I have a Windows application that must run under a certain user/pass in a server running Windows Server 2000 and another in a Windows Server 2003. This is a critical application and it must be running 24/7.
Everytime I need to manage the server I need to login using this account credentials to avoid close the application, since it's a windows form application showing a lot of information and cannot run as service and, as it's a third-party application, I can't change its code to work as a service neither.
Due this, the account needed to run the application is local administrator what's not safe at all, and every Sys Ad need to have its credentials, what also not safe since I can't keep track on who did what.
I need to find a way to keep an account always connected and running the application [until someone explicity logs this off, of course :)] and everytime I need to check something on the application I can log with this account and open this same session.
But when someone needs to manage the server, he/she can connect using his/her admin account which will not logoff the other account.
How can I achieve that?
Just to make it clear:
I need a way to login two sessions on the server (Windows Server 2000 or above).
One of these sessions will be using a regular account credential to run the application. This session can only be logged off by the user it self, or forcedly by the Enterprise Admin.
If someone logins to the server, even locally, it will not logoff this session.
Other accounts, like local administrators, domain admins or even regular users can opne a new session and/or logon locally on the server without closing the other connection at all.
This is the scenario. 🙂
Best Answer
Have you considered running the app as a service? The service could then be set to use your certain user/pass and you'd no longer have to juggle around sessions to keep it specifically running.