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I'm trying to set up Remote Desktop Host Server in Windows Server 2012.

When I am configuring the domain controller I get the following warning:

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I'm reading through microsoft documentation of this error and it says that when installing domain controllers in forest root domains with two or three-part names (such as contoso.com or corp.contoso.com), they are immediately subordinate to top-level domains on the internet such as .COM, GOV, .BIZ, .EDU

Does this mean I need to purchase the root domain I want to use with an Internet registrar?

With my ultimate goal in mind of setting up a Remote Desktop Host Server, what steps do I need to take so that users trying to remote connect to the server are able to resolve their DNS name queries to my computer name in the local domain?

I'm very new to this so please don't assume I know anything about DNS Servers.

Somebody please attempt to clear up some of my confusion. Thank you

Vazgen
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  • Do you want the remote desktop host to be resolvable from the internet, or just within your local network? –  Oct 25 '12 at 06:49
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    Your Remote Desktop Host should **NOT** be a domain controller. – Zoredache Oct 25 '12 at 07:26

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Yes, you will need to purchase the domain you wish to use from a registrar. You'll then need to have them delegate the domain or a subdomain to your nameserver. The details of setting that up are a bit much to go into here.

However, you may want to rethink exposing your RDP server directly to the internet. That is a huge security headache. A VPN may be better suited for that, and then you'd only need to have the domain (which you'd still need to register) have an A record to the public IP of your VPN endpoint.

  • Thank you for your answer. I will mark it as answer I just have a small confusion. Are you saying a VPN should be used alongside the RDHS for this setup? I thought they were mutually exclusive solutions. And in that case, can Direct Access be used alongside the RDHS? Thank you – Vazgen Oct 25 '12 at 17:42
  • Well not that they're mutually exclusive but that they're different. I thought VPN allows remote file access, where as I need users to NOT be able to pull any files to their computer but instead remotely log in to a virtual instance of the workstation and use installed software. – Vazgen Oct 25 '12 at 17:50
  • All a VPN is is a way of securely connecting two seperate networks. So, instead of having your RDP host be accessible from the internet, you make a VPN host accessible and allow users to VPN into your network. Then they can use your network just like as if they were there plugged into it (or however you configure it to work.) –  Oct 26 '12 at 02:24
  • So in your case you'd probably just allow connections to that RDP machine, but that is much better security-wise than just slapping an RDP host up on the internet. –  Oct 26 '12 at 02:25
  • Thank you. Please see http://serverfault.com/questions/443281/configuring-a-domain-controller-for-an-internal-domain-in-windows-server-2012 I'm still stuck on the domain controller configuration aside from security considerations. – Vazgen Oct 29 '12 at 17:45