rdesktop

Open-source Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) client

TLDR

Connect to a remote computer

$ rdesktop -u [username] -p [password] [host:3389]

Connect in fullscreen mode

$ rdesktop -u [username] -p [password] -f [host]

Use a custom resolution

$ rdesktop -u [username] -p [password] -g [1920]x[1080] [host]

Connect with a domain account

$ rdesktop -u [username] -p [password] -d [domain] [host]

Use 16-bit color for faster performance with compression

$ rdesktop -u [username] -a 16 -z [host]

Redirect clipboard and sound

$ rdesktop -u [username] -r clipboard:PRIMARYCLIPBOARD -r sound:local [host]

SYNOPSIS

rdesktop [-u user] [-p pass] [-d domain] [-f] [-g WxH] [-a bpp] host[:port]

rdesktop is an open-source Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) client for connecting to Windows machines. It allows Linux users to access Windows desktops and applications remotely.The tool supports various RDP features including clipboard sharing, sound redirection, and disk/printer mapping.

PARAMETERS

-u username

Username for authentication.

-p password

Password (use `-` to prompt interactively).

-d domain

Windows domain name.

-f

Fullscreen mode (Ctrl+Alt+Enter to toggle).

-g WxH

Desktop geometry (e.g., 1920x1080).

-a bpp

Color depth (8, 15, 16, 24, 32).

-k layout

Keyboard layout.

-r device

Device redirection (clipboard, sound, disk, printer).

-z

Enable compression of the RDP datastream.

-x experience

Bandwidth performance: b[roadband], m[odem], or l[an].

-0

Attach to the console session of the server.

-T title

Set the window title.

INSTALL

sudo apt install rdesktop

sudo dnf install rdesktop

sudo pacman -S rdesktop

sudo apk add rdesktop

sudo zypper install rdesktop

nix profile install nixpkgs#rdesktop

CAVEATS

Older tool, consider xfreerdp for newer RDP versions. Password on command line is insecure. Some modern RDP features unsupported. Network Level Authentication may require extra configuration.

HISTORY

rdesktop was one of the first open-source RDP clients, created to allow Linux users to connect to Windows Terminal Services. It reverse-engineered the RDP protocol before Microsoft published specifications.