SMS Program Group Controller and AutoDisconnect

ID: Q121385

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Systems Management Server versions 1.0, 1.1

SUMMARY

Windows NT and LAN Manager servers default to 15 minutes of idle time per connection before marking the connection as available for AutoDisconnect. This behavior is intended to keep system resources available, and assumes that clients will transparently reconnect when the client application accesses the server. Sometimes this AutoDisconnect behavior can cause strange application problems such as segment load failures or "drive not ready" errors.

When the Systems Management Server Program Group Controller (PGC) invokes APPSTART to execute a shared application off a server, it opens the executable file in read-only mode and keeps it open until the user exits the application and PGC detects that the connection needs cleaned up.

MORE INFORMATION

This became a critical issue for shared applications under Systems Management Server and this technique eliminates the need to disable AutoDisconnect for the server, and lets PGC manage the connection. The Windows NT Server component correctly maintains the connection for clients running an application through PGC and APPSTART over all supported protocols.

If problems occur:

Disable AutoDisconnect and run the application as usual from PGC.

Run the application from the server, bypassing PGC controls (through File Manager).

If these steps fail to pinpoint the issue, the application may not be network-aware and you should contact the vendor of the application.

Additional query words: directhosting sms prodsms

Keywords : kbnetwork ntdomain nthowto ntconfig smspgc
Version : winnt:1.0,1.1
Platform : winnt
Issue type :