Remote Desktop not working, XP Pro SP3

[gimpy530]

I just built a media center computer for my new apartment, and I want to control it via Remote Desktop to perform administrative tasks as needed.  Since I am not sure if I will stay with a Windows based, or switch to Linux I have not activated this copy of Windows, but that should not matter.

When I open the RD connection windows on the client (Vista SP1), I put in the correct information, hit connect, all the buttons except for Cancel get grayed out, it waits about 10 seconds, then all the buttons are clickable again.  No error message or anything, it just doesn't work.  Any time fromt hen on that I click connect, it does not wait the 10 seconds.  This client can access Remote Desktop on my server no problem though.

Here are a few things I have tried:

-----Using the IP instead of the Hostname on the client

-----Using a different client

-----Disabling the Firewall

-----Selected "Always connect, even if authentication fails" on the Remote Desktop client

-----Made sure Remote Desktop is enabled on the server (server = the one needed to be controlled)

-----Unchecked and rechecked the box for Remote Desktop in System Properties

-----Made sure the user is set to allow Remote Desktop connections on the server

----- Used the "netstat -an |find "3389"" command which returned the following:
TCP    0.0.0.0:3389           0.0.0.0:0              LISTENING

-----Used Microsoft's "PortQryUI" to test the port, it returns the (correct) status as:
"TCP port 3389 (ms-wbt-server service): LISTENING
portqry.exe -n 192.168.1.164 -e 3389 -p TCP exits with return code 0x00000000."

-----I enabled CredSSP as detailed in this Microsoft KB article

-----My roommate found another site which described problems with Remote Desktop and XP SP3, he got a different version of a DLL and a registry edit (No idea what site that was, I'd have to ask him, and he is gone for a few days)

So....with all of that tried, I and my roommate are out of ideas.  Why can't I Remote Desktop into this machine?

[patio]

I have not activated this copy of Windows, but that should not matter.

This may in fact be the issue...

[gimpy530]

That is what my roommate considered as well, but I can't find anything online saying you have to activate for Remote Desktop to work.  Also, that would make no sense at all, why would Remote Desktop not work until activated?  What is the point of that?  All that would do is make an systems administrators job more of a pain in the a*s. Have you seen this issue before?  Can you find anywhere that says activation is the problem?

[patio]

Because Bill Gates is a control freak perhaps ? ?
Why not activate ? ?

[gimpy530]

Because Bill Gates is a control freak perhaps ? ?
Why not activate ? ?

Let's not start the MS bashing......anyway, I activated, and surprise surprise....Remote Desktop still doesn't work

[patio]

I'm not bashing MS...just stating my opinion.