Opening User Sessions on Remote Computers

Specifying User Accounts for Remote Hosts

Opening User Sessions Automatically

Opening User Sessions Manually

Opening User Sessions by Using Microsoft Accounts

Regardless of whether you will open user sessions automatically or manually, each remote host configured in the master project must have a user account specified. The network suite will run tests on the hosts under those accounts.

You can specify an individual user account for each host or a common user account to use on all hosts.

The user accounts must belong to the Remote Desktop Users group on the remote computers. See Distributed Testing - Requirements.

To specify an individual user account for a host

To specify a default user account for all hosts in the project

To configure TestComplete to open user sessions on remote hosts automatically:

• In the Hosts editor of your master project, enter user account data for the needed hosts.

• Set one of automatic login modes for the hosts:

  • Automatic (RDP Session). The host will be locked during the network suite run and will remain locked even after the test run is over.

  • Automatic (Console Session). TestComplete will retarget the remote desktop session to the remote host’s console and the host will remain unlocked.

    This may reduce the host’s system security.

When you verify or run the network suite, it automatically opens user sessions on remote computers using the provided credentials.

Notes:

• In automatic mode, the existing user session will be logged off, and a new session will be created. The existing user session is used only in Manual mode.

• If you have an open session for another user, TestComplete will not be able to open a new session for the needed user (unless you use a server edition of the Windows operating system). Close the currently open session on the remote computer and open a new one for the needed user.

• If the remote computer is running a server edition of the Windows operating system and several active sessions are open on that computer, the network suite will close all those sessions and open a new session for the needed user.

  To keep those sessions open, set the login mode for the appropriate host to Manual and open user sessions for the needed user on that host manually before running tests.

You can open a user session for the needed user account on a remote computer manually.

Before running a network suite:

• Connect to the remote computer and open a user session for the needed user account on it.

• In the Hosts editor of your master project, set the host’s Login Mode to Manual.

• Enter the credentials of the user account for the needed hosts.

When you start the network suite, TestComplete will not open a new session on the host. It will connect to the existing session to run tests.

A Microsoft account (former Windows Live ID) is an email address you use to connect to various Microsoft services, like OneDrive or Outlook.

Currently, a network suite cannot open user sessions on remote computers by using Microsoft accounts.

As a workaround, you can do any of the following:

• Create a local account on a remote host and use it to open user sessions to run tests on that host:

  1. Log in to the remote computer. Make sure that the account under which you log in has administrator privileges.

  2. On the PC settings screen, select Users and then click Add a user.

  3. Click Sign in without a Microsoft account and then click Local account.

  4. Enter the user name and password for the new account.

     The password for a new account cannot be blank.

  5. Click Next and then click Finish.

  6. Configure the network suite to use the created account to open user sessions on the remote computer.

– or –

• Find a local user name associated with your Microsoft account on the remote host and use it to run tests:

  1. Log in to the remote computer.

  2. Type mmc in the search box and press Enter.

  3. In Microsoft Management Console, open the Local Users and Groups snap-in.

  4. In the left pane of the console, select the Users group.

  5. The pane in the centre of the console will show a list of user accounts registered on that host.

  6. Find the needed Microsoft account. The Name column contains the local user account name associated with the Microsoft account.

     

     Click the image to enlarge it.

  7. Configure the network suite to use that local account to open user sessions on the remote computer.