RDS Remote Application: Universal Web Portal¶

Any generic web portal page with a universal direct login form is accessible via a web browser and could be used to manage internal infrastructure like Firewalls or SaaS applications. When integrated with the 12Port Access Broker via Remote Desktop Services (RDS), this Universal Web Portal application enables Zero Trust access with fully monitored and credential-injected administrative sessions using the Microsoft Edge browser.

Installation and Configuration¶

1. Download Required Files
* Executable:
https://bin.12port.com/product/remote-apps/app-web-portal/app-web-portal.exe
* Configuration File (.ini):
https://bin.12port.com/product/remote-apps/app-web-portal/app-web-portal.ini

Source files:
https://bin.12port.com/product/remote-apps/app-web-portal/app-web-portal.au3
https://bin.12port.com/product/remote-apps/ztna.au3
Note: The ztna.au3 source file contains shared code used by all RDS Remote Application scripts. This file is required for compiling modified or custom created RDS app scripts.

* Place both the Executable (.exe) and Configuration (.ini) files in the same directory on the RDS Server where the Remote Application will be published. For example: C:\12Port-RDSApps.

2. Modify Configuration
The following configuration is required with this Remote Application. Default values may be modified when necessary:

[app]
debug=false
Script={var:User},{wait:1000},{TAB},{wait:1000},{var:Password},{wait:1000},{ENTER},{wait:1000},{var:TOTP},{wait:1000},{ENTER}
page-load-wait=2000
after-submit-wait=4000
focus-wait=500

2A. Script Actions

The Script setting defines a comma-separated sequence of actions to perform within the Edge browser after launch.

Supported actions include:

2B. Asset-Level Script Overrides

By default, the remote application executes the action sequence defined in the Script configuration parameter. However, individual assets can override this behavior by specifying an alternative script name in the asset's Script field.

The Script field is a predefined hidden field on the RDS Remote Application asset type. When populated and passed to the remote application through the Remote Arguments field, the application will execute the matching script sequence defined in the configuration file instead of the default Script sequence.

This capability allows a single remote application definition to support multiple web portal authentication workflows while enabling asset owners to customize the interaction sequence on a per-asset basis.

Example Configuration

[app]
debug=false
Script={var:User},{wait:1000},{TAB},{wait:1000},{var:Password},{wait:1000},{ENTER},{wait:1000},{var:TOTP},{wait:1000},{ENTER}
AWS-no-MFA={var:User},{wait:1000},{TAB},{wait:1000},{var:Password},{wait:1000}
page-load-wait=2000
after-submit-wait=4000
focus-wait=500

In this example, two authentication sequences are defined:

• Script – Performs username entry, password entry, and TOTP authentication.
• AWS-no-MFA – Performs username and password entry only.

If an asset's Script field is set to Script, or if no override is specified, the default sequence will be executed, including TOTP authentication.

If an asset's Script field is set to AWS-no-MFA, the session will launch the browser, populate the username and password fields, and stop without performing TOTP authentication.

3. Publish the Remote Application
Use the following PowerShell command as an example to publish Universal Web Portal as a RemoteApp on the RDS server. This command must be executed from an elevated (Administrator) PowerShell session:

New-RDRemoteApp `
  -CollectionName "QuickSessionCollection" `
  -Alias "app-web-portal" `
  -DisplayName "app-web-portal" `
  -FilePath "C:\12Port-RDSApps\app-web-portal\app-web-portal.exe" `
  -ShowInWebAccess $true `
  -CommandLineSetting "Allow"

Ensure the CommandLineSetting is set to "Allow" to enable the Access Broker to pass connection parameters to the application.

RDS Application Asset Configuration¶

To enable Zero Trust access to the Universal Web Portal via the 12Port Access Broker, create a new Asset using the type RDS Remote Application:

• In the RDS Remote Application asset, set the Remote App field to:

  ||app-web-portal
  

• Set the Remote Arguments field to:

  Host,User,Password,TOTP
  

• Specify Host as the full URL to the Universal Web Portal login page like https://contoso.com/console.

• Specify User as a privileged account for zero trust access.

• Specify Password for the privileged account for zero trust access.

• (Optional) If required, specify TOTP as the Secret Key that is displayed during application registration like 5WJMAUBDEEOVDNXHDIJZTA8PNBUZ4OL36QYP7PUIKOQYHKLMZRWSLYZ22F

After saving the asset, set your RDS Host Server asset as a Member Role in the Member Assets section. This is required to start a remote session.

These values allow the Access Broker to inject credentials into the Universal Web Portal connection, using the Microsoft Edge web browser, without exposing them to the user.

Troubleshooting¶

Disable Microsoft Edge "Tab Search"¶

The Microsoft Edge Tab Search feature can interfere with the automated login process used by the 12Port RDS Application and may prevent auto-login from completing successfully.

If users experience issues with automatic authentication or credential submission in Microsoft Edge, disable the Tab Search feature:

1. Login to the RDS server using the account saved in the RDS Host Server asset.
2. Open Microsoft Edge
3. Navigate to: edge://settings/appearance
4. Locate the Show tab search setting.
5. Disable the setting.
6. Restart Microsoft Edge.

After disabling Tab Search, retry the RDS remote app session.