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Remote Desktop Clients – April 2017 Update
Published Sep 08 2018 10:10 AM 6,899 Views
First published on CloudBlogs on May 17, 2017
This post is authored by David Belanger, Senior Program Manager and Eva Seydl, Program Manager. Here are the highlights of the latest updates to the Remote Desktop clients. You can download the apps from their respective stores on these platforms:
Windows 10 Android iOS macOS macOS Beta
You can find a comparison of different capabilities between the different clients on the RDS Doc site .

New functionality in the Windows 10 Universal app

We’ve added the following new features as part of the April release available now from the Store.

Leverage your existing RDP files

If you have built a collection of RDP files over time, you can now automatically launch them with the Windows 10 Universal app by changing the file type association for .rdp files.

Control access to local resources

For additional security when connecting to a remote system, you can configure which resources are available in the session from the advanced options for each connection:
  • Clipboard – copy/paste for text
  • Where audio should be heard – local, remote or no audio
  • [New!] In-session microphone from client device

Manage grouped desktops more easily

To make it easier to manage the desktops you’ve assigned to different groups, we’ve added the ability to move desktops between groups through drag and drop.

Use a non-English keyboard

The app will now use your local keyboard layout when initiating a new connection to a remote system instead of defaulting to the English keyboard. This provides a more consistent experience between your local and remote computers.

Copy and paste files using the pasteboard on macOS

Users on macOS who have updated to our latest release can leverage the pasteboard (or “clipboard” as we call it on Windows) to copy files from and into a remote desktop session. You can use keyboard shortcuts to move documents, pictures, or any other data type to the destination where you need them. The size of files you can copy is limited to 2 GB by the RDP protocol.

Updates to our Android application

Better keyboard experience

In mid-April we shipped an update to the keyboard that improves the in-session experience: Users with a non-English locale for their keyboard can now use keyboard shortcuts, which weren't available before. The keyboard sync should now work better than before; but, the keyboard sync only occurs when you launch a session. . To match the keyboard language after you have connected to your PC change it manually in the session or sign out from Windows and sign in again. Finally, we’ve added support for scancode - tools that require scancode input (like VM connect or VMWare vSphere) no receive input with the latest version of our app.

Improvements on Chrome OS

In our latest app version (8.1.53) we have been working on fixing issues identified by users. We’ve optimized switching out off and to a full screen session.  To switch between these modes use the full screen button (F4). Chromebooks that support Android applications will leverage these improvements. Our app is available on Chromebook devices that support Google Play store.

How to provide feature suggestions?

To provide feedback on the Windows 10 app, open the Feedback Hub and submit feedback for the Apps and Games category and the Remote Desktop subcategory. To provide feedback for the apps on other platforms, post your idea in UserVoice after selecting the appropriate forum on the right side.

How to get help?

You can also post your issues on our TechNet forum to get help from the RDS community.
Version history
Last update:
‎Sep 08 2018 10:10 AM