Despite being a Microsoft-centric remote access solution, remote desktop clients for macOS, Android, and iOS devices are available at the Microsoft store. RDS is primarily targeted at business users as evidenced by its lack of support to connect with machines running Windows 7 Starter or Home, Windows 8 Home, Windows 8.1 Home, or Windows 10 Home editions. In many cases, the terms RDS and terminal server are used interchangeably. As the product evolved to RDS from the terminal server, more functionality was built into the product. The remote capabilities that eventually became RDS were initially called Terminal Services in Windows Server 2008 and prior versions of the OS. It combines several features that enable users to access graphical desktops and Windows applications remotely. Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is a set of components of the Windows operating system that serves a distinct purpose. With a remote desktop connection provided by RDS, end users can access Windows desktops down the hall or on the other side of the globe from their familiar personal computer.

Many organizations make use of remote desktop services to address the needs of their distributed workforces. Remote desktop services are incorporated into the Microsoft Windows operating system, making them available to a large user community. We will discuss the various components that make up Microsoft RDS and how RDS can be used to implement a remote desktop session or access cloud-based applications. In this article, we will take a detailed look at Microsoft Remote Desktop Services (RDS).

Windows terminal services