Connecting a Windows Server by Remote Desktop (RDP)

You can easily connect to Windows servers created from the VNG Cloud dashboard using Remote Desktop. To do this, you need to download RDP and follow our instructions below. RDP is available on most versions of Windows and is also available for Mac OS.

To learn how to connect to a Linux instance, please refer to the guide "Connecting to a Linux server by SSH client" for instructions on connecting to your server.


Prerequisites

To connect to a Windows server:

  • Install RDP:

    • [Windows] By default, Windows will include the RDP Client. To verify, type mstsc at the Command Prompt window. If your computer doesn't recognize this command, visit the Windows homepage and search for the download link for the Microsoft Remote Desktop application.

    • [Mac OS X] Download the Microsoft Remote Desktop app from the Mac App Store.

    • [Linux] Use Remmina

  • The server must be running:

    • After the server is successfully initialized, its information will appear on the server list page of the dashboard, and the server status will be Active.

  • Inbound rule of the security group created:

    • Ensure that the security group associated with your instance allows RDP traffic (port 3389) from your IP address. The default security group does not allow RDP traffic by default. For more information, see Allow inbound traffic for your Windows instances.

  • The server's network interface needs to have a public IP address.

  • Connection information to the server: To find the connection information for the server, please check the registered email.

    Note: This information is secure and only sent to the registered email. VNG Cloud cannot intervene to recover server login information (username/password/key) in any situation.


Connecting using RDP Client on Windows

  1. Access the server management page on our dashboard at https://hcm-3.console.vngcloud.vn/vserver/v-server/cloud-server

  2. Select the server you want to connect to, then select Actions - Connect.

  3. On the Connect to server page, select the RDP tab (Windows).

  4. Select Download RDP file. Your browser will prompt you to open or save the RDP file. Once you have completed downloading the file, select Done to return to the server page:

    • If you opened the RDP file, you will see the Remote Desktop Connection dialog box.

    • If you saved the RDP file, navigate to your download folder and open the RDP file to display the dialog box.

  5. You may receive a warning that the publisher of the remote connection is not identified. Select Connect to continue connecting to your server.

  6. The administrator account is selected by default. You need to copy and paste the password you saved earlier into the login pop-up (This information is taken from the email above), where you enter InstanceLogin into Username, and InstancePassword into Password.

  7. Press OK. Due to the nature of self-signed certificates, you may receive a warning that the security certificate cannot be authenticated. Use the following steps to verify the identity of the remote computer, or simply select Yes (Windows) or Continue (Mac OS X) if you trust the certificate.

  8. The screen will display a successful connection to the Windows server.


FAQs

  • Q. The screen prompts for a username and password when connecting via RDP. What should I do? Enter your username and password from the email sent by the system when you initialized the server to log in to the server.

  • Q. I received a warning about an invalid certificate. What should I do? If you are certain that the server is trustworthy and you have the correct IP address or server name, you can proceed and accept the warning. However, if you are unsure about the server's authenticity, do not continue the connection and inform the system administrator.

  • Q. Do you want to connect local computer resources such as drives or printers to the server? Depending on your needs. If you want to use local resources on the remote server, select "Yes". If not, select "No".

  • Q. Do you want to lock the session or log out of the current login session? Depending on the situation. If you want to keep the current login session and only close the RDP connection, select "No". If you want to lock the session, select "Lock session", or if you want to log out of the current login session, select "Log out".

  • Q. Do you want to continue the connection session? If you are not active in the session for a long time or do not plan to use it for a while, you can select "No" to close the connection while keeping the login session on the server. If you still want to continue working in the session, select "Yes".

  • Q. Do you want to end the RDP session and close the remote connection? Depending on your needs. If you have completed your work and do not need the connection anymore, select "End session". If you want to keep the login session open on the server and only close the RDP connection, select "No".Tùy thuộc vào nhu cầu. Nếu bạn đã hoàn thành công việc của mình và không cần kết nối nữa, chọn "Kết thúc phiên". Nếu bạn muốn giữ phiên đăng nhập mở trên máy chủ và chỉ đóng kết nối RDP, chọn "Không".

  • Q. Can I connect multiple computers to the same Windows server at the same time? Yes, you can use Remote Desktop to connect multiple computers to the same Windows server, creating a multi-user environment. This is often referred to as Remote Desktop Services (RDS) or Terminal Services. However, the number of users may be limited by the number of Remote Desktop Services (RDS) sessions allocated to the server.

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