Remotely Start Full Screen RDP Session from Server1 to Server2 - amazon-ec2

Question

We are trying to integrate MicroFocus UFT testing into an Azure DevOps CI\CD pipeline using a self-hosted EC2 build agent (let's call the build agent UftServer). UftServer has MicroFocus UFT One installed and the pipeline uses the MicroFocus Azure DevOps extension see here to start the test.
Everything works as expected when a full screen RDP session is open to UftServer. When the pipeline runs, we can watch UFT One open our application and run the specified test. Results post back to Azure DevOps with pass\fail and life is good.
However, when the RDP session is closed, the UFT pipeline step fails to execute the test. It mentions a credentials error, but the problem clearly seems to be the closed RDP session.
From the test results we assume that a full screen RDP session needs to be active for UFT One to execute the tests properly (it detects the screen resolution so that it knows where certain menus are in our application).
So, rather than open the RDP session to UftServer from my local system (which won't necessarily be open when the pipeline runs), we created a second build agent RDPLauncher in the pipeline (also self hosted EC2), and execute the following script on it before launching the UFT test on UftServer:
$RemoteUftServer = "UftServerIp"
$RemoteUftUser = "Administrator"
$RemotePwSecretId = "uft"
$RemoteUftPw = ((Get-SECSecretValue -SecretId $RemotePwSecretId).SecretString | ConvertFrom-Json).password
reg add "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Terminal Server Client" /v "AuthenticationLevelOverride" /t "REG_DWORD" /d 0 /f #to disable cert check
cmdkey /generic:"$RemoteUftServer" /user:"$RemoteUftUser" /pass:"$RemoteUftPw" #to set RDP creds
mstsc /v:"UftServerIp" /admin /f
Write-Host "mstsc command ran successfully, qwinsta results:"
qwinsta
When we run this script manually RDPed into RDPLauncher, the full screen RDP session to the UftServer opens as expected and runs the test.
Further, we can disconnect from RDPLauncher and the RDP session from RDPLauncher to UftServer remains open and the pipeline still runs successfully.
It is great to not have the RDP session open from my local system, but the pipeline still lacks a critical automation piece.
When the pipeline runs the above script on RDPLauncher (rather than me running it manually RDPed into RDPLauncher), it succeeds, but then the UFT test fails as if the session isn't open.
So, from the pipeline, how do we remotely open the full screen RDP session from RDPLauncher to UftServer?
The script above works when I run it from RDPLauncher, but doesn't seem to have the same effect when the Azure DevOps Agent service runs it from the pipeline.
Both build agents are running Windows 10.
Any help is appreciated :)

Answer 1

I suggest you to first configure everything before the pipeline run.
1, Remember the credential.
2, After the above steps, click remember your password after you input the password.
And then, in your pipeline, only need a pipeline definition like the below will be able to connected to the remote server with rdp file(no need other interactive steps.):
trigger:
- none
pool: VMAS #This is a self hosted agent pool, the pipeline is runnning based on a server in this agent pool, and the rdp file is also in this server.
steps:
- script: |
# echo %username%
# mkdir "C:/xxxyyyzzz"
C:\Users\Administrator\Desktop\VM.rdp # Here is the path of the rdp file on my side.
displayName: 'Run a one-line script'