What does Windows error code 7023 (ERROR_CTX_WINSTATION_ALREADY_EXISTS) mean?

Status / error code:		Category:

Constant name:
Source:		Operating System:
Description: The requested Remote Desktop session name is already in use.

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ERROR_CTX_WINSTATION_NOT_FOUND	ERROR_CTX_WINSTATION_BUSY

ERROR_CTX_WINSTATION_ALREADY_EXISTS

ERROR_CTX_WINSTATION_ALREADY_EXISTS means a session or listener with the requested name already exists on the host. This is normally a naming collision during RDS configuration or automation, not an authentication failure.

What to check

List current sessions/listeners and identify the object that already owns the name.
Check whether a previous configuration attempt completed only partially.
Use a unique listener or session name in deployment scripts; do not remove an existing session merely because its name collides.

qwinsta /server:rd-session-host

Microsoft: Remote Desktop Services system error codes

Microsoft: qwinsta / query session

Microsoft: Remote Desktop Services command reference

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