-->
Applies to: Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2019, Windows Server 2016, Windows Server 2012 R2. You can control a remote PC by using a Microsoft Remote Desktop client. The client can run on almost any device, including on your mobile smartphone. The client gives you the same powers you would have if you could reach the PC's keyboard. Although, Windows 10 Home is equipped with Remote Desktop Client Software, it lacks the propriety RDP server from Microsoft, required for accessing remote computers. Enable Remote Desktop Using Settings The easiest way to Enable Remote Desktop connection in Windows 10.
Applies to: Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2019, Windows Server 2016, Windows Server 2012 R2
You can use Remote Desktop to connect to and control your PC from a remote device by using a Microsoft Remote Desktop client (available for Windows, iOS, macOS and Android). When you allow remote connections to your PC, you can use another device to connect to your PC and have access to all of your apps, files, and network resources as if you were sitting at your desk.
Note
You can use Remote Desktop to connect to Windows 10 Pro and Enterprise, Windows 8.1 and 8 Enterprise and Pro, Windows 7 Professional, Enterprise, and Ultimate, and Windows Server versions newer than Windows Server 2008. You can't connect to computers running a Home edition (like Windows 10 Home).
To connect to a remote PC, that computer must be turned on, it must have a network connection, Remote Desktop must be enabled, you must have network access to the remote computer (this could be through the Internet), and you must have permission to connect. For permission to connect, you must be on the list of users. Before you start a connection, it's a good idea to look up the name of the computer you're connecting to and to make sure Remote Desktop connections are allowed through its firewall.
How to enable Remote Desktop
The simplest way to allow access to your PC from a remote device is using the Remote Desktop options under Settings. Since this functionality was added in the Windows 10 Fall Creators update (1709), a separate downloadable app is also available that provides similar functionality for earlier versions of Windows. You can also use the legacy way of enabling Remote Desktop, however this method provides less functionality and validation.
Windows 10 Fall Creator Update (1709) or later
You can configure your PC for remote access with a few easy steps.
- On the device you want to connect to, select Start and then click the Settings icon on the left.
- Select the System group followed by the Remote Desktop item.
- Use the slider to enable Remote Desktop.
- It is also recommended to keep the PC awake and discoverable to facilitate connections. Click Show settings to enable.
- As needed, add users who can connect remotely by clicking Select users that can remotely access this PC.
- Members of the Administrators group automatically have access.
- Make note of the name of this PC under How to connect to this PC. You'll need this to configure the clients.
Windows 7 and early version of Windows 10
To configure your PC for remote access, download and run the Microsoft Remote Desktop Assistant. This assistant updates your system settings to enable remote access, ensures your computer is awake for connections, and checks that your firewall allows Remote Desktop connections.
All versions of Windows (Legacy method)
To enable Remote Desktop using the legacy system properties, follow the instructions to Connect to another computer using Remote Desktop Connection.
Should I enable Remote Desktop?
If you only want to access your PC when you are physically using it, you don't need to enable Remote Desktop. Enabling Remote Desktop opens a port on your PC that is visible to your local network. You should only enable Remote Desktop in trusted networks, such as your home. You also don't want to enable Remote Desktop on any PC where access is tightly controlled.
Be aware that when you enable access to Remote Desktop, you are granting anyone in the Administrators group, as well as any additional users you select, the ability to remotely access their accounts on the computer.
You should ensure that every account that has access to your PC is configured with a strong password.
Why allow connections only with Network Level Authentication?
If you want to restrict who can access your PC, choose to allow access only with Network Level Authentication (NLA). When you enable this option, users have to authenticate themselves to the network before they can connect to your PC. Allowing connections only from computers running Remote Desktop with NLA is a more secure authentication method that can help protect your computer from malicious users and software. To learn more about NLA and Remote Desktop, check out Configure NLA for RDS Connections.
If you're remotely connecting to a PC on your home network from outside of that network, don't select this option.
If you look closely at Windows 10 Home, you’ll find most of the components required to run the Microsoft RDP Server already installed as part of the operating system. Enabling the remote desktop server normally requires a PC running either the Windows 10 Professional or Enterprise editions. Here’s how you can also enable the RDP server in the Windows 10 Home edition.
Before you set up an RDP server, you should be aware that exposing an RDP server to the internet is incredibly risky. RDP is a common vector for compromising Windows systems. There have been multiple security issues with Windows RDP servers in recent years.
Only install an RDP server if you absolutely need one. Configure a restrictive firewall to keep from being accessible from the internet. Only connect to your RDP server through an encrypted network bridge (e.g. a local VPN.)
Windows 10 editions that officially support the RDP Server feature can turn it on from the user interface in the Windows Settings app or the Windows System dialog: Properties: Remote. However, you won’t find these settings in Windows 10 Home or S editions.
The RDP Wrapper Library (rdpwrap) project hot-wires Windows’ built-in RDP server (the Terminal Service) so you can start it even on Windows 10 Home. It also adds the required rules to the Windows Firewall to allow remote RDP connections to your PC. Make sure all accounts on your PC have strong passwords to protect it against unauthorized remote logins!
RDP Wrapper doesn’t unlock Windows’ user interface for managing the RDP server. Instead, you can use the bundled RDPConf program which comes bundled with RDP Wrapper to manage these settings.
It’s easy to get set up with RDP Wrapper. Download the latest MSI installer and run it.
Alternative approaches to enable RDP in the Home edition of Windows often make alterations to Windows components that are difficult to revert and may cause problems later when the system updates through Windows Update. RDP Wrapper instead makes some minor adjustments to Windows configuration and uses existing Windows components and services to enable remote RDP access.
You can use the Remote Desktop Connect client to remotely access the desktop of a Windows PC running an RDP server. The Remote Desktop Connection client program is available in all editions of Windows including Windows 10 Home and Mobile. It’s even available on macOS, iOS, and Android through their respective app stores.
There aren’t any alternative third-party RDP server implementations available on Windows, so you must either use the implementation built-in to Windows or not at all. RDP is a proprietary protocol by Microsoft after all, so this may not be all that strange.
The Windows 10 Professional upgrade cost for a Home edition user is quite expensive, and it may be worth investigating alternatives like VNC. VNC is an open-source alternative remote desktop protocol. You’ll find plenty of free servers and clients available for all operating systems including Windows. VNC suffers from having many almost-but-not-quite compatible implementations, resulting in an ecosystem where not all clients work well or at all with all servers. I’ll not cover VNC any further in this article.
You may be wondering whether the Windows license allows for something like RDP Wrapper to lift limitation in the Home edition? Let’s take a quick look at the relevant parts of the Windows Operating System license:
Disclaimer: I’m not a lawyer and this isn’t legal advice. This is just my reflections and interpretation from reading the Windows License.
You may argue that RDP Wrapper just enables you to take advantage of the functionality that you’re licensed to utilize by section 2.d(ⅴ), but section 2.c+2.c(ⅳ) contradicts 2.d(ⅴ) with no clear reading as to which one takes precedence. Section 2.d(ⅴ) doesn’t expressly grant an exception from 2.c+2.c(ⅳ), but 2.d(ⅴ) is more specific to the situation at hand.
I’d like to pause here to say the current Windows license text makes it clear that you’re not allowed to work around any problems and limitations imposed by Windows. Which means that you’re more than likely already violating the Windows license simply by installing any number of utility programs that extend or tweaks Windows functionality.
I.e., using the file search utility FileLocator to work around the restrictions Windows puts in place to limit your ability to find files on the system is strictly speaking a violation of the Windows license as written. Most of the third-party and even other Microsoft software you install will put you in violation of the Windows license.
The use of RDP Wrapper may be interpreted as an application of a method for circumventing digital rights management system and thus illegal under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) in the USA, and who-really-knows-what-is-illegal-in-different-member-states under the Copyright Directive (2001/29/EC) in the EU. This part of the license is, however, open to interpretation and I’d say Microsoft would be hard-pressed to apply it to any situation beyond attempts at circumventing their copy-protection and validation systems.
Not being able nor permitted to work around bugs and problems in Windows is one of the reasons why I choose Linux over Windows.
If you want to stay in compliance with the Windows license, you can either choose to use a free VNC alternative or upgrade your Windows 10 Home license to a Pro edition license by purchasing a digital upgrade code from Amazon.
Mstsc In Windows 10 Home