Windows Server 2022 Remote Desktop not working

By default in Windows Server 2019 remote desktop is disabled. This post will cover how to turn on and enable Remote Desktop Protocol [RDP] in Windows Server 2019, using either PowerShell or the GUI.

Note: In Windows Server 2019 Essentials edition, remote desktop is already enabled by default so you will not need to manually do this.

Remote desktop can be enabled through the graphical user interface [GUI] with the following easy steps.

Allowing Remote Desktop With The GUI

1. Open Server Manager. This can be found by opening the start menu, as shown below.
   

   If Server Manager does not show here, simply type “Server Manager” into the start menu to search for it. By default Server Manager will open when you log in to the GUI, otherwise you can select it from the task bar.

2. Within the Server Manager window, select Local Server from the left hand side. You may need to wait a little for it to detect the current state of your system. You should see that Remote Desktop is listed as Disabled as shown below.

3. Click on the Disabled text which will open the System Properties window in the Remote tab.
4. From the System Properties window, select “Allow remote connections to this Computer” as shown below.

   Tip: You can also open the System Properties window shown above by entering “SystemPropertiesRemote” into a Command Prompt or PowerShell terminal.

5. Once you select “Allow remote connections to this computer” the below warning message will appear, advising that this will create the required firewall rules in Windows firewall to allow remote desktop traffic in from any source address, select OK to proceed.

6. At this point you can optionally click the “Select Users…” button to define specific users or groups that have permission to connect via remote desktop. Select the OK button to close out of the System Properties window and enable remote desktop.
7. Back in Server Manager, Remote Desktop may still show as Disabled until you refresh the view. After clicking the refresh button as highlighted below [or pressing F5 on the keyboard], the status should update to Enabled.

That’s it, remote desktop should now be ready to use!

Allowing Remote Desktop With PowerShell

While there isn’t currently an explicit PowerShell cmdlet used for enabling remote desktop, we can use the Set-ItemPropery cmdlet to modify the registry value that enables or disables Remote Desktop:

Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Terminal Server' -name "fDenyTSConnections" -value 0

Once complete we can use the ‘Enable-NetFirewallRule’ to configure Windows Firewall to allow remote desktop connections in:

Enable-NetFirewallRule -DisplayGroup "Remote Desktop"

Remote Desktop should now be accessible in Windows Server 2019.

By default this will allow all connections in, the same as if we had just enabled it using the GUI steps shown above. It is highly recommended that you configure more specific firewall rules where possible to only allow inbound traffic from known hosts.

Summary

By default Windows Server 2019 sets external remote desktop access to disabled as a security measure, we can easily optionally enable it from within the server console or via PowerShell to allow everyone or a specific set of users or groups.

Related

by Milan Stanojevic

Windows & Software Expert

Milan has been enthusiastic about PCs ever since his childhood days, and this led him to take interest in all PC-related technologies. Before joining WindowsReport, he worked as a front-end web developer. Read more

Updated: Apr 14, 2021

• Remote Desktop is an incredibly useful feature, and in this guide we'll show you how to enable Remote Desktop on Windows Server 2019.
• For best results, we suggest using a reliable and encrypted remote control software.
• The fastest way to enable Remote Desktop on Windows Server is from the Server Manager GUI.
• To enable Remote Desktop on Windows Server 2019 from command line, you just need to use Windows PowerShell.

Remote Desktop Connection is basically a protocol that helps you to connect to another computer that is available at a remote location. It seems like some users are experiencing problems while connecting to Remote Desktop.

One of the users explained the issue on Windows forums:

I’ve been trying to connect to my Windows Server 2016 system through Remote Desktop, and it has just quit working, displaying this error message. Any ideas? Thanks!

Many people may not know the fact that the Remote Desktop is disabled by default in Windows Server. Therefore, in this article, we will explore some of the methods that you can use to enable Remote Desktop.

How do I enable Remote Desktop in Windows Server 2019?

1. Enable Remote Desktop using PowerShell

1. Navigate to the Start menu and search for Windows PowerShell. Right-click Windows PowerShell and select Run as Administrator.
   
2. Run the following command in PowerShell:
   Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:SystemCurrentControlSetControlTerminal Server' -name "fDenyTSConnections" -value 0
3. By default, remote desktop connections are blocked by the Windows Firewall. Execute the following command to configure the firewall to allow remote desktop connections.
   Enable-NetFirewallRule -DisplayGroup "Remote Desktop"

If due to some reason you are experiencing any problems, you can use the Server Manager GUI to enable Remote Desktop connections.

2. Enable Remote Desktop using Server Manager GUI

1. First, you need to login to the server as a local administrator.
2. Navigate to the start menu and search for Server Manager. Click Server Manager from the list of search results to open it.
3. Once the Server Manager window opens, navigate to the left-hand side and click Local Server. The Remote Desktop is disabled by default. Click on the Disable button in front of Remote Desktop.
4. Properties setting window will now open on your screen. Click Allow remote connections to this Computer.
5. You will see the Remote Desktop firewall exception warning and click the Select Users button to add allowed users.
6. Now add the Username and hit the Check names button. Finally, click OK to save the changes.
7. You may need to refresh the view to change the status of Remote Desktop to Enabled.

4. Enable Remote Desktop using Command Prompt

1. Open Command Prompt from the Start Menu.
   
2. Once the window opens on your screen, type SystemPropertiesRemote. Press the Enter button to execute the command.
3. You will now see a System Properties windows on your screen.
4. Click the Remote tab and select the checkbox available under Remote Assistance.
   

If any of the solutions were not helpful for this issue, you can use Mikogo for secure remote desktop services. At the same time, you can choose from a dedicated list of the best solutions in terms of remote desktop control. 

In this article, we have listed some quick methods that you can use to enable Remote Desktop Connections in Windows Server.

Do let us know in the comments section below if this guide helped you to enable RDC.

Frequently Asked Questions

This article covers:Topics:

• Remote Desktop Connection
• windows server

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