Before installing Parallels RAS, please verify that your hardware and software meet or exceed the hardware and software requirements described below. Please note that although Parallels RAS can be used in Workgroup environment, Parallels recommends using Active Directory to manage users, groups, and machine accounts via group policies.

This chapter describes how to install and activate Parallels RAS.

For information about Microsoft license requirements, such as Remote Desktop Services Client Access Licenses (RDS CALs) and Virtual Desktop Access (VDA) licenses, please see Appendix: Microsoft license requirements in Parallels RAS.

RAS Connection Broker and RAS Secure Gateway (64-bit versions only)

RAS Connection Broker and RAS Secure Gateway are supported on the following operating systems:

• Windows Server 2016 up to Windows Server 2022

• On Windows Server 2016, 2019, and 2022 both Server Core and Desktop Experience installations are supported

RAS Web Administration Service

Same OS requirements as for RAS Connection Broker (see above). Note that for larger environments (2000 or more concurrent connections), it is recommended to install the component on a dedicated server. For details, please see https://kb.parallels.com/en/124988.

RAS RD Session Host Agent

RAS RD Session Host Agent is supported on the following operating systems:

• Windows Server 2012 R2 up to Windows Server 2022

• Windows Server 2016 and newer must be installed using the "Desktop Experience" installation option.

• Windows Server 2012 R2 — Server Core installation option is not supported.

RAS Provider Agent

• Windows Server 2016 up to Windows Server 2022

For the list of supported Providers, see RAS Provider Agent Installation Options.

RAS Guest Agent

• Windows Server 2012 R2 up to Windows Server 2022

• Windows 10 up to Windows 11

Remote PC Agent

• Windows Server 2012 R2 up to Windows Server 2022

• Windows 10 up to Windows 11

Parallels RAS PowerShell

• Windows Server 2016 up to Windows Server 2022

• Windows 10 up to Windows 11

• Windows Management Framework 3.0 and .NET Framework 4.5.2 must be installed

Parallels RAS Console

• Windows Server 2016 up to Windows Server 2022

• Windows 10 up to Windows 11

RAS Enrollment Server

• Windows Server 2016 up to Windows Server 2022

RAS Performance Monitor

• Windows Server 2016 up to Windows Server 2022

RAS Reporting

See System requirements

Parallels Client

Parallels Client is approved for the following operating systems (both 32-bit and 64-bit systems are supported, where applicable):

• Windows 10, 11

• Windows Server 2012 R2 up to Windows Server 2022

• macOS 12 Monterey to macOS 15 Sequoia. Parallels Client runs natively on Intel and Apple silicon processors.

• iOS 15 up to iOS 18, iPadOS 15 up to iPadOS 18

• Android 9 up to 15

• Chrome OS

Parallels Client for Linux supports the following Linux distributions (x64 versions only):

• Ubuntu 22.04 LTS, 24.04 LTS

• Debian 11 (Bullseye), Debian 12 (Bookworm)

• Fedora 37, 38

• Linux Mint 20, 21

• IGEL OS 11, 12

• ThinOS/Dell Wyse Thin Clients 2303, 2306, 2308

For a list of supported thin clients and supported hardware from Technology Partners such as Igel, HP, 10Zig, and more, please see the following KB article: https://kb.parallels.com/124606.

Parallels RAS is extensively tested on both physical and virtual platforms. The minimum hardware requirements approved to run Parallels RAS are outlined below.

• Physical Machines – Dual Core Processor and a minimum of 4GB RAM.

• Virtual Machines – Two Virtual Processors and a minimum of 4GB of RAM.

The server hardware requirements to install and configure Parallels RAS can vary according to end-user requirements.

Typically for an installation of 30 users or under, Parallels RAS can be installed on one high specification server and the resources published directly from it. For more than 30 users, multiple servers may be required.

The below should be considered during the planning stage of a Parallels RAS deployment:

• High specification servers should be used, consisting of multiple CPU cores, a high specification disk transfer rate and plenty of RAM.

• A hypervisor-based virtual machine can be used as long as the resources needed to serve end-users are calculated accordingly.

• It is recommended that RAS Secure Gateway does not exceed 1200 users per server for incoming connections using the Gateway SSL mode.

• HALB usage should not exceed 2000 user sessions per HALB appliance. See https://kb.parallels.com/125229.

• When planning VDI Hypervisor resource requirements, extra requirements such as RAM usage per virtual machine and disk space should be taken into account.

When configuring RD Session Hosts, VDI, or Azure Virtual Desktop, please keep in mind that different types of workloads require different session host configurations. For the best possible experience, scale your deployment depending on your users' needs. The following table gives you an idea of how different workload types affect session host configurations.

For port requirements, please see the Port Reference section.

To install Parallels RAS:

1. Make sure you have administrative privileges on the computer where you are installing Parallels RAS.

2. Double click the RASInstaller.msi file to launch the Parallels RAS installation wizard. If you see a message that begins with "This version of Parallels RAS is only for testing purposes.", it means that it's not an official build and should not be used in a production environment.

3. Follow the onscreen instructions.

1. Proceed to the Select Installation Type page and select from the following:

   • Parallels Remote Application Server. The default installation that will install RAS Console, RAS Management Portal, RAS Connection Broker, RAS Secure Gateway, RAS RD Session Host Agent, RAS PowerShell, and RAS Web Administration Service on the same machine. This is ideal for testing or small production environments.

   • Parallels RAS Tenant Broker. This option installs Tenant Broker. Please note that Tenant Broker must be installed on a server separate from the existing RAS farms. For more information about Tenant Broker, please see the RAS Multi-Tenant Architecture chapter.

   • Custom. Select and install only the components that you require. You can select individual components after you click Next. Note that if a component cannot be installed on the current server, it will not be available for installation. See Software Requirements.

2. Click Next.

3. Review the notice on the Important Notice wizard page. If there's a port conflict on your computer, the information will be displayed here. You can resolve the conflict later.

4. Click Next.

5. On the Firewall Settings page, select Automatically add firewall rules to configure the firewall on this computer for Parallels RAS to work properly. See Port Reference for details.

6. Click Next and then click Install. Wait for the installation to finish and click Finish.

7. If you are upgrading your RAS installation, it is recommend to reboot all servers where components are upgraded.

When you need to install a particular Parallels RAS component on a different server, run the installation wizard again, select Custom and choose the component(s) you wish to install.

After you've installed Parallels RAS, run the RAS Console and activate your new Parallels RAS Farm.

Start the Parallels RAS Console

By default, the Parallels RAS Console is launched automatically after you click Finish on the last page of the installation wizard. To launch the console manually, navigate to Start > Apps > Parallels and click on Parallels Remote Application Server Console.

When the Parallels RAS Console is launched for the first time, you are presented with the login dialog. In the dialog, specify the following:

• Farm: A Parallels RAS Farm to connect to. Enter the FQDN or IP address of the server where you have RAS Connection Broker installed.

• If you've installed the Parallels Single Sign-On component when installing the RAS Console, you will see the Authentication type field from which you can select whether to log on using your credentials or SSO. If you reboot after the installation and select SSO, select Single Sign-On and then click Connect. Your Windows credentials will be used to log in to the RAS Farm. If you select Credentials, enter your credentials as described below.

• Username: A user account with administrative privileges on the server where Parallels RAS is installed (usually a domain or local administrator). The account name must be specified using the UPN format (e.g. administrator@domain.local). The specified user will be automatically configured as the Parallels RAS administrator with full access rights.

• Password: The specified user account password.

• If you select the Remember credentials option, this dialog will not be shown the next time you launch the Parallels RAS Console.

The Edit Connections button opens a dialog where you can manage your RAS connection. This dialog becomes useful if this is not the first time you are connecting to one or more of your RAS Farms. The left pane of the dialog displays RAS Farms to which previously connected (you can remove a Farm from the list by clicking the [-] icon if you no longer need it). The right pane displays at least the primary Connection Broker for the selected Farm. If you've added a secondary Connection Brokers to a Farm, you can add it to this list by clicking the [+] icon and typing its hostname or IP address (click the "recycle" icon to verify the agent status). This way the RAS Console will try to connect to the primary Connection Broker first and if it fails (e.g. the agent is offline or cannot be reached), it will try to connect to the secondary Connection Broker. For more information about secondary Connection Brokers, please see Parallels RAS Connection Brokers chapter.

When you are done entering the connection information, click the Connect button to connect to the Parallels RAS Farm.

Sign in to Parallels My Account

To activate Parallels RAS, you must register for a Parallels business account. After you logged in to Parallels RAS, you'll see the Sign In to Parallels My Account dialog. If you already have an account, type the email address and password you used to register the account and click Sign In.

Note: If you use an HTTP proxy server on your network, you will see a dialog asking you to configure the proxy server connection settings. Click the Configure Proxy button. In the dialog that opens, select one of the following: Use system proxy settings (the default proxy settings from the Internet Explorer will be used) or Manual HTTP proxy configuration (specify the settings manually). If your proxy configuration changes, you can re-configure it later by navigating to Administration > Settings and clicking the Configure Proxy button.

If you don't have a Parallels business account, you can register for one as follows:

1. In the Sign In to Parallels My Account dialog, click Register. The Register Parallels My Account dialog opens.

2. Enter your name and email address, choose and type a password, and enter your company info (all fields are required).

3. Follow the links to Parallels Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. After reading them (and if you agree) select the I have read and agree to the Parallels Privacy Policy and Terms of Use checkbox.

4. Click Register to register an account. This will create a personal account for yourself and a business account for your organization to which you will be assigned as administrator.

Activate Parallels RAS

After you sign in to Parallels My Account, the Activate Product dialog opens asking you to activate the Parallels RAS Farm.

If you already have a Parallels RAS license key, select the Activate using license key option and enter the key in the field provided. You can click the button next to the field to see the list of subscriptions and/or permanent license keys you have registered in Parallels My Account. If the list is empty, it means that you don't have any subscriptions or license keys and need to purchase one first.

Note: You can manage your Parallels RAS license using the Licensing category in the Parallels RAS console. The management tasks include viewing the license information, switching to a different Parallels My Account, and activating the Parallels RAS Farm using a different license key. For more information, please see the Licensing section.

If you don't have a Parallels RAS license key, you have the following options:

• Purchase a subscription online by clicking the Purchase a license link.

• Activate Parallels RAS as a trial by selecting the Activate trial version option.

After entering a license key (or selecting to activate a trial version), click Activate. You should see a message that the Parallels RAS Farm was activated successfully. Click OK to close the message box.

The first dialog that you see informs you that you have no servers configured that can be used to host published resources. This means that to begin using Parallels RAS, you need at least one RD Session Host, Provider, or a Remote PC configured. We'll talk about configuring a Parallels RAS Farm in the next chapter. For now, click OK to close the message box. You will then see the Applying Settings dialog. Wait for the initial configuration of Parallels RAS to complete and click OK. You will now see the main Parallels RAS Console window where you can begin configuring the Parallels RAS Farm.

Read on to learn how to quickly add an RD Session Host, publish resources, and invite your users to Parallels RAS.