We require a Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) to establish the connection or get whole control over the other system which is far from you, and also an app that can be a medium between the Remote Desktop and the other PC. In this article, we will share some settings available in your system so you can enable or disable Remote Desktop Access to a Windows 11/10 PC.
We are here to give a complete guide to all the newbies if you are curious about the terms RDP and Remote Desktop apps and create connections between Remote Desktop to your Windows PCs. So stay with us and grab the knowledge about enabling and using Remote Desktop To Connect To A Windows 11/10 PC.
What is Remote Desktop?
Remote Desktop enables remote access to a server or any other PC and provides whole control over all the peripherals, including keyboard and mouse. It is a feature of an operating system or may refer to as software that runs remotely on one system displayed on a client system. Remote Desktop allows a client PC to connect to a host/server PC. After setting it up, you control the applications and files on the server device in the same network.
Once enabled, you can use the Windows built-in Remote Desktop Connection app to establish the connection between the PCs and Windows servers by using the Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP). Let’s understand RDP in detail next.
What Is RDP And Its Role To Connect Remote Desktops To Your Computer?
Microsoft has developed a proprietary protocol called Remote Desktop Protocol to provide the users with a graphical interface to connect to another computer. It gives you high security as it is encapsulated and encrypted within TCP (Transmission Control Protocol). RDP provides access to those employees who are working from home or distance and admins who are providing system maintenance.
With the providence of features like strong physical security, RDP works across different operating systems, not only with all the Windows versions as also for Linux, macOS, iOS, and Android.
The graphical user interface provided by RDP enables remote users to open and edit files just like they are sitting in front of their desktops. RDP works on two machines as one acts as the RDP Client from which you are trying to connect, and the RDP server is the machine that you are aiming to connect with.
How To Use Remote Desktop To Connect To A Windows 11/10 PC
So far, we hope you are clear with the two important terms, Remote Access and Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP). The two machines need to mutually support the Remote Desktop Protocol to establish the connection in between. You might be already aware of some ways of enabling the remote desktop feature in Windows 11/10.
So we have brought four ways in your knowledge to establish the connection between Windows PCs to Remote Desktop, which is discussed below.
- Using Control Panel
- Windows Settings
- Command Prompt
- Windows Terminal or PowerShell
Some of these will need admin access.
1] Enable/Disable Remote Desktop Via Control Panel
We assume that you have set up the network for connecting your PC to Windows. Now let’s get started with enabling Remote Desktop Protocol on Windows 11/10 by using Control Panel. Follow the given steps:
- Open Control Panel
- In this panel, choose the System and Security option.
- Under the System category, select Allow remote access. It will display another window panel that has many tabs.
- Under the Remote tab, click on the check box that says Allow Remote Assistance connections to this computer.
- You can choose Advanced that will again open a different window panel, check the box that says, Allow this computer to be controlled remotely under the remote control section.
- To do the changes in time settings, choose the drop-down to set the maximum amount of time invitations can remain open.
You may check the box to create the invitations that can only be used from the computers running Windows Vista or later.
- Click on the Ok button and close the Control Panel.
You are set to connect from your PC via Remote Desktop remotely.
2] Enable/Disable Remote Desktop On Windows Via Settings
Before we start enabling RDP in Windows 11/10, we need to know about the limitation with Windows 10 Home Edition. Remote Desktop is only available in Windows 11 Educational, Pro, Enterprise SKU. However, Windows 11 Home can only be used as a client but not as a server RDP to connect to another system.
To enable Remote Desktop via the easiest Windows settings app, we assume you must have established a remote connection. Follow the easy steps below to enable the Remote Desktop.
- Open the Settings of your system.
- Select the System tab on the left sidebar of the Settings app.
- Scroll to select the Remote Desktop option on the right panel.
- Slide the toggle bar to ON, this will enable the Remote Desktop Feature.
- Confirm further proceedings in the confirmation dialogue box.
- After enabling this feature, check there are two options:
- If you are connecting to an older version of Windows, uncheck it.
- If not, click in the check box that says—Require computers to use Network Level Authentication (NLA) to connect (The number next to this option should be ‘3389‘, and the PC name should be used to connect this device to another device in the network.)
- Click the Remote Desktop Users option to add users to the Remote Desktop group, click the Add button on the dialog box.
3] Enable/Disable Remote Desktop On Windows Via Command Prompt
Follow the below steps and enable the Remote Desktop through Command Prompt:
- Open the Command Prompt or Windows Terminal with Run As Administrator Permission. (Win + X)
- Type the following command to enable the Remote Desktop and press enter:
reg add "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Terminal Server" /v fDenyTSConnections /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f
- You have now successfully enabled the Remote Desktop.
Note: If you want to enable it through the firewall, use the following command:
netsh advfirewall firewall set rule group="remote desktop" new enable=Yes
4] Enable/Disable Remote Desktop via PowerShell or Windows Terminal
Windows PowerShell is another way to enable your Remote Desktop. Follow the bsteps below:
- Open Windows PowerShell or Windows Terminal with Run as administrator permission.
- Type the following command in the opened window:
Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Terminal Server' -name "fDenyTSConnections" -value 0
- Press Enter. You have successfully enabled the Remote Desktop.
You may disable the Remote Desktop using Powershell, type the following command, and press Enter.
Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Terminal Server' -name "fDenyTSConnections" -value 0
Can I Setup An RDP server On Any Windows Version?
No, you can only set up an RDP server on Windows Enterprise and Pro versions. However, you can access an RDP client across all the versions of Windows. If you are looking for alternatives, there are many free software such as FreeRDP, NoMachine which can help you set up an RDP server for your project.
Is Setting Up A Remote Desktop Protocol Server On My Computer Safe?
Setting up an RDP server on your computer gives full access to anyone you share the credentials with. Microsoft well protects the RDP feature, so you don’t have to worry about any information leak. You have to make sure that anyone who has the credentials to your RDP server is trusted and won’t do any harm to keep your computer safe.
In this article, we tried to make it informative as we discussed some important terms like Remote Access and Remote Desktop Protocol and the best four ways to enable your Remote Desktop. There are several free or paid remote access software other than the Remote Desktop Connection app provided by Microsoft which can be used to remotely control one PC from another.
I hope the post was easy to follow, and you are not able to enable or disable the Redmote Desktop Connection to Windows PC.
how can a disable a tech company who recently had remote access to my computer?
If they used an application, you can block that app