Create a Remote Desktop shortcut on your PC

There are many situations where it is helpful to be able to access a remote desktop or virtual server from your desktop or laptop PC. It can allow you to access or run software that would be difficult to install on your own computer, such as Macromedia Contribute or Jenzabar. It can also allow you to work in a consistent environment from any location, even if you are connecting from a home computer and need to access work resources such as shared network drives. In this guide, we will walk through the process of creating a Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) shortcut on your Windows desktop, which will allow you to connect to an on-campus computer or server remotely.

Some prerequisites: If you are off-campus, you will need the VPN client installed and connected in order for RDP to be able to access servers or computers that are running on our Gordon campus network. Click here for full instructions if you do not have a VPN client installed on your computer. Your computer also needs to be running Windows 10 Professional, Education, or Enterprise. Windows 10 Home does not include a Remote Desktop client.

-To create a shortcut to another computer or remote server on your computer, first enter the words remote desktop in the "Type here to search" bar at the bottom of your computer screen

-Click the search result for Remote Desktop Connection

-In the "Computer:" field, enter the computer's name (e.g., remotepc)

-Click Show Options

Optional: You can click through the various tabs to edit the connection options; one particularly handy option is to check "Use all my monitors for the remote session" (found on the Display tab), which allows you to spread the remote session between multiple monitors, if you have more than one monitor connected to your computer.

-On the General tab, click Save As...

-A "Save As" window will open; navigate to your computer's Desktop, then enter a name for this shortcut that will be most helpful for you (e.g., Shortcut to REMOTEPC if you are creating a Remote Desktop shortcut to the remotepc server) and click Save

-You will now have a shortcut on your desktop that you can double-click whenever you would like to use the desired remote computer/server; remember, you must be connected to an active VPN connection in order for this shortcut to work