How to Set an Idle Timeout for One User in Windows Server 2000

Windows Server 2000 times out users who have been inactive for a certain duration. You can set this timeout value uniquely for each user. Idle timeouts help to increase system security and reduce the amount of resources consumed by clearing inactive sessions and stopping active programs for the account. You can configure idle timeouts in Windows 2000 using the system registry.

Instructions

1. Click "Start" and click "Run."

2. Type "regedit" and click "OK."

3. Browse to "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE," "SOFTWARE," "MICROSOFT," "WINDOWS," "USERS" and "<USERNAME>," with "<USERNAME>" being the name of the user whose timeout you would like to change.

4. Double-click "Timeout" and enter the timeout in a string (text) format. For example, "12.4 hours" or "2.6 days."

5. Click "OK" to save your setting. You may close the Registry Editor.

Tips & Warnings

• The highest numbers supported are 71,582 minutes, 1,193 hours or 49.7 days.

References

• Microsoft: Windows 2000 Terminal Services Time-Out Setting Limits