Can’t open the Virtual Server Administration Website

  • Article

(Updated to correct an error: You want to enable DCOM for Authenticated Users rather than Everyone.)

On Windows XP SP2, you may no longer be able to open the Administration Website, although you could before you installed Windows XP SP2. This is due to tighter security measures in Windows XP SP2. To fix the problem, either uninstall and reinstall Virtual Server, or else do the following:

  1. Click "Start," click "Control Panel," and then double-click "Administrative Tools."
  2. Double-click "Component Services."
  3. Expand "Component Services", 'Computers," "My Computer,' and "DCOM Config."
  4. Right-click the first instance of Virtual Server in the list, and then click "Properties."
  5. On the "Security" tab, in "Launch Permissions" click "Edit."
  6. Select "Authenticated Users" and then, next to "Launch Permission," select "Allow." If "Authenticated Users" doesn't appear in the list, you'll need to add it before you can take this step.

If you've installed (the currently pre-release version of) Windows Server 2003 SP1, the same issue may exist. If you can’t open the Administration Website locally, you can try configuring your LAN settings so that the proxy server is bypassed for the Administration Website URL, as follows.

  1. In Internet Explorer, click "Tools" and then "Internet Options."
  2. On the "Connections" tab, click "LAN Settings" and then "Advanced."
  3. In "Exceptions," type the full URL of the Administration Website, and then click "OK."

You can also try changing the DCOM configuration, as for Windows XP SP2. The UI is slightly different, though:

  1. Click "Start," point to "Administrative Tools," and then click "Component Services."
  2. Expand "Component Services," "Computers," "My Computer," and "DCOM Config."
  3. Right-click "Virtual Server" and then click "Properties."
  4. On the "Security" tab, in "Launch and Activation Permissions" click "Edit."
  5. Select "Authenticated Users" and then next to "Local Launch," select "Allow." If "Authenticated Users" doesn't appear in the list, you'll need to add it before you can take this step.
  6. If you want to also allow remote DCOM, next to "Remote Launch," select "Allow."