Remote Desktop

Remote Desktop is a remote access technology developed by Microsoft for use in Microsoft Windows operating systems.

It allows a user to remotely log into a networked computer running the terminal services server. Remote Desktop presents the desktop interface (or application GUI) of the remote system, as if it were accessed locally. In addition to regular username/password for authorizing for the remote session, it also supports using smart cards for authorization.

Overview
With version 6.0, if the Desktop Experience component is plugged into the remote server, remote application user interface elements (e.g., application windows borders, Maximize, Minimize, and Close buttons etc.) will take on the same appearance of local applications. In this scenario, the remote applications will use the Aero theme if the user connects to the server from a Windows Vista computer that has Aero set as the system theme. It also allows the resolution of a remote session to be set independently of the settings at the remote computer.

Later versions of the protocol also support rendering the UI in full 32-bit color, as well as resource redirection for printers, COM ports, disk drives, mice and keyboards. With resource redirection, remote applications can use the resources of the local computer. Audio is also redirected, so that any sounds generated by a remote application are played back at the client system. Moreover, a remote session can also span multiple monitors at the client system, independent of the multi-monitor settings at the server.

Remote Desktop prioritizes UI data as well as keyboard and mouse inputs, as opposed to print jobs or file transfers. so as to make the applications more responsive. It redirects plug and play devices such as cameras, portable music players, and scanners, so that input from these devices can be used by the remote applications as well. Remote Desktop can also be used to connect to computers which are exposed via the Windows Home Server RDP Gateway over the Internet.

Microsoft produces the client also for Windows Mobile and Windows RT, and other non-Windows platforms like macOS, Android and iOS.