Windows Server 2012 prevent admins getting issued RDS CAL

Question

I have a Windows Server 2012 machine that multiple users need to connect to (RDS server). According to Microsoft licensing terms, a Windows server allows up to two RDS connections for administrative purposes only. Any user that wants to access the server for use, requires a license (either Per Device or Per User).

That's fine, I've added the RDS License Server role to the domain controller and enough Per User licenses for each intended user. I've also configured the RDS server to obtain licenses from the DC.

Let's say I have 15 users + 2 admins on the domain, and I bought 15 Per User licenses. If the 2 admins are the first to login to the server, they'd be assigned licenses, leaving only 13 licenses for my 15 users.

How do I prevent the 2 admins being assigned a license when they log in to administer the RDS server?

Answer 1

The option to allow two administrators to connect via Remote Desktop is mutually exclusive from the option of configuring the server with the RDSH role and licensing it for multiple simultaneous RDS connections.

Once you assign RDS licenses to the server, all users require and will consume a license, whether they are Administrators or not. This is expected behavior and exactly what you're experiencing.