Kick user off remote Desktop session

Article No :: KB00007

In the Windows Servers, by default, there are only two remote desktop sessions allowed [until you have taken an RDP license]. In multiple situations, you find that you cant connect/login into the server via RDP/MSTSC because two sessions are already active or in disconnected mode. You get the error msg "Remote Desktop Disconnected", "This computer cant connect to the remote computer."

Permission/Access required - You must be the part of the local administrator group of the remote server to kill/reset the disconnected or active sessions.

Applies to - Windows Server 2016, Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows Server 2012, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008

Query the Remote Server for Current Terminal Sessions

QWinSta - Displays information about sessions on a Remote Desktop Session Host [RD Session Host] server

First, we query to list the sessions on the remote server.

Command for Query the Server Sessions is

qwinsta /server:[ServerIP/Hostname]

Example:

qwinsta /server:192.168.40.1

qwinsta /server:myServer.Contoso.com or myserver.contoso.local

Output of Command

C:>qwinsta /server:myServer.contoso.com

SESSIONNAME USERNAME ID STATE TYPE DEVICE

0 Disc rdpwd

ica-tcp 65536 Listen wdica

rdp-tcp 65537 Listen rdpwd

console 16 Conn wdcon

ica-tcp#966 avijitd 10 Active wdica

ica-tcp#969 deepakk 1 Active wdica

Note: Please take a note of the session ID from the Query command. In the above example, if i have to disconnect the session of User "avijitd" then the session id is "10".

Logoff/Kill the Remote Desktop Sessions

RWinSta - Enables you to reset [delete] a session on a Remote Desktop Session Host [rd Session Host] server.

Command for Release the Server Sessions

rwinsta [Session ID] /server:[Server IP]

Example: We will kill/logoff the remote session of user "avijitd" whose session ID is "10"

rwinsta 10 /server:192.168.40.1

rwinsta 10 /server:myServer.Contoso.com or myserver.contoso.local

Note: RWinsta command does not return anything.

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