Deploying a Thin Client

Other versions of this page are also available for the following:

• Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R3

8/27/2008

This topic describes considerations for the deployment of Windows Embedded CE powered thin clients in an enterprise network.

Thin Client Enterprise Network Design

You should deploy your thin clients to an enterprise network infrastructure that supports a specific thin client computing architecture and implements good practices for managing a network that is using Terminal Services.

If your customer does not yet have an enterprise network, you must design and deploy an enterprise network when you deploy your thin clients.

The design of the thin-client enterprise network should be determined by using the following information:

Number of Users

• You should determine the number of users expected to be working on thin clients each day. You should also determine the number of thin clients required for the enterprise network.

Networking Hardware

• You should determine which types of networking hardware are required for building the network infrastructure. Determine how many bridges, switches, or routers will be used by the network. Determine how many thin clients will be connected to each bridge, switch, or router.

Number of Servers

• You should determine the number of Terminal Services servers that are required to support the thin-client users.

Types of Servers

• You should determine which types of servers must be available on the network. Determine whether thin-client users will work primarily with Web-based applications, client applications, or Terminal Services applications.

Terminal Services Implementation

• You should determine the types of Terminal Services best practices which must be employed in your customer's enterprise network.

For more information about various network designs and types of networking hardware, see this Microsoft Web site. For more information about Terminal Services, see this Microsoft Web site.

Terminal Server Client Access Licenses

Each thin client that accesses a server that is running Terminal Services is required to have a Terminal Server client access license (TS CAL).

After you deploy thin clients in an enterprise network and the Terminal Server licensing grace period expires, you must purchase and install the appropriate number of client access licenses (CALs) for each thin client that connects to a server that is running Terminal Services.

For more information about Terminal Services licensing, TS licensing modes, and purchasing TS CALs, see this Microsoft Web site.

For more information about the TS CAL Maintenance Tool, see Add the TS CAL Maintenance Tool to the Thin Client.

Software Installation

An IT administrator can deploy an application to thin clients in an enterprise network by installing it on a server that is running Terminal Services. For example, an IT administrator can install the Microsoft Office system on a server and configure it for remote use. By doing this, an IT administrator does not have to install the Microsoft Office system on each thin client in a network.

An IT administrator can also deploy an application to thin clients by using Web services. Then, the administrator can make various services available to thin clients.

For more information, see Support for Third-Party Applications on a Thin Client.

Windows Embedded CE Error Reporting

Windows Embedded CE Error Reporting is a set of technologies that captures key information about the state of a computer at the time of a program crash and lets users report the collected information.

You can add Error Reporting to an operating system (OS) design by including the Catalog items in Core OS\CEBASE\Windows Embedded CE Error Reporting.

For more information, see Error Reporting.

User Documentation

You can publish user documentation as a printed document and distribute them to each thin client user. You should include user documentation instructions for company-specific procedures, such as logging on by inserting a Smart Card, and for general procedures, such as adding a printer to a thin client.

For more information, see Creating End-User Documentation for a Thin Client.

See Also

Other Resources

Developing a Thin Client