Woody Walton
Windows RT devices have been on the shelf for only a few days with Microsoft’s very own Surface and the ASUS Vivo Tab RT gathering the most press by far. If you are wanting information on Windows RT specifically I would recommend Ron Grattopp’s post What you need to know about Windows RT where he discusses the differences between Windows 8 and Windows RT (they are NOT the same OS).
Based my exposure to Windows RT (I bought a Surface pre-order), I am quite impressed with the OS, and with the Surface form factor in general. The purpose of this post is not to review Surface or Windows RT, but rather to share my experiences using the preeminent RDP client on the preeminent Windows RT device. I love the experience, and although the new RDP client is not “new” if you have been running the Consumer Preview of Windows 8, it is new to the general population and certainly new to Windows RT users. A refresher never hurts!
First of all Windows RT comes preinstalled with an RDP client that functions just like to ones you are accustomed to in Windows 7, run from the Desktop.
The New RDP Client is called simply “Remote Desktop” and is available in the Windows Store. (search “Remote Desktop” using the search charm in Windows RT while in the Store application).
You will notice that the interface allows one to manipulate many RDP sessions simultaneously from within the confines of the application. Notice I have Three running in the screenshot below. You toggle between them in the same way as you navigate tabs in the New Internet Explorer interface! Easy! You will also notice the Remote Desktop App saves recent sessions and allows you to reconnect to them or edit their settings.
The Editing Settings Menu appears thusly. Additional options for Credentials and for connection brokers can be set by scrolling down the edit menu farther. The only settings in the Desktop version not found here are the ones that allow for the automatic starting of applications upon establishment of a session.
A well rounded and attractive authentication dialogue. (the Virtual Smartcard option is not within RT, I neglected to grab this screenshot on my Surface and substituted one from my Windows 8 Pro device).
On the Windows Server 2012 Start Screen. Notice the menu allows for sending touch commands to the RDP session such as snap, swipe for charms, etc. Very elegant and effective.
I really could not be more please with the app and I used it to demonstrate Hyper-V Replica from my Surface. Hyper-V Replica is great by itself. Demonstrate it with a new Windows 8 Remote Desktop App AND Surface and the wow factor goes up.
My hat is off to the Dev team that brought us this great Windows App!
Cheers,
Woody