How to Connect to a PC on Windows 10 Using Remote Desktop: Step-by-Step Guide
Sometimes, while sitting at home, we want to connect to our company’s system and access some files on the company’s computer, so how can we do this?
Sometimes it also happens that we are in another city and suddenly we need the files on our computer located in the company.
And on the other hand, we cannot trust our colleague and ask him to email us the files or on They to make changes.
If you think a little, you can find many reasons to connect to a computer that is far away from us.
There are many ways to access remote computers, some easy and some more complicated. Some of these methods are done by downloadable software.
For example, the method of using Team Viewer is one of these solutions.
Others are done by tools available in Windows itself, and some are done through solutions based on Internet browsers.
One of the methods offered by Windows 10 is Remote Desktop.
In this article, we want to explain how to use the Remote Desktop app to connect to a PC on Windows 10.
Using the Remote Desktop Connection program, you can control another computer that is connected to the same modem as your computer.
You can also control a computer in a remote place that is connected to any internet.
Enable remote connections on Windows 10
In the local network, you only need to enable the remote connections option on your computer. To do this, you can go to the settings program or control panel and allow it.
Settings app
To activate the remote desktop feature, you can through the settings, use these steps:
1.Go to the Settings.
2. Select the System option .
3.Select Remote Desktop option .
4.Turn on the Enable Remote Desktop toggle switch.
5. Select the Confirm button.
After you complete the steps, remote connections will be allowed on the device. Windows 10 can add the necessary rules to Microsoft Defender’s internal firewall.
But if you have a third-party firewall, you may need to configure the rules manually.
Control Panel
To connect remotely in Windows 10, you can follow the steps below:
1. Go to the Control Panel.
2. Select System and Security.
3. Select the Allow remote access option, Under the System section.
4. Select the Remote tab.
5. Check the Allow remote connections to this computer option, Under the Remote Desktop section.
6. Check the Allow connections only from computers running Remote Desktop with Network Level Authentication option.
7. Select the OK button.
8. Press the Apply button.
9. Select the OK button.
If you want to activate your desktop configuration using the internet connection, you can follow the steps below.
But if you need to connect to another device on the local network, you can enable remote connection from the desktop through the following steps.
Enable remote connections on router
In order to be able to make a remote connection through the Internet, you need to configure the router so that a remote connection can be established for you.
Configure static IP address on Windows 10
If you want to use a remote desktop for a long time, you may need to configure a static IP.
Address to avoid reconfiguring port forwarding on the router when the device changes network configuration.
Control Panel
To be able to configure a permanent network, you can use the following steps:
1.Go to the Control Panel.
2.Select Network and Internet.
3.Press Network and Sharing Center.
4. Option from the left navigation pane, select the Change adapter settings.
5. Right-click the active network adapter and click on the Properties option.
6. Click on the Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) option.
7. Select the Properties button.
8. Select the General tab.
9. Click on the Use the following IP address option.
10. In order to avoid address interference, you can specify and use a local IP address outside the local DHCP range.
11. Set a subnet mask like 255.255.255.0 for your network.
Note: The system usually fills this information from you as an IP address.
12. Specify the gateway address, which must be the address of the router.
13. Go to the section on Use the following DNS server addresses.
14. Click in Preferred DNS server.
15. Specify the IP address of your DNS server, which in most cases is also the address of the router .for example, 10.1.4.1
16. Select the OK button.
17. Select the Close button.
After you complete the steps, the network configuration will be applied, and the IP settings will not be changed.
Identify network public IP address
You need the public IP address of the remote network to be able to connect to the remote device.
To be able to determine the IP address assigned by the Internet Service Provider (ISP), you can use the following steps for this:
1.Go to the web browser.
2.Visit Google.com or Bing.com.
3.Search for What’s my IP.
4. Confirm the public IP address.
Configure port forwarding
You need to forward the TCP port 3389 on the router to allow you to connect remotely over the Internet to a computer on the local network.
The router interface depends on the manufacturer and can be different. But you can use these steps as a reference to configure your router.
To know more details, you can check the manufacturer’s support website.
To be able to forward a port on your router, you can use the following steps:
1.Go to the Start.
2. Search for Command Prompt.
3. Select the top result to open the app.
4. Type the following command to check the current TCP/IP configuration.
5. Hit Enter: ipconfig.
6. Under the IPv4 Address field, confirm the device address.
7. Under the Default Gateway field, confirm the device gateway addres.
8. Open your preferred browser.
9. Type the IP address of the router (default gateway) in the address bar.
10. Hit Enter.
11. You can enter the router through the correct password and username.
12. Go to the Port Forwarding settings page.
13. Confirm that the Port Forwarding service is enabled
14. Select (in this case) the Add profile button, under the port forwarding list.
15. You can create a port forward with the required information.
- Protocol: TCP.
- External Port: 3389.
- Internal Port: 3389.
16. Internal IP Address: Enter the IP address of the computer you need to connect to.
17. Select the OK button.
After you have done the steps, the port on the router will be opened, and it will be possible to remotely connect to that particular device through the Internet, and you can easily use it.
How to establish remote desktop connection on Windows 10
After you set up your router and computer, you can start a remote connection using the Remote Desktop program in Windows 10.
Install Remote Desktop app
You must already have the Remote Desktop program on your Windows 10 system, but if you don’t have it on your computer, you can install it through the Microsoft Store.
To install the remote desktop program, you can use the following steps and install it easily on your computer.
1.Go to the Microsoft Remote Desktop app page (opens in new tab).
2. Select the Get or Install button.
3. Select the Open Microsoft Store button.
4. Select the Get or Install button.
After completing the steps, you must open the program from the Start menu or the Microsoft Store.
Start remote desktop connection
To be able to connect to a remote computer, you can follow the steps below:
1.Go to the Remote Desktop app.
2.Select the + Add button in the top right.
3.Select the PCs option.
4. Specify the TCP/IP address of the remote computer, under the PC name section.
Note: If the device is in a private network, you must enter the local IP address.
If the device is on a remote network via the Internet, you must enter the public IP address.
5. Select the + (plus) button in the top right, under the User account section.
6. You must confirm the account information before you can log in to the remote computer:
If you are using a Microsoft account for the remote device, you must enter your Microsoft account information to sign in.
If the device uses a local account, you must enter the local password and username to log in.
7. Specify the account settings’ name, under the Display name section.
8. Select the Save button.
9. Specify the connection’s, under the Display name section.
10. Select the Show more option.
11. Click on additional settings as necessary.
12. Select the Save button.
13. Select the connection to start a remote session, under the Saved Desktops section.
14.Check the Don’t ask about this certificate again option. 15.Select the Connect button.
After completing the steps mentioned above, if you have done all the steps correctly, the remote connection will be connected without any problems.
If you want to disconnect, you can click the three-dot menu button from the top to the middle and click the disconnect button, or you can close the window to disconnect.
Change app and connection settings
Using the feature that Windows 10 offers called Remote Desktop, you can change various settings in the system or customize additional configuration options.
Change general settings
To change the general settings in the remote desktop program, you can follow the steps below:
1. Go to the Remote Desktop app.
2. Select the Settings button in the top right.
3. Click the user account from the list.
4. Select the Edit (pen) button to adjust the settings.
5. Select the Save button.
It is also possible to add additional user accounts in advance.
To do this, you need to use the ++ button, which you can use as another user or connect to other devices.
Change session settings
To change the remote desktop settings, you can use the following steps:
1.Go to the Remote Desktop app.
2. Select the Settings button in the top right.
3. In the keyboard, you can turn on or off the Start connections.
4. You can turn the connection method turn on or off in a new window toggle switch.
5. You can use the drop-down menu when resizing the program to select a remote desktop session or resize the program.
Options available include:
- Stretch the content, preserving aspect ratio
- Stretch the content.
- Show scroll bars.
6. To be able to choose whether shortcuts such as (Ctrl + C and Ctrl + V) will only work remotely through the desktop or locally, you must go to the drop-down menu (use the keyboard command with a), and then the available options are:
- My local PC only.
- My remote session when it’s in full screen (recommended).
- My remote session when it’s in use.
7. To prevent screen timing, you can turn on the toggle switch.
Change connection settings
To be able to edit remote connection settings, you can use the following steps:
1.Go to the Remote Desktop app.
2.Select the menu (three-dotted) button in the connection
3.Click the Edit option.
4.Change the device name, settings as needed and account.
5. Select the menu (three-dotted) button in the connection 6.Choose the Remove option to delete it.
7.Select the menu (three-dotted) button in the connection.
8.Choose the Pin to Start option to quickly access the remote computer from the Start menu.
After you complete the steps, the settings will be saved and saved automatically.
How to troubleshoot remote desktop connection on Windows 10
Usually, there is no problem connecting with the Remote Desktop program, but if you have problems connecting to another device, you should troubleshoot it.
Confirm firewall settings
Usually, there is no problem connecting with the Remote Desktop program, but if you have problems connecting to another device, you should troubleshoot it.
Usually, Windows 10 automatically opens the required firewalls when configuring Remote Desktop, but sometimes it doesn’t.
If you tried to connect but, the connection was unsuccessful, you can check the firewall to make sure that the remote desktop service is allowed.
To enable remote connections through the firewall, you can follow the steps below:
1.Go to the Windows Security app.
2.Select Firewall & network protection.
3.Select the Allow an app through firewall option.
4.Select the Change settings button.
5.Check the Remote Desktop option.
6. Check the options for Private and Public.
7. Select the OK button.
If you have a third-party antivirus or firewall on your system, it may ask you to disable such security programs so that it can verify that you are connected.
To do this you may need to read and check the software support website for more details.
Unblock remote connection port
If you checked and the settings were correct, but you could not connect, it is possible that the Internet provider blocked the remote desktop port for some reason.
To solve this problem, you must contact the ISP directly.
Use IP address, not the PC name
When you want to use Remo Desktop, it is better to use the IP address instead of the computer name because you may have problems.
Also, when you want to install a new computer, you must make sure that you have entered the correct IP address.
Confirm remote desktop service
To be able to determine whether the remote desktop service can be run on your device or not, you can use the steps mentioned below:
1.Go to the Start.
2.Search for Services.
3.Select the top result to open the app.
4.Select the Remote Desktop Service.
5.Check that the Status column reads Running.
6. If it’s not running, right-click the service.
7. Click the Start option.
After you complete the steps, you can create a remote session in Windows 10.
Switch to Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4
Windows 10 can use both networking stacks,
version 6 (IPv6) and IP version 4 (IPv4).
Windows 10 is recognized as dual-stack, but it may choose version 6 to connect, which causes problems with the Remote Desktop Protocol.
To be able to set IPv4 as the default stack in Windows 10, you can do the following steps:
1.Go to the Control Panel.
2.Select Network and Internet.
3.Select Network and Sharing Center.
4.From the left navigation pane, select the Change adapter settings option.
5.Right-click the active adapter.
6. Click the Properties option.
7. Clear the Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6) option.
8.Select the OK button.
9.Restart the computer.
After you have completed the steps, you should be able to connect using a remote connection.
Use local account instead of Microsoft account
If you want to connect but the authentication fails and you are also using a user account, there is probably an authentication problem.
To solve this problem, you can create a local account and use it for remote access.
To create a local account in Windows 10, you can use the following steps:
1.Go to the Settings.
2.Select the Accounts.
3.Press Family & other users.
4. Select the Add someone else to this PC option, under the Other users section.
5.Select the I don’t have this person’s sign-in information option.
6. Select the Add a user without a Microsoft account option.
7. Confirm the username.
8. Create a strong password.
9.Complete the security questions to allow password reset from the Sign-in screen.
10.Select the Next button.
11.Click the newly created account.
12.Select the Change account type button.
13.Choose the Administrator option.
14.Select the OK button.
After you complete the steps, you can use your local account information instead of your Microsoft account to connect remotely.
Last Words
In this article, we have explained how you can work with the remote desktop feature. By doing the above steps, you can easily communicate remotely.
What other ways do you know to use Remote Desktop in Windows 10?
Share your thoughts and experiences with us.
