How to Activate Telnet in Windows 7

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Connect to remote servers via Telnet with this handy guide

Written by Nicole Levine, MFA

Last Updated: January 8, 2024 Fact Checked

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How to Activate Telnet

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How to Use Telnet

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Telnet is a command line tool that is designed for administering remote servers through the Command Prompt. Unlike earlier versions of Windows, Windows 7 (and its predecessors) does not come with the Telnet client installed. You will need to activate it before you can start using it.

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Open the Control Panel and go to "Programs and Features" > "Turn Windows features on or off". Enter your Administrator password if prompted.
Find the "Telnet Client" entry in the list of available features and check the box next to it. Then, click OK.
To use telnet, open Command Prompt, type telnet, and press Enter.

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How to Activate Telnet

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By default, Telnet is not installed with Windows 7. It will need to be manually activated in order for you to use it. You can do so through the Control Panel, you'll find in the Start menu.
The option available to you will depend on whether your Control Panel is in Icon or Category view, but they both take you to the same place.

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You may be asked for the Administrator password.
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Check the box next to "Telnet Client" and click OK. You may have to scroll down to find it. This installs and activates telnet.
- You may have to wait a minute or two for the client to be installed after selecting it.
If you'd rather do everything through the Command Prompt, you can install Telnet with a quick command. First, open the Command Prompt by typing cmd into the Run box and pressing Enter. At the prompt, type pkgmgr /iu:"TelnetClient" and press Enter. After a moment, you will be returned to the command prompt.^{[1]
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How to Use Telnet

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Telnet runs through the Command Prompt. You can access the command prompt by pressing Win, typing cmd, and clicking OK.
Type telnet and press Enter. The Command Prompt will disappear, and you will be taken to the Telnet command line, displayed as Microsoft Telnet>.
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Connect to a server. At the Telnet command line, type open serveraddress [port]. For some servers, you will not need to enter a port—telnet will default to port 23, the default TCP port for telnet servers. You have successfully connected to the server when you receive either a welcome message or are prompted for your username and password.
- For example, to watch ASCII Star Wars, type open towel.blinkenlights.nl and press Enter.
- You can also start a connection directly from the Command Prompt by typing telnet serveraddress [port].
Once you are finished, you should close your connection before closing the window. To do so, press Ctrl + ], type quit, and then press Enter.^{[2]
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What if I cannot find the telnet server on my Windows 10 computer?

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You can find it in control panel by clicking on Programs and Features then Turn windows features on/off. You will find telnet client there.

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Because telnet isn't the most secure protocol, many servers have the feature turned off. In most cases, to connect to a remote server, you'll need to use SSH. A popular SSH app (that also supports telnet) is PuTTY.

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