Terminal Server drops after 5 min

We have Windows 2000 server at one of our client's offices who is in Terminal Services mode for an application that they run for their remote stores. We set up the server and made all the necessary adjustments, yet sessions seem to be dropped after only 5 minutes time. We have found the location to change this time-out, both in Terminal Services Configuration and the AD User's profile, but it doesn't seem to matter. The session ends after only 5 minutes with the error "Terminal Server had Ended the Connection."

Nothing appears in the Events log stating that there is an issue, and the problem has remained consistant now for more than a year (it is only now becoming an issue for the customer.)

Are we missing a configuration not outlined on MS's website? Or perhaps a registry entry that may need to be altered? I've googled this only to return countless suggestions to verify licenses, which I can say with confidence is not an issue.

As always, any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Are both the Terminal Server and PCs running the RDP clients on the same local network or are they connecting over remote links?

The PCs are logging in remotely from the outlying stores to the DC located at the main store. The DC is also pulling duty as DNS and DHCP.

I strongly suspect that the problems are probably to do with the infrastructure(physical and software) over which the remote computers are connecting. To definitely confirm this point, do you experience this problem with machines on the same local network connecting to the server.

I regularly tunnel RDP over SSH which drops connections for prolonged periods of inactivity unless KeepAlives options are set, etc.

Hi ,

As DaLight also mentioned you should check your WAN VPN settings.

E.g. if you use IPSEC VPN tunnels, check your key re-authentication time set. If your IPSEC tunnels are recreated every 5 minutes you lose your Terminal Server connections. Other apps. don't suffer that much frm it e..g SMTP, Internet etc..

You might try some other connection to see if it is specific to your TS connections. Try to establish and maintain a FTP connection for longer than 10 minutes.

Greetings,

Stefan

Could it be something like a dial on demand link timing out?