Remote office on a Windows terminal server in the EU
One desktop the whole team signs in to, in a certified EU data centre - instead of company data spread across everyone laptops.
Who it is for
A company that went remote and stayed remote
Everyone works from a different laptop on a different OS, and the company files are scattered across all of them.
A team sharing one Windows-only application
The application wants a LAN, runs on Windows only, and licensing it per workstation costs more than the server would.
An owner who wants the data in one place
When somebody leaves you want to disable an account, not chase a laptop across a border.
What runs on a terminal server
- Line-of-business Windows applications that expect a local network
- 1C and BAS clients for a whole department
- Office and PDF tooling in one consistent version
- Client-bank terminals with their card readers redirected over RDP
- A shared file resource with per-user permissions
- Roaming profiles so a session looks the same from any device
- Printing to a local printer through the RDP session
Three sizes, measured in concurrent sessions
Size on people actually logged in at once, not headcount. Budget about 2 GB of RAM per light session and 4 GB for a session running an accounting client all day.
What is and is not included
- Windows Server and RDS user licences are available here - choose them in the configurator and an engineer installs them within three days. The 180-day trial version costs nothing if you want to pilot first.
- Per-application licences such as Office, 1C or BAS stay with you.
- Microsoft licenses RDS per named user, not per concurrent session. Count everyone who will ever sign in, not the peak.
- Active Directory design, group policy and profile layout are not included. We can quote managed administration if you want that done for you.
Do not publish port 3389
- Put the session host behind an RDS Gateway or a WireGuard tunnel and expose only that. A terminal server on the open internet is found by scanners within hours.
- Restrict by source address where you can. Your static DCXV address also works as the allowlisted source for banks and ERP clouds.
- Require MFA at the gateway rather than trusting a password.
- Keep Network Level Authentication on, lock accounts out after failed attempts, and never sign in over RDP as a domain administrator.
- Take a snapshot before every patch window. Rollback is two clicks, so a bad update costs minutes rather than an evening.
Laptops versus a terminal server
| Everyone on their own laptop | One terminal server | |
|---|---|---|
| Where the data lives | On every device | On one server, backed up nightly |
| Onboarding somebody | Buy and build a machine | Create a user |
| Offboarding somebody | Get the laptop back | Disable the account |
| Application versions | Every machine drifts | One installation for everyone |
| Working from another country | Whatever that laptop can reach | The same desktop over RDP |
| If a device is lost | The data goes with it | Nothing local to lose |
Getting the office onto it
Count the sessions
How many people are signed in at the same time, and which applications they need. That sets the size, and the RDS licence count.
Server and licences
The instance deploys in under 10 minutes. Windows Server and your RDS user licences are installed within three days.
Users, files, printers
Accounts and permissions created, the file share moved across, printer redirection tested from a real workstation.
Close the front door
Gateway or VPN in front, 3389 unpublished, MFA on, snapshot taken, then the team switches over.
Why choose us
- Tier III certified facilities, 99.982% facility SLA
- Own network, AS204057, IPv4 and IPv6 dual-stack
- 24/7/365 support with ~10 minute average response
- Cyprus company, EU jurisdiction, GDPR-native since 2007
FAQ
- How many people fit on one terminal server?
Size on the number signed in at the same time rather than headcount. Five concurrent sessions run well on 4 vCPU with 16 GB of RAM, fifteen on 8 vCPU with 32 GB, and thirty on 16 vCPU with 64 GB. Sessions running an accounting client all day need roughly twice the memory of someone using a browser and Office
- Do you supply the RDS licences?
Yes. Windows Server plus RDS user licences are selected in the configurator and installed by an engineer within three days. Microsoft licenses RDS per named user rather than per concurrent session, so count everybody who will ever sign in, not just the busiest hour
- Is it safe to publish remote desktop on the internet?
No, and we recommend against it. Put the session host behind an RDS Gateway or a WireGuard tunnel and expose only that, keep Network Level Authentication on, require multi-factor authentication at the gateway, lock accounts after failed attempts, and never sign in over RDP as a domain administrator. A terminal server left open on port 3389 is found by scanners within hours
- Can people print to their own local printer?
Yes. Printer redirection over RDP maps the printer attached to the user machine into the session, and the same applies to smart card readers used by client-bank software. It is worth testing from a real workstation before the whole team switches over
- What can people connect from?
Any device with a remote desktop client - Windows, macOS, iOS and Android all have one, and the session looks the same from each. With roaming profiles a user gets the same desktop whichever device they signed in from
- What happens when the server needs a reboot for updates?
Take a snapshot first, apply the updates, and roll back in two clicks if something breaks. Snapshots are included, so a bad patch costs a few minutes rather than an evening. Schedule the window outside working hours and warn users, because a reboot ends every open session
If you require assistance or have additional questions, please contact the managers or write to the support team at support@dcxv.com
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