How Can I Create RDP Shortcuts with Stored Credentials for Hot Desking?
Asked by
TechieGiraffe42
Good morning everyone! I'm looking for some help on managing RDP shortcuts with stored credentials in our company. We have over 300 locations, each with multiple staff members using their own Windows accounts. They use RDP shortcuts to access our business systems daily. Currently, the process involves users logging into Windows, creating a shortcut on their desktops, and manually entering their credentials in Credential Manager.
The challenge arises when users occasionally hot desk on different computers. We basically have to go through the setup process again from scratch for each user. I want to know if there's a way to include stored credentials directly within the RDP file itself. I suspect that third-party solutions might not be secure enough, and I've spent quite some time searching for an answer but haven't found a solid solution yet. Any insights would be appreciated!
Answers
If your Active Directory is linked across all sites, you might just need pass-through authentication. This way, logged-in users can automatically authenticate to RDP sessions without additional logins. I've set it up at a few locations myself!
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Using RDCMan can work well because it stores credentials on the computer after set up, and it encrypts them too. I transferred everything to a new machine once and had to redo credentials, which was a hassle.
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RDP shortcuts are essentially text files. You can open them in Notepad to see the contents. It might be worth your while to look into what can be modified there.
CuriousCoder03: What line would I need to add? I’ve tried editing the file but it hasn’t worked.
TextFileExplorer: I opened my RDP shortcut in Notepad, and it looks exactly like the RDP file contents, so I’m confused on how to proceed.
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You can save normal connection settings as a shortcut, but I'd really hesitate to implement this for security reasons. It's a tricky situation!
KeyboardWhiz88: How would I go about saving those settings in the shortcut?
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I might consider saving the username, but I'd definitely advise against saving the password for security reasons. You can input credentials via mstsc.exe and save them, which is safer.
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LookingForAnswers92: Do you have any resources or guides on how to set this up?