Remote Assistance and Resulting Internet Communication in Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 (original) (raw)

Applies To: Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2

In this section

Benefits and purposes of Remote Assistance

Overview: Using Remote Assistance in a managed environment

How Remote Assistance communicates through the Internet

Controlling Remote Assistance to prevent the flow of information to and from the Internet

Procedures for controlling or disabling Remote Assistance

Additional references

This section describes four ways that Remote Assistance can work:

Note

Additional network configuration steps are required to make the PNRP available in enterprise environments.

Important

On a computer running Windows Server® 2008 R2, Remote Assistance is an optional component that is not installed by default. You must install Remote Assistance by using the Add Features Wizard in Server Manager before it can be used.

Benefits and purposes of Remote Assistance

With Remote Assistance, a support person or helper can offer assistance to users with computer issues or questions. The support person might connect from a computer running Windows® 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2.

After the user and helper are connected and the Remote Assistance session begins, both can view the user's computer screen, communicate in real time about what they see, and use the mouse and keyboard to work on the user's computer.

Multiple protections are built into Remote Assistance:

The following sections provide more detail, including information about the three types of Remote Assistance: instant message–based Remote Assistance, Solicited Remote Assistance where the invitation is sent as an e-mail or delivered as a file, and Offer Remote Assistance (used within a domain).

Overview: Using Remote Assistance in a managed environment

The Remote Assistance Wizard guides you through one of several processes:

In a managed environment, a firewall on your organization's network will likely prevent helpers outside your network from connecting directly to a computer on your network because the firewall blocks inbound Remote Assistance connections. However, you can control Remote Assistance by disabling all types of Remote Assistance or by allowing certain types. For example, by allowing only Offer Remote Assistance within your domain, you could specify a list of support professionals in your organization who can offer assistance. Only the people on that list can assist users through Remote Assistance. (Offer Remote Assistance only works within a domain environment.)

For a list of Group Policy settings that are relevant for controlling Remote Assistance in a managed environment, see Using Group Policy to limit communication through Remote Assistance later in this section.

Note

In addition, on a server running Windows Server 2008 R2, before users can access Remote Assistance, they must install the Remote Assistance feature and then start the Remote Assistance Wizard by clicking Start, All Programs, Maintenance, and then Windows Remote Assistance.

The Remote Assistance invitation and the Remote Assistance session

There are two stages to the Remote Assistance process:

For more information about the communication in these processes, see How Remote Assistance communicates through the Internet later in this section.

Types of assistance that are included in Remote Assistance

When choosing ways to control Remote Assistance, consider the types of assistance that are included in Remote Assistance in Windows Server 2008 R2. The following list briefly describes each type. Details about how to control these types of assistance are provided later in this section.

Note

The types of Remote Assistance refer to how the Remote Assistance session is initiated. For all types of Remote Assistance, the person receiving assistance must consent before assistance can begin.

Note

A support professional who is working on a computer running Windows XP cannot offer remote assistance to computers running Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2. The support professional must have a computer running Windows Vista®, Windows 7, Windows Server 2008, or Windows Server 2008 R2. (With any of these operating systems, the support professional can also offer remote assistance to a computer running Windows XP).

For more information, see Controlling Remote Assistance to prevent the flow of information to and from the Internet and Procedures for controlling or disabling Remote Assistance later in this section.

Windows Firewall settings in relation to Remote Assistance

Windows Firewall includes a list of exceptions that you can chose, including an exception for Remote Assistance. Enabling the Remote Assistance exception has different effects, depending on which of the following network categories the computer is using at a given time:

Note

In a domain, if you enable the Windows Firewall exception for Remote Assistance, Port 135 TCP is opened. If you do not want to open this port, you can use a Group Policy setting to allow authenticated traffic that is protected by Internet Protocol security (IPsec) to bypass Windows Firewall. For more information, see Additional references later in this section.

The following table lists the network categories and describes how the Remote Assistance exception in Windows Firewall works in each category:

Network Category Remote Assistance Exception in Windows Firewall
Private Remote Assistance exception is enabled by default, which means: systemroot\System32\msra.exe can communicate through the firewall. The computer can be reached through Teredo (a tunneling technology that is used with IPv6).For links to information about IPv6, see Internet Protocol Version 6, Teredo, and Related Technologies in Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 in this document. The computer can be reached through UPnP protocols.
Public Remote Assistance exception is disabled by default. If the exception for Remote Assistance is enabled: systemroot\System32\msra.exe can communicate through the firewall. The computer can be reached through Teredo (a tunneling technology that is used with IPv6) to traverse routers with network address translators (NATs).For links to information about IPv6, see Internet Protocol Version 6, Teredo, and Related Technologies in Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 in this document.
Domain Remote Assistance exception is disabled by default. If the exception for Remote Assistance is enabled: Port 135 TCP is opened for Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM) for Offer Remote Assistance. For an alternative approach, see the note that precedes this table. systemroot\System32\msra.exe (for both Offer Remote Assistance and Solicited Remote Assistance) can communicate through the firewall. systemroot\System32\raserver.exe (for Offer Remote Assistance) can communicate through the firewall.

How Remote Assistance communicates through the Internet

The following list provides details about how Remote Assistance communicates through the Internet:

Note

In Solicited Remote Assistance, when a user creates an e-mail invitation for remote assistance, Remote Assistance uses the Simple MAPI (SMAPI) standard to communicate with the e-mail client, which means that the invitation is attached to the e-mail message.

Note

One item in the Remote Assistance invitation (for Solicited Remote Assistance) that is not encrypted in some cases is a plain-text IP address. This plain-text IP address is included by default, for compatibility with Windows XP and Windows 2003. However, you can configure an option so that invitations will include the user's IP address in the encrypted form only (the form used by Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7), without the address being unencrypted as required for Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows Server 2003. For more information, see Procedures for controlling or disabling Remote Assistance later in this section.

Controlling Remote Assistance to prevent the flow of information to and from the Internet

When choosing among ways of controlling Remote Assistance, consider the types of assistance that are included in Remote Assistance in Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2. The following list provides suggestions for using or controlling each type in a managed environment:

The following section provides information about using Group Policy. Later sections provide information about all methods for controlling Remote Assistance.

Using Group Policy to limit communication through Remote Assistance

There are multiple Group Policy settings that you can configure to control the use of Remote Assistance, including settings for the following:

These policy settings are located in Computer Configuration under Policies (if present), in Administrative Templates\System\Remote Assistance. The configuration options for these policy settings are described in the following list:

For information about additional configuration options, including a setting called Customize Warning Messages, see the Remote Assistance policy settings in Group Policy. To find more information about editing Group Policy, see Appendix B: Resources for Learning About Group Policy for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2.

Note

You can also use Group Policy to specifically control how Remote Assistance interacts with the User Account Control in Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2 when the user does not have administrative credentials but the support professional does. In this case Remote Assistances presents a User Account Control prompt to the remote helper. Otherwise, the desktop becomes a secure desktop and cannot be viewed remotely, so the support professional is presented with a blank screen.
To prevent this from occurring, in Group Policy, in Computer Configuration under Policies (if present), in Windows Settings\Security Settings\Local Policies\Security Options, find the setting called User Account Control: Allow UI Access applications to prompt for elevation without using the secure desktop.

Procedures for controlling or disabling Remote Assistance

The procedures in this section are grouped according to the method by which you perform them:

Controlling Remote Assistance on an individual computer running Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2

This subsection contains procedures for configuring Remote Assistance on an individual computer running Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2. The first two procedures apply only to Windows Server 2008 R2. The remaining procedures apply both to Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2.

To install Remote Assistance on a computer running Windows Server 2008 R2

  1. If you recently installed Windows Server 2008 R2, and the Initial Configuration Tasks interface is displayed, under Customize This Server, click Add features. Then skip to step 3.
  2. If the Initial Configuration Tasks interface is not displayed and Server Manager is not running, click Start, click Administrative Tools, and then click Server Manager. (If the User Account Control dialog box appears, confirm that the action it displays is what you want, and then click Continue.)
    Then, in Server Manager, under Features Summary, click Add Features.
  3. In the Add Features Wizard, select the check box for Remote Assistance.
  4. Follow the instructions in the wizard to complete the installation.

To uninstall Remote Assistance on a computer running Windows Server 2008 R2

  1. If Server Manager is not already open, click Start, click Administrative Tools, and then click Server Manager. (If the User Account Control dialog box appears, confirm that the action it displays is what you want, and then click Continue.)
  2. In Server Manager, under Features Summary, click Remove Features.
  3. In the Remove Features Wizard, clear the check box for Remote Assistance.
    In this wizard, you remove a feature by clearing a check box (not by selecting a check box).
  4. Follow the instructions in the wizard to complete the removal.

Note

You can perform the following procedure only if Remote Assistance is installed. For information about installing and uninstalling Remote Assistance, see the previous procedures.

To use Control Panel to maximize the encryption in Remote Assistance invitations sent from a computer running Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2

  1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
  2. Double-click System.
  3. In the left pane, click Remote settings.
  4. If the User Account Control dialog box appears, confirm that the action it displays is what you want, and then click Continue.
  5. On the Remote tab, under Remote Assistance, click Advanced.
  6. Select the check box labeled Create invitations that can only be used from computers running Windows Vista or later.

Important

When this option is selected, Remote Assistance invitations that are sent from this computer contain the IP address in encrypted form only, which prevents the invitation from working if it is received on a computer running Windows XP or Windows Server 2003.

For information about a Group Policy setting that overrides this Control Panel setting, see To use Group Policy to maximize the encryption in Remote Assistance invitations that are sent later in this section.

To use Control Panel to allow helpers to view but not take control of this computer

  1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
  2. Double-click System.
  3. In the left pane, click Remote settings.
  4. If the User Account Control dialog box appears, confirm that the action it displays is what you want, and then click Continue.
  5. On the Remote tab, under Remote Assistance, click Advanced.
  6. Clear the check box labeled Allow this computer to be controlled remotely.

For information about a Group Policy setting that overrides this Control Panel setting, see To use Group Policy to allow helpers to view but not take control of a user’s computer later in this section.

To use Control Panel to configure exclusive "Offer Remote Assistance"

  1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
  2. Double-click System.
  3. In the left pane, click Remote settings.
  4. If the User Account Control dialog box appears, confirm that the action it displays is what you want, and then click Continue.
  5. On the Remote tab, under Remote Assistance, clear the check box labeled Allow Remote Assistance connections to this computer. (Clearing this check box disables Solicited Remote Assistance, but it does not disable Offer Remote Assistance.)
  6. Click OK.
  7. Click the Back button, and then double-click User Accounts.
  8. Click Manage User Accounts.
  9. If the User Account Control dialog box appears, confirm that the action it displays is what you want, and then click Continue.
  10. Under Users for this computer, determine if the list includes the people who should be able to offer Remote Assistance to this computer. If it does not, use the Add button to add one or more user accounts to the list.
  11. Click the account of a person who you want to allow to offer Remote Assistance to this computer, click Properties, and make sure the Group Membership tab is selected. Click Other, expand the list, and click Offer Remote Assistance Helpers. (If you click Administrator instead of Other, the person will have full control on this computer, which includes offering remote assistance.)

For information about a Group Policy setting that overrides this Control Panel setting, see To use Group Policy to configure exclusive "Offer Remote Assistance" later in this section.

Controlling Remote Assistance by using Group Policy

This subsection contains procedures for controlling Remote Assistance by using Group Policy. For information about an additional Group Policy setting, which affects the way Remote Assistance interacts with User Account Control in cases where the user (the person receiving assistance) does not have administrative credentials, see the note just before Procedures for controlling or disabling Remote Assistance earlier in this section.

To use Group Policy to maximize the encryption in Remote Assistance invitations that are sent

  1. See Appendix B: Resources for Learning About Group Policy for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 for information about using Group Policy. Using an account with domain administrative credentials, log on to a computer running Windows Server 2008 R2 or Windows 7. Then open Group Policy Management Console (GPMC) by running gpmc.msc and edit an appropriate Group Policy object (GPO).
  2. Expand Computer Configuration, expand Policies (if present), expand Administrative Templates, expand System, and then click Remote Assistance.
  3. In the details pane, double-click Allow only Windows Vista or later connections, and then click Enabled. (You can also click the Explain tab to see details about how the setting works.)

Important

When this setting is enabled, Remote Assistance invitations sent from computers affected by this policy setting contain the IP address in encrypted form only, which prevents the invitation from working if it is received on a computer running Windows XP or Windows Server 2003.

To use Group Policy to allow helpers to view but not take control of a user’s computer

  1. As needed, see Appendix B: Resources for Learning About Group Policy for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2, and then edit an appropriate GPO.
  2. Expand Computer Configuration, expand Policies (if present), expand Administrative Templates, expand System, and then click Remote Assistance.
  3. If you permit Solicited Remote Assistance, in the details pane, double-click Solicited Remote Assistance, click Enabled, and under Permit remote control of this computer, select Allow helpers to only view the computer, and then click OK.
  4. If you permit Offer Remote Assistance, in the details pane, double-click Offer Remote Assistance, click Enabled, and under Permit remote control of this computer, select Allow helpers to only view the computer. (If you have not already clicked Show and used the Add button to add the accounts of support professionals who you want to allow to offer assistance, you must do so before you can click OK.)

To use Group Policy to configure exclusive "Offer Remote Assistance"

  1. As needed, see Appendix B: Resources for Learning About Group Policy for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2, and then edit an appropriate GPO.
  2. Expand Computer Configuration, expand Policies (if present), expand Administrative Templates, expand System, and then click Remote Assistance.
  3. In the details pane, double-click Solicited Remote Assistance, click Disabled, and then click Next Setting.
  4. For the Offer Remote Assistance setting, click Enabled, click Show, and use the Add button to add accounts of support professionals who you want to allow to offer assistance.

To use Group Policy to disable all types of Remote Assistance

  1. As needed, see Appendix B: Resources for Learning About Group Policy for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2, and then edit an appropriate GPO.
  2. Expand Computer Configuration, expand Policies (if present), expand Administrative Templates, expand System, and then click Remote Assistance.
  3. In the details pane, double-click Solicited Remote Assistance, click Disabled, and then click Next Setting.
  4. For the Offer Remote Assistance setting, click Disabled, and then click OK.

Controlling Remote Assistance during an unattended installation by using an answer file

This subsection contains procedures for controlling Remote Assistance by using an answer file with an unattended installation.

To use an answer file to control "Solicited Remote Assistance" to maximize the encryption in invitations

  1. Use the methods that you prefer to create an answer file for an unattended installation. For more information about unattended and remote installation, see Appendix A: Resources for Learning About Automated Installation and Deployment for Windows Server 2008.
  2. Confirm that your answer file includes the following line:
<CreateEncryptedOnlyTickets>true</CreateEncryptedOnlyTickets>  

To use an answer file to disable solicited Remote Assistance

  1. Use the methods that you prefer to create an answer file for an unattended installation or remote installation. For more information about unattended and remote installation, see Appendix A: Resources for Learning About Automated Installation and Deployment for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2.
  2. To disable Solicited Remote Assistance, confirm that your answer file includes the following line:
<fAllowToGetHelp>false</fAllowToGetHelp>  

Additional references