Disable Remote Desktop Auto Lock Screen on Idle

I am using Windows Remote Desktop to connect and remotely manage one of my Windows server. I understand that there are many other better remote control software such as VNC but I try to minimize the installation of third party software on the Windows Server 2008. If you don’t know what is Remote Desktop, it is a protocol developed by Microsoft, which allows you to view the display and control the mouse and keyboard of another computer at different location, as if you were sitting in front of the computer.



I never had any problems with Remote Desktop, except for only one annoyance which is if I leave it idle for a few minutes, it auto logs off and I had to re-enter the password to login again. This is very annoying whenever I am reading the log files or the console messages that is displayed on screen. Fortunately I’ve found the setting on how to disable remote desktop auto logoff on idle.

I actually spent a few days to find the solution because I misunderstood the problem at the first place. I thought I was being auto logged out when idle but it turns out that it was the screen that was locked. No wonder setting “Never” for idle session limit in RDP Properties didn’t work.

By default Windows Server 2008 activates the screen saver if computer has been idle for 10 minutes and the setting “On resume, display logon screen” will also be checked. So if Windows detects no activity for 10 minutes, the screen saver will be activated and when we get back to the Remote Desktop Connection, the screen saver is removed and then prompts to login. To solve this problem, you can either disable the screen saver or remove the logon screen on resume.

To disable the logon screen when idle, here’s what you need to do:
1. Right click Desktop and select Personalized
2. Click Screen Saver
3. Uncheck “On Resume, display logon screen” and click OK.


Now you can remain idle on the remote desktop connection as long as you want and you won’t be locked out.

Free File Recover 7.5 License Key To Restore Deleted Files Worth $29.95

Last year I’ve posted a promotion for PC Tools File Recover but it is for version 6.1 and the license update subscription last only for 4 months. If you didn’t know, all of PC Tools software are subscription based, meaning that your license is still valid and not expired, you are entitled to all new versions, unlimited smart updates and customer support for a year. When your license has expired, so is all the benefits above but you can still continue using the software without limitations.

Today I’ve just discovered a new method to obtain a free 1 year license for the latest version of PC Tools File Recover 7.5. This version of File Recover incorporates a number of enhancements if compared to the previous v6. It has significant speed improvements in searching & recovery of deleted files and enhanced file recovery quality & support for more file types. Continue reading on how to obtain your free 1 year PC Tools File Recover license key worth $29.95.

PC Tools File Recover graphical user interface (GUI) looks exactly the same as the previous version other than the new logo located at the bottom left.

This is what you need to do to get your free PC Tools File Recovery 7.5 license key:

1. You will need to use a UK proxy/vpn and then visit the link below.
http://www.pctools.com/file-recover/free/promo/PCADVISOR0110/

2. Fill up the form and make sure you entered a valid working email address because that is where the license key is going to be sent to.


3. If you got it right, you should see a page saying “Thank you for requesting your FREE license for File Recover v7.5. Your free license code will be e-mailed to you shortly”.

4. Now check your email and note down the name and license key.

5. Download File Recover v7.5 and install.

6. Run File Recover and enter the registration code to license the program.

At the main page for File Recover, it is said to be designed for Windows 2000, XP Pro, XP Home, Vista Basic, Vista Ultimate (32-bit and 64-bit) and Windows 7 (32-bit and 64-bit) but when I click the About button and then go to System Information, it shows that my operating system is Windows Vista when I am actually using Windows 7 Ultimate. Not really a big deal, maybe the developer has forgotten to update the signature to detect Windows 7 OS in System Information. I’ve tried deleting a file and was able to easily find & recover the deleted file using File Recover 7.5.

If you kept on getting the message “The promotion you are attempting to access is not valid in your country”, that means the UK proxy/vpn you are using is not really working. Sometimes it will even show you the page to purchase the license instead of the form to request for free license. There is also a restriction that one IP address can only request once. I’m sure some people that find this too much a hassle will simply use “PCTools.File.Recover.v7.0.0.38.Incl.KeyMaker-DVT”. Do leave a comment if you are NOT from UK and is able to access the promotional page without using a UK proxy/vpn.