Networking / Beginners

Configuring Remote Desktop Options

Clicking on Options before starting a Remote Desktop session expands the Remote Desktop Connection, providing the opportunity to configure session settings. Remote Desktop settings are organized into the following five property sheets:

General. Displays logon settings and allows current settings to be saved for future use
Display. Provides the ability to configure the screen resolution and color settings
Local Resources. Provides the ability to specify whether audio played on the remote computer is heard on the local computer, how keyboard combination keystrokes are interpreted, and to which local devices the remote computer is allowed to connect
Programs. Allows for the specification of an application or script that is to be run when the Remote Desktop connection is established
Experience. Allows the specification of connection speed and the selection of desktop features that can affect the performance of the Remote Desktop session

Configuring General Remote Desktop Settings

By default, Remote Desktop uses the user's current username and domain when establishing a Remote Desktop connection. By expanding the Remote Desktop Connection dialog and selecting the General property sheet, users can specify different login information.

Users can also save the currently configured Remote Desktop settings by clicking on Save As and specifying a name for the Remote Desktop configuration file. Remote Desktop settings are stored in .rdp files located in each user's My Documents\Remote Desktops folder.

Users can then click on Open and select a saved .rdp configuration file to establish a Remote Desktop session using its settings.

Note Users can also use saved Remote Desktop configuration settings to open new Remote Desktop sessions by opening the Remote Desktop folder located in their My Documents folder and double-clicking on an .rdp file.

Configuring Remote Desktop Display Settings

The Display Property sheet on the Remote Desktop Connection dialog allows the user to specify the initial size of the Remote Desktop dialog on their computer. This setting is configured by dragging the slider bar in the Remote desktop size section to the left or right.

In addition, the Colors section on the Display property sheet allows the user to specify the number of colors to be displayed during a Remote Desktop session.

The Display the connection bar when in full screen mode option, located at the bottom of the Display property sheet, allows the user to control whether the small control bar is displayed at the top of the screen when Remote Desktop is run in full screen mode. This bar provides controls for resizing and closing the Remote Desktop.

Configuring Device Connections

The Local Resources property sheet on the Remote Desktop Connection dialog, is divided into three sections. The Remote computer sound section allows the user to determine whether sounds played on the remote computer can be heard on the local computer.

The Keyboard section determines the conditions under which the user can use keyboard key combinations to control the desktop on the remote computer. The default is to allow keystroke combinations on the remote computer only when Remote Desktop is being run in full screen mode.

The Local devices section controls which of the following resources the remote computer will automatically connect to:

Disk drives
Printers
Serial ports

By allowing the remote computer to connect to the local computer's devices, the user is able to use applications on the remote computer. In addition, the user can access files on the local computer, submit print jobs to the local computer's printer, and communicate with devices connected to the local computer's serial ports.

Running a Program or Scripts During Remote Desktop Startup

The Programs property sheet on the Remote Desktop Connection dialog, allows the user to schedule the automatic execution of an application or script whenever a Remote Desktop connection is made.

Adjusting Remote Desktop to Function with Limited Bandwidth

The Experience property sheet on the Remote Desktop Connection dialog, provides access to settings that affect the amount of data that must be exchanged during a Remote Desktop session. It allows the user to tell Remote Desktop how fast the connection will be. This allows Remote Desktop to automatically configure the following settings based on the speed of the connection.

Desktop background
Show contents of windows while dragging
Menu and window animation
Themes
Bitmap caching

The user can change the settings selected by Remote Desktop. Selecting additional features provides a richer experience at the cost of performance. Conversely, clearing selected settings may improve response time for the connection and improve its overall performance. Modification of these settings can be very beneficial, especially when the user needs to use Remote Desktop over a slow connection.