Posted inUS_1

Troubleshooting Connecting Computers to Your Server in Windows Server Essentials

No Comments

This guide provides troubleshooting steps for common issues you might encounter when connecting computers to a server running Windows Server Essentials or Windows Server Essentials.

Note: For the latest troubleshooting information and community support for Windows Server Essentials, please visit the Windows Server Essentials Forum. This forum is an excellent resource for searching for solutions and asking questions.

This article addresses solutions for the following problems:

Issue 1

Issue: “Package installation did not succeed. Try to install the Windows Server Essentials Connector again. If the issue persists, contact your network administrator” error.

Description: This error can occur when connecting a computer to a Windows Server Essentials server if other Windows updates or application installations are pending and interrupt the Connector installation.

Solution: Ensure all other updates and application installations are completed. Restart the computer if prompted, and then attempt to connect to the server again.

Issue 2

Issue: Cannot join a computer to Windows Server Essentials.

Description: Computers with non-ASCII characters in their names are incompatible with Windows Server Essentials. Using non-ASCII characters in the computer name will result in an “An unexpected error has occurred” message.

Solution: Rename the client computer using only ASCII characters. After renaming, try adding the computer to Windows Server Essentials again.

Issue 3

Issue: “The Connector software installation is canceled” error when connecting a computer to the server.

Description: The SYSTEM account requires “Full Control” permissions on server folders accessible through the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard for successful computer connection. If these permissions are insufficient, the “Connector software installation is canceled” error appears.

Solution: Grant the SYSTEM account “Full control” permissions to each server folder.

Granting “Full control” permissions to the SYSTEM account on a server folder:

  1. Open the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard.
  2. Navigate to Storage, and then select Server Folders.
  3. Right-click on the server folder and choose Open the folder. (If “Open the folder” is not visible, permissions are already set, and you can skip this process for that folder.)
  4. In the Windows Explorer address bar, locate the server share by clicking on the server name in the network path. For example, if the path is Network > Server01 > File History Backups, click Server01.
  5. Right-click on the desired server folder and select Properties.
  6. Go to the Security tab.
  7. If “Full control” is not enabled for the SYSTEM account, click Edit, then select SYSTEM. Under “Permissions for System,” check the Allow box next to Full control.
  8. Click OK twice to save the permission changes and close the “Properties” window.

Alt text: Server Folders section in the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard, highlighting the “Open the folder” option in the context menu for managing folder permissions.

Issue 4

Issue: “To run this application, you must install one of the following versions of the .NET Framework: V4.5.50709” error.

Description: When connecting a computer, the Windows Server Essentials Connector attempts to install .NET Framework version 4.5.50709. If an older version of .NET Framework 4.5 is already installed, the update may fail, causing the connection to fail with the error message: “To run this application, you must install one of the following versions of the .NET Framework: V4.5.50709.”

Solution: Uninstall .NET Framework 4.5 from the client computer and then reconnect to the server.

Uninstalling .NET Framework 4.5:

  1. On the client computer, open Control Panel from the Start menu.
  2. In Control Panel, under Programs, click Uninstall a program.
  3. Right-click Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5 and select Uninstall.
  4. After successful uninstallation, reconnect the computer to the server. The correct version of .NET Framework 4.5 will be installed with the connector software.

Alt text: Uninstall or change program window in Control Panel, showing Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5 selected for uninstallation to resolve server connection issues.

Issue 5

Issue: “The server is not available. To resolve this issue, contact the person responsible for your network.” error.

Description: This error can arise in several scenarios:

  • Time Synchronization Issues: If the date and time on the client computer are not synchronized with the server’s date and time. Windows Server Essentials relies on time synchronization for security authentication. Time discrepancies can lead to failed logon attempts.
  • Low Server Memory: If the server’s available memory is below 5 percent, it can cause connection problems.
  • VPN Conflict: Attempting to configure the Connector software from outside the network using a domain address while already connected to the server via VPN.

Solution:

  1. Synchronize Date and Time: Ensure the client computer’s date and time match the server’s. Then, try connecting again.
  2. Free Server Memory: Close unnecessary applications on the server to increase available memory. Then, attempt to connect the client computer.
  3. Disable VPN Connection: Disconnect from the VPN to the Windows Essentials Server before configuring the Connector software off-premise.

Changing the date and time on the client computer:

  1. Open Control Panel from the client computer’s Start menu.
  2. Click on Clock, Language, and Region, then select Date and Time.
  3. Click Change date and time. Set the correct date and time and click OK.
  4. Click OK again, and close Control Panel.
  5. Retry connecting the client computer to the server. Refer to “Connect computers to the server” for detailed instructions.

If connection problems persist, verify and correct the server’s date and time.

Changing the date and time on the server:

  1. Log in to the server using the administrator password set during Windows Server Essentials setup. (For remote server management, use Remote Desktop Connection.)
  2. Open Control Panel from the Start menu.
  3. Click Clock, Language, and Region, then select Date and Time.
  4. Click Change date and time. Set the correct date and time and click OK.
  5. Click OK, and then close Control Panel.
  6. On the client computer, retry connecting to the server. Refer to “Connect computers to the server” for instructions.

Alt text: Date and Time window in Windows Control Panel, showing options to change date and time settings for synchronizing with the server.

Issue 6

Issue: “An unexpected error has occurred. To resolve this issue, contact the person responsible for your network.” error.

Description: This error might indicate that the WSS Certificate Web Service is not running on the server.

Solution: Start the WSS Certificate Web Service.

Starting the WSS Certificate Web Service:

  1. On the server’s Start page, open Administrative Tools.
  2. In Administrative Tools, right-click Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager and select Open.
  3. In the navigation pane of IIS Manager, click WSS Certificate Web Service.
  4. In the Actions pane on the right, click Start.

Issue 7

Issue: “A computer with this name is already connected to the server” warning after an unsuccessful connection attempt.

Description: If a previous connection attempt was interrupted or canceled, the server might have already issued a certificate for the computer. When you try to reconnect, this warning appears even if the connection wasn’t fully established.

Solution: If you are certain no other computer with the same name is connected, click Next and proceed with the “Connect my computer to the server” wizard to complete the connection.

Issue 8

Issue: Connecting a Windows 7 Home client computer fails after the connector software webpage opens.

Description: If multicast is enabled on your network router, it can disrupt communication between the server and client computers running Windows 7 Home Basic or Windows 7 Home Premium.

Solution: Disable multicast on your router. This might involve disabling the RIP-2M routing protocol on some routers. Consult your router’s documentation for specific instructions.

Issue 9

Issue: Auto logon stops working after connecting the computer to the server.

Description: Connecting a computer to Windows Server Essentials overwrites existing auto logon settings because the connector software installation resets these configurations.

Solution: When connecting to the server, note the password used for the user account. After connector software installation, reconfigure auto logon using this password. Remember that Windows Server Essentials domain accounts require passwords meeting default password policy requirements.

Issue 10

Issue: Uninstalling a pre-release connector version leaves behind existing logs.

Description: After upgrading from a pre-release version (Beta or RC) of Windows Server Essentials, you need to uninstall the old connector software from each connected computer and reinstall the released version. However, uninstalling does not remove log files located in %ProgramData%MicrosoftWindows ServerLogs. These old logs can become corrupted when reconnecting to the released server version.

Solution: Manually delete the Logs folder before reconnecting to prevent log file corruption.

Reconnecting a computer after a server update without log corruption:

  1. Uninstall the Connector software from the client computer.
  2. Delete the Logs folder from %ProgramData%MicrosoftWindows Server.
  3. Reconnect the computer to the server. This will install the released connector software, creating a new Logs folder and log files.

Issue 11

Issue: Upgrading the operating system on a client computer.

Description: The connector software installation performs prerequisite checks on the client OS. Upgrading the OS after connector installation might lead to missing prerequisites and connector failure.

Solution: Uninstall the connector software before upgrading the client OS (e.g., Windows XP to Windows Vista, or Windows Vista to Windows 7). Use “Add or remove programs” in Control Panel. After upgrading, reinstall the connector by browsing to http://<server>/connect in a web browser, where <server> is your Windows Server Essentials server name.

If you have already upgraded with the connector installed, uninstall it using “Add/Remove Programs” or “Programs and Features” and then reinstall the connector software.

Additional References

Comments

No comments yet. Why don’t you start the discussion?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *