Control-Alt-Del grayed out during remote control session of Windows 7 devices.

  • 7006211
  • 04-Jun-2010
  • 16-Sep-2013

Environment

Novell ZENworks 10 Configuration Management with Support Pack 3 - 10.3
Novell ZENworks Configuration Management 11.1
Novell ZENworks Configuration Management 11.2

Situation

No means of sending a ctrl + alt + del to a windows 7 device during a remote control session.  The button is grayed out.

Resolution

For ZENworks 11: A fix for this issue is included in ZENworks 11, see KB 7006995 "ZENworks 11 - information and updates" which can be found at https://www.novell.com/support

For ZCM 10.3: This is fixed in version 10.3.2 - see KB 7007237 "ZENworks Configuration Management 10.3.2 - update information and list of fixes" which can be found at https://www.novell.com/support
 
Important: To make use of the functionality, a Group Policy is required:
  1. Enable the following property:
    Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Logon Options > Disable or enable software Secure Attention Sequence
  2. Under 'Set which software is allowed to generate the Secure Attention Sequence ', select 'Service and Ease of Access applications '.

    Note: The Group Policy setting is required to be configured only when UAC is disabled. When UAC is enabled, the generation of Ctrl-Alt-Delete sequence would work with or without it being configured.
Workaround: if it is not possible to upgrade to 10.3.2, or 11 at this time, in the interim, Novell has made a Patch available for testing, in the form of a Field Test File (FTF): it can be obtained at https://download.novell.com/Download?buildid=QxdqQZkKu9g~ as "ZCM10.3.1 Control-Alt-Del remote control Windows 7/Vista fix - see KB 7006211 ". This Patch should only be applied if the symptoms above are being experienced, and are causing problems.
This Patch has had limited testing, and should not be used in a production system without first being checked in a test environment. Some Patches have specific requirements for deployment, it is very important to follow any instructions in the readme at the download site. Please report any problems encountered when using this Patch, by using the feedback link on this TID.
 

 
A fix was supplied with ZCM 10.3.1 (see below) but this requires that UAC is on - see KB 7006265 "ZENworks Configuration Management 10.3.1 - update information and list of fixes" which can be found at https://www.novell.com/support
 
The 10.3.1 fix requires that UAC (User Access Control) is active; i.e., at least one setting higher than "Never notify ".  Please note that by requiring UAC to be active, bundle deployments will be affected, necessitating user intervention to accept security message pop-ups.