This snippet comes from Chapter 8 of my recently-released free e-book The Definitive Guide to Building a Windows Server 2008 Infrastructure. Click here to download your free copy.

In Chapter 7 we talked about how to use the Remote Desktop Client to connect to a Terminal Server desktop session. This process can be done by any user with the correct permissions to connect to a full server desktop along with its installed applications. But sometimes you the administrator don't want to provide access to that entire server desktop. Instead, you may want to provide access to only a specified few applications on the server. There are a number of reasons why enabling access to specified applications can be a superior solution than with deploying full desktops:

Enabling access to specified applications can be easier for users to understand. Users know they need access to their applications. Giving them a secondary desktop with a full Start bar and all the other accouterments can be confusing.

Enabling access to specified applications can consume fewer resources on the server. Because the full desktop and explorer.exe shell along with the other processes it relies upon does not need to be rendered for each user, fewer resources are consumed per user than with full desktops.

Enabling access to specified applications can consume more predictable levels of resources. When users are given access to a full desktop, they typically have the ability to use any of the applications on that server. This makes it very difficult to profile resource consumption by users because their actions are less controllable. This inability to profile makes it more difficult to understand and plan for resource use, and thereby the best possible user's experience.

Enabling access to specified applications can be easier to secure. When full desktops are provided for users, administrators must undergo a securing activity to restrict what activities users can do while logged in. When applications are provided, this activity needs be done per application instead of per desktop, a process that is much easier to accomplish.

Download the whole chapter -- and the rest of the e-book -- to learn more.