander7567

ok well i misunderstood what was being asked of me 2 do.. all i need is one person to access a computer remotely. Do you kno of any good, preferably free, programs i can use?

Ok, well, I missed this one

Windows Server comes with 2 TS licenses for Remote Administration. That's the route that I would go.

[alexander7567]

oh thx 4 the advice everyone! i will deff try out the TS service first since it is included in 2003 serv. I have not tried out or even seen 2008 serv yet.