All Answers
I’ve never come across/seen such an error before I’m afraid. About the best I can tell you to try there is to disable Work Folders on your Essentials server (via the “Disable Work Folders” task on the “WORK FOLDERS” page of the server Dashboard), and be sure to uninstall the Work Folders server role from the server as well by checking the “Uninstall Work Folders server role” checkbox. After Work Folders has been successfully disabled, restart your server, and then try enabling Work Folders once again. Hopefully doing that shakes things loose for you.
- Mike answered 2 years ago
- last active 2 years ago
Strange… In all my years of working with Essentials I’ve never come across/seen that particular error message before. From the looks if it, the Essentials config wizard is failing to connect to Microsoft’s web servers to download something (which in and of itself is kind of weird seeing as everything outside of a few localization files should already be there).
Just to clarify… This is a brand new/clean install of Windows Server 2019 (Essentials, Standard, or Datacenter) that you’re running the latest release of the WSEE Installer on?
- Mike answered 2 years ago
Sounds like you may have enabled a site redirection within IIS.
What version and edition of Windows Server are you currently using?
Do you have WSE RemoteApp installed? If so, did you enable its “Redirect ‘Default Web Site’ to ‘/remote’” setting on the “Security” subtab of the “Remote Desktop Sessions Settings” task that’s located on the “WSE REMOTEAPP” page of the server Dashboard? If so, then you might want to try disabling that setting and see if doing that resolves the issue for you (although I can’t imagine it causing that to happen).
Lastly, you might want to try performing a Repair of Anywhere Access just to see if that helps any (by clicking the “Settings” link up in the top right-hand corner of the main server Dashboard window, clicking on the “Anywhere Access” tab, and then clicking on the “Repair” button).
- Mike answered 2 years ago
- last active 2 years ago
Server 2022, standard.
No RemoteApp installed
Did the repair anywhere access and it still goes to the main website for the domain.
I will have to check out the site redirection within IIS.
- PeterMac answered 2 years ago
No IIS redirects except for one for remote.domainname.com. If I go into the IIS manager on the server and go to the Default Web Site and tell it to browse it goes to remote.domainname.com just like it should. Going to any of subwebsites under the default takes me to domainname.com, I can see it go to localhost/connect before it flips to domainname.com
- PeterMac answered 2 years ago
More interesting stuff.
If I go to
https://remote.domainname.com/connect it goes to the proper website so I can download the connection software
However the connection software when it runs cannot find the server with either remote.domainname.com, NetBios name or even when I type in the IP address.
Unfortunately I don’t know what it is trying to find to continue
- PeterMac answered 2 years ago
Glad to hear that you managed to get the redirection issue resolved (care to share how you did it just in case others happen to run into a similar issue?).
As for the connector software not being able to locate the server… Have you tried setting the preferred IPv4 DNS server address within the network adapter settings/options, and adding the .NET Framework security settings, on the client (and then reboot) just as I’ve mentioned under the 8/25/2019 bullet point over here?
- Mike answered 2 years ago
- last active 2 years ago
Well I didn’t make any changes, I still can’t go to
https://server-name/connect it still kicks over to https://domainname.com
What I did was go to
https://remote.domainname.com/connect and that allowed me to download the software
client PC is set to use the AD as the DNS server and only the AD. I will checkout the .NET security settings
- PeterMac answered 2 years ago
Just to provide context, this is a server that was upgraded from SBS 2011 to Server 2022 using the migration kit from the people over at Server-Essentials and then adding your WSEE bit to things. To make things even more interesting we use a wildcard security cert.
- PeterMac answered 2 years ago
I must admit I have never done an in place upgrade of a server. I will have to give that a try when 2025 comes out
- PeterMac answered 2 years ago
So good news, updating the .NET security settings fixed the connector issue. It now will install (I haven’t actually installed it yet but it seems to be able to now).
Thanks for the help.
- PeterMac answered 2 years ago
I don’t own/use Mac computers and so I can’t say with any real certainty, but I believe that Microsoft never updated their Mac Connector so that it works with the latest Mac OS releases. AFAIK, the latest Mac Connector is the one that’s available for download over here.
- Mike answered 2 years ago
I added the following reg file to both server and workstation (and rebooted). That fixed the connector software running for me at the workstation.
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\.NETFramework\v2.0.50727]
“SystemDefaultTlsVersions”=dword:00000001
“SchUseStrongCrypto”=dword:00000001
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\.NETFramework\v4.0.30319]
“SystemDefaultTlsVersions”=dword:00000001
“SchUseStrongCrypto”=dword:00000001
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\.NETFramework\v2.0.50727]
“SystemDefaultTlsVersions”=dword:00000001
“SchUseStrongCrypto”=dword:00000001
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\.NETFramework\v4.0.30319]
“SystemDefaultTlsVersions”=dword:00000001
“SchUseStrongCrypto”=dword:00000001
- PeterMac answered 2 years ago
To guarantee success with the WSEE Installer (i.e. with the Windows Server Essentials Experience in general) it is STRONGLY recommended that you start with a brand new/clean (i.e. straight out-of-the-box) install of Windows Server 2019, 2022, or 2025. Anything else will more than likely just end up causing you grief IMHO.
That being said… If it were me, I’d just in place upgrade Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard to Windows Server 2022 Standard, and then after making sure that everything works as expected, go ahead and run the WSEE Installer on it (just make sure that you have a working backup before proceeding as a “just in case”). The Windows Server Essentials Configuration wizard will recognize the existing domain and then configure Essentials on the server accordingly. See…
Deploy Windows Server Essentials in an existing Active Directory environment
As for moving that install over to the new server after that… I’m not sure about that one and so you’re on your own there I’m afraid.
Otherwise, I suppose that you could domain join the 2022 server to the existing 2012 R2 domain (using the native tools available in Windows), and then run the WSEE Installer on it. The Essentials config wizard will recognize that the 2022 server is already joined to a domain and will configure Essentials on it as a member server within that existing domain (instead of making it the primary DC). See…
Add Windows Server Essentials as a Member Server
After that, you’d probably need to do a domain migration and move everything over to the member server and then decommission the old server. I’ve not tried doing any of that before, and so again, you’re on your own there I’m afraid. See…
Install Windows Server Essentials as a new replica domain controller
Best of luck. ; -)
- Mike answered 2 years ago
Strange as I’m not able to replicate this one over here, and to date, no one else has reported a similar issue. The WSEE Updater doesn’t mess about with the AD CS at all. It merely stops the Essentials services, updates the required Essentials related files, and then restarts the Essentials services once again. Thus, I’m not exactly sure what could of happened there. Have you tried restarting the Essentials server just to see if that happens to shake things loose for you?
- Mike answered 2 years ago
If you want to guaranty a successful install of the Windows Server Essentials Experience (WSEE) on Windows Server 2019, 2022, or 2025, then I STRONGLY suggest that you start out with a brand new/clean (i.e. straight out-of-the-box) install of Windows Server with no other applications, roles, or features installed on it.
If you’re still wanting to attempt the install on your existing (non-clean) server, then I strongly suggest that you make sure that you have a working backup of it so that you can restore it back if things don’t end up working out as expected.
Essentials must either be or see a domain controller… The Essentials configuration wizard will automatically setup your server as a primary DC in your domain (allowing you to choose the .local domain name, etc.). Otherwise, you’d need to natively join your server to an existing primary AD DC within your domain BEFORE running the Essentials config wizard. That way, the config wizard will recognize the existing domain controller and will configure the Essentials server as a member server within the existing domain (without making it a DC).
You cannot run multiple Essentials servers within the same domain (at least not without jumping through some hoops anyway) and so, you’ll need to decommission your 2016 Essentials server before installing Essentials onto your 2022 server. Also, Essentials is NOT compatible with the Windows Admin Center and so you should remove that before attempting to install WSEE onto the server (I don’t recall of I added a block to the WSEE Installer for that, but if not, then I probably should).
All that being said… Please note that I do not provide technical support for Essentials and so you’re pretty much on your own there I’m afraid. I try to help folks out where/when I can, but I’m just not able to provide support for Microsoft’s products I’m afraid. So… Proceed at your own risk. ; -)
- Mike answered 2 years ago
Thanks Mike… I’ve rebooted and the issue remains. I’m unable to manually start the services, too. Not sure what’s going on, either.
- MarkRadaba answered 2 years ago
If the client computer is still successfully connected up to the Essentials server, then I’m not exactly sure why those backup related items/tasks would be missing from the Dashboard??? I am aware of an issue where Essentials does not properly set the DeviceIdentity status for certain clients/servers, and thus wrongly reports them as having a disabled status, which results in their backup related tasks/items not appearing within the server Dashboard. I have absolutely no idea why it happens (other than it simply being a bug in Essentials), but I seem to have managed to correct the issue by doing the following:
1. Exit the server Dashboard application if it happens to be running.
2. Sign in to your Essentials server as an administrator.
3. From the administrator’s desktop, open File Explorer and go to the following folder:
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows Server\Data
NOTE: The ProgramData folder is a hidden system folder and so you will need to check the “Hidden items” checkbox located on File Explorer’s “View” tab if you cannot see the folder.
4. Locate the “DevicesInfo.xml” file in that folder and copy (not move) it to the desktop.
5. Right-click on the desktop copy of “DevicesInfo.xml” and choose Open with -> Notepad (or Open with -> Choose another app -> Notepad).
6. Once it’s open in Notepad, choose Edit -> Find and search for the following text:
<d3p1:PropertyName>IdentityStatus</d3p1:PropertyName>
7. For each found instance, look directly underneath it for the following text:
<d3p1:Status>Disabled</d3p1:Status>
If you find it, then change it to (i.e. just change the device’s Status from Disabled to Active as required):
<d3p1:Status>Active</d3p1:Status>
Repeat this for each IdentityStatus found within the file.
8. When you’re finished, save the changes you’ve just made (via File -> Save), and then copy the changed “DevicesInfo.xml” file back into the Data folder (overwriting the existing copy).
9. Open the Services applet (via Run -> Services.msc), and restart the “Windows Server Essentials Management Service” service (or reboot the server).
10. Open the server Dashboard and go to the “DEVICES” page, and you should now see the “Start a backup for the computer“, “Customize backup for the computer“, etc. tasks for each of your connected client computers.
Doing that seems to have corrected the issue for us over here, but I have no idea if it will return again at some later point or not.
- Mike answered 2 years ago
- last active 2 years ago
The WSEE Installer does not support anything greater than the RTM/GA release of Windows Server 2025 (i.e. Version 24H2 OS Build 26100).
- Mike answered 2 years ago
I’ve pulled the WSEE Installer/Updater download files seeing as I’m having some technical issues with them at the moment. I’m working on getting things corrected as fast as I can. I hope to have them back up real soon. Thx!
- Mike answered 2 years ago
