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Win 7/8

I can't establish an RDC connection into certain PC's on my physical local network. I checked all the typical issues present in about 40-50 Super User, Stack Overflow, Server fault and Microsoft forums posts: the PC is up and running, the firewall is open [TCP 3389], I can ping the PC, I can even RDC out of the PC. Some forums suggest some exotic solutions based on the theory that there's a corruption in the OS, etc. but the comparisons below are on 2 identical PC's running Win 8 that I do not believe are corrupted. I also have this on a newly configured VM which I sincerely doubt has an OS corruption.

So I finally noticed that on a PC I can't RDC into, the System Properties > Remote tab is different (Control Panel > System > Remote Settings). I believe this to be my problem and I haven't found a post that satisfactorily explains it.

This is the System Properties > Remote tab on PC's that I can RDC into:

enter image description here

This is the System Properties > Remote tab on PC's that I can't RDC into:

enter image description here

The difference between the two dialogues is easy to see when comparing; the Remote Desktop dialogue is not present in the second case. As easy as this is to see here, for me it wasn't so clear until I was comparing PC screens side by side. Sometimes you don't know what is missing when it's not there.

The only difference I immediately see between the two PC's is the PC with the Remote Desktop dialogue is registered in ADDS. Before I add the other PC to ADDS I thought it would be useful to find out if that's the real issue the dialogue is not present. Or, is there some other setting that turns on that Remote Desktop dialogue?

This suggests that I am missing a key concept with RDC. Based on the number of posts I see on RDC, this may also be many other people's issue.

Alan
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  • By any chance, is the second machine Windows 8 (core) versus Windows 8 Pro or Enterprise? – Jim G. Nov 04 '15 at 18:55
  • Windows 8 "Core" supports RDP as a client only, not as a host. – joeqwerty Nov 04 '15 at 18:57
  • No, these are just normal PC's. Some PC's I can RDC into are Win 7, some Win 8.1, some 2012 R2. One is a physical 2012 R2, the other servers are all virtual (none with the core setup). In each case, the PC's listed in ADDS have the Remote Desktop dialogue. The new VM I just created was from the basic Win 8 with updates ISO. Again, the issue is the presence of the Remote Desktop dialogue, and I don't understand what enables it. – Alan Nov 04 '15 at 18:59
  • What I'm saying is that if this is not Windows 8 Pro or Enterprise then it doesn't support RDP as a host, so that would explain what you're seeing. What is the Edition of Windows 8 on this computer? – joeqwerty Nov 04 '15 at 19:01
  • Additionally, if it's not Pro or Enterprise then it's called/considered "Core". – joeqwerty Nov 04 '15 at 19:02
  • @joeqwerty and Jim G. Well, you can take a horse to water, but you really have to throw him in to get him to drink... It is the Pro issue. Even though I understand you need Pro, I didn't realize I wasn't seeing Pro in the main System panel. Boy do I feel dumb. Thanks for the help. Also, thanks for the side lesson about core versus Pro/Enterprise. – Alan Nov 04 '15 at 19:09
  • No worries. Glad to help. – joeqwerty Nov 04 '15 at 19:10

2 Answers2

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As joeqwerty and I suggest, Windows 8 core (the basic edition) doesn't support hosting RDP sessions, it can only be a client.

Jim G.
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  • So I replaced the OS and things work just fine - I used Enterprise as it was a part of my subscription. Thx again for your patience as it was a silly mistake. But hopefully by having those panels in my original post others who make the same mistake will find a quicker solution than I did. – Alan Nov 04 '15 at 22:04
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Try this out and let me know if it works. Bring up Search and type Allow Remote Access to your Computer into the Search box. Click on the result from the Control Panel. In the System Properties dialogue box, in the Remote tab, make sure the Allow remote connections to this computer button is selected.

This should enable the Remote Desktop dialog in System Properties.

Uwe Keim
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Antonio
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