Anyone familiar with KMS licence server setups?

[Darren S]

Really am loosing the will to live with this. It's a straight-forward function. Assign a PC/server as a KMS licence host. Apply licence key file for Windows 7, Office etc to said KMS host. KMS host liaises with DNS and any PCs on the network with Windows 7, Office etc activate with the KMS host - which it turn connects to Microsoft and updates accordingly.

Citrix's license GUI is a prime example of what a piece of piss this is to achieve. Yet I spent over 3 hours on the phone yesterday to various Microsoft offices in different countries in order to try and set this up.

Worringly, at times I was receiving conflicting information. Even the bloke I spoke to at Microsoft said he alone gets half-a-dozen KMS query calls a day and doesn't know what to do with them!

I've got to a point where one of our Windows 2008 servers is (I believe - it's virtually impossible to tell) acting as a KMS host. Any licence file I apply to it however gets rejected with an error code that simply means the licence key in invalid. I've triple-checked this key with Microsoft and it is indeed correct.

I can't believe the time I've wasted on this. It should be a 5MB server app. Phone Microsoft - acquire activation key - enter key into server app. App now sits there as a dedicated licence 'handler' for the entire estate. Job done. Surely with the $billions at their disposal, something that could run on something as simple an iPhone could be created in no time?

Any help or guidance on this would be really appreciated.

Cheers,
D.

 

[welshname]

What is the error code that is being generated and what version of 2008 server are you using?

 

[Adam.]

No help but I gave up on this the other day. Ended up going round in circles and achieved nothing.

Back to using my old batch file with the key that I run to activate machines now lol.

 

[H182]

The boss managed to get it working on a 2003 box, it's not the simplest thing to use though. Can't help with it I'm afraid.

 

[Darren S]

What is the error code that is being generated and what version of 2008 server are you using?

I get the following message appearing...

I haven't looked at all the causes on here yet http://support.microsoft.com/kb/938450 - but most of them seem irrelevant, tbh. I'm running Windows 2008 Standard Server x64 on the one I'm trying to setup as a KMS host.

No help but I gave up on this the other day. Ended up going round in circles and achieved nothing.

Back to using my old batch file with the key that I run to activate machines now lol.

Glad to see I'm not the only one! Seriously, Microsoft must have some bloody good reasons as to why they don't simplify this. They would get an accurate licence count from the companies using KMS and the companies themselves can scale and scope what licences they need to purchase much more accurately. Everyone wins - so I just don't understand what the issue is in not making a simple licencing host GUI?

D.

 

[Adam.]

Proper PITA. Do you have more than 5 2008 servers? and are you running the slui.exe elevated as administrator?

Would be great to have a nice GUI - paste the code in and away you go.

 

[Darren S]

Proper PITA. Do you have more than 5 2008 servers? and are you running the slui.exe elevated as administrator?

Would be great to have a nice GUI - paste the code in and away you go.

Yes m8. But that in itself is a part of the KMS 'function' that I don't understand. Why does it require a minimum of 5 servers or 25 dektops before the KMS host will work as a licence server? Surely you would want it to work - even if you had just 1 PC and 1 server? On one of the American KMS videos I watched, the bloke said that the first 4 servers would get rejected, only appearing to work once the 5th server device tried to activate. Doesn't make any sense to me, that.

Going back to Microsoft (UK hopefully) this afternoon to plead and grovel for assistance. Before this thread, I thought I might have been missing something obvious, but the general frustrations seem to be across the board!

edit - yes, I'm using slgmr as the domain admin too.

D.

 

[Darren S]

Alcohol is required tonight....

Still haven't cracked this - but I think I'm making progress. Quite possibly the most stupidly complex, yet straight forward task that I've done on the systems here in years.

Microsoft have seemingly made rocket science out of buttering toast.

D.

 

[Adam.]

Make sure you let us know how you sorted it.

 

[Perrinho]

Quick question, on your clients, will they activate manually? I have seen something similar before where the internet filtering within the network was blocking access to the Microsoft site for activation, would just time out with an error...

 

[Adam.]

Have a look at this, http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?displaylang=en&id=11936

 

[Darren S]

Quick question, on your clients, will they activate manually? I have seen something similar before where the internet filtering within the network was blocking access to the Microsoft site for activation, would just time out with an error...

I've given up COMPLETELY with KMS. What an utter, festering pile of baboon jizz. But thanks anyway.

Have a look at this, http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?displaylang=en&id=11936

Much better m8 - cheers! Still a couple of issues with the server interacting with the WMI service on the clients, but it's looking much more positive. Hopefully I'll have it all sorted by the end of the week!

D.

 

[ChrisR]

Just use a MAK and when you sysprep the image set the option that doesn't reset the activation status

 

[Darren S]

Just use a MAK and when you sysprep the image set the option that doesn't reset the activation status

Going to use MAK on the servers Chris - my belief being that it should be a bit difficult to remove a server from a rack in the server room and walk outside with it!

I'm going with KMS on the client OS and Office. Having to reactivate once every 120 days should make license tracking a tad bit easier.

D.

 

[ChrisR]

Going to use MAK on the servers Chris - my belief being that it should be a bit difficult to remove a server from a rack in the server room and walk outside with it!

lol should. Although I've not walked out with one on a pen test, ...yet

 

[realnumber 1]

Going to use MAK on the servers Chris - my belief being that it should be a bit difficult to remove a server from a rack in the server room and walk outside with it!

I'm going with KMS on the client OS and Office. Having to reactivate once every 120 days should make license tracking a tad bit easier.

D.

You might still want to use MAK for your laptops though if there is a chance they won't be back on site within the 180 day limit. Can cause issues otherwise.

Also have you gone through these steps?
http://www.danielfortier.com/?p=68

 

[Darren S]

My brain's dribbling from my ears.....

While Adam's suggestion of VAMT is much better than the command line shat - it's still a fecking nightmare to get running. It's still not resolved and I'm very close to 'cashing in' one of our Microsoft Tech requests in order to get this running.

I would also happily punch any Microsoft employee repeatedly in the face - should they walk into the office right now.

D.

 

[Perrinho]

Darren, where work? I'm in Ashton too...

Will an individual client activate manually?

 

[welshname]

I don't think his office is based in Ashton. Mine is though. It's horrible round here.

 

[Perrinho]

I work in Oldham, count yourself lucky....Ashton would be ok if it werent for all the pikies and old people...

 

[Darren S]

Darren, where work? I'm in Ashton too...

Will an individual client activate manually?

I don't think his office is based in Ashton. Mine is though. It's horrible round here.

I live over in Crowhill at the minute. Work's up in Blackburn though.

Having a look through several links earlier regarding Office 2010 activation and came across this. Is it just me or when you get to Post 10, does it all go a little bit, erm..... weird?

http://social.technet.microsoft.com...t/thread/2fab72e4-cd14-41ce-aa68-912c149e0529

D.

 

[welshname]

By the sound of things you need to lose your rectum. Pretty simple

 

[Darren S]

Well I've settled on a compromise. Far from ideal, but it's a step in the right direction I guess. The Office 2010 installation (on my PC) doesn't activate using the KMS key - which was what I really wanted in the first place. Instead, MAK works ok, but I haven't managed to get this key pushed out by the VAMT server - even if its at all possible for MAK keys in the first place?

The server now acknowledges my PC's IP address as having a gen-you-ine Office licence key - so unless I can get VAMT to push out MAK licence keys, I'll be manually installing all the client Office keys. Joy.

One tiny bonus that I came across yesterday was the fact that my Office 2010 installation no longer worked with GFI Faxmaker in sending faxes. It didn't create errors or crash out - rather it simply went through the 'printing' process and nothing got faxed. Downloaded and installed Office 2010 SP1 and Faxmaker works a treat again.

D.