Ellie

By Ellie Twitter / Last Updated May 15, 2023

Want to keep RDP session alive

 

Want to keep RDP session alive

"I am connecting to Windows 7 via RDP using Windows 10. After about 16 minutes of idle time, the RDP freezes,soI have to kill the process from the Task Manager and then reopen the connection. Is there anything I can do on the client-side to keep the RDP session alive?"

- Question from a user

RDC

How to keep remote desktop session alive?

It’s irritating enough for the RDP users to face RDP session disconnects frequently. Here we summarize 2 quick fixes to help you keep the Remote Desktop session alive. Or you can switch to a third-party remote desktop software with stable performance.

Way 1. Adjust time limit in Group Policy Editor

Typically, the session timeout is 15 minutes but it could be depended on your security policy. Therefore, we can reset the time limit so that the RDP session won’t be limited by time.

Step 1. Press Win + R to invoke the Run dialog box. Type in "gpedit.msc” and hit "OK" to open Registry Editor.

Run Box Gpedit.msc

Step 2. Navigation:

 Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Remote Desktop Services > Remote Desktop Session Host > Session Time Limits.

Find the three settings on the right pane:

  • Set time limit for disconnected sessions
  • Set time limit for active but idle Remote Desktop Services session
  • Set time limit for active Remote Desktop Services session

Set up Session Time Limits

Step 3. Click on “Set time limit for disconnected sessions”, tick "Enabled" and then select ”Never” beside the “End a disconnected session”. Click on “OK”.

Set Time Limits for Disconnected Sessions

Step 4. And then click on “Set time limit for active but idle Remote Desktop Services session”, tick "Enabled" and then select "Never". Click on “OK”.

Set Time Limit

Step 5. Click on “Set time limit for active Remote Desktop Services session”, select "Enabled" and then choose "Never". Click on “OK”.

Set Time LImit

Way 2. Add a registry key

Adding a registry key to keep the RDP session alive is another useful solution to fix “the RDP disconnects or freezes”. Keep reading to get concrete guides.

Step 1. Press Win + R and then enter “regedit”, and then press “Enter” key.

Run Box Regedit

Step 2. Navigation to Computer\HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Terminal Server  >  Right-click and click on “New” > “DWORD (32-bit) Value”.

Terminal Server

Step 3. Name it as "KeepAliveEnable". Double-click on it, set the value data to 1, and tick “Decimal”. Click on "OK".

Keep Alive

Step 4. Once the action is completed, reboot the PC.

AnyViewer: offer continuous and persistent remote session

Friend, after trying the two ways shown above, does your RDP session keep alive? If RDP keeps the session from then on, we must say congratulations. But if the RDP session keeps timeout, you can use a remote access software-- AnyViewer, which can give you continuous and persistent remote connections.

With easy operations, stable connection, and free charge, AnyViewer will give you an amazing experience. It supports both unattended and attended remote access for different users. What's more, it requires no VPN or port forwarding even when connecting a computer from a different network and can be compatible with all editions of Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7 and Windows Server 2022/2019/2016/2012R2. 

Download Freeware Win 11/10/8.1/8/7/Server
Secure Download

Click the button to free download AnyViewer and see how it works.  To access remote computers from mobile devices, download the mobile app from App Store or Google Play. 

Realize unattended remote access with one-click

Step 1. Sign up for an AnyViewer account and then sign in to this account on the two computers. Once logged in, the PC will be assigned to the account automatically. 

Log in AnyViewer

Step 2.   On the client computer,  go to "Device", click the PC that you need to control, and click "One-click control" to achieve a remote connection with one click. 

Devices

Step 3. Now the remote control is successfully established.

Notes:
► One-click remote control is only available between assigned devices. That is to say, when you start one-click control, the host device and the client device should log in and be assigned to the same AnyViewer account. 
► AnyViewer Free account allows you to assign 3 devices at most; if you want to assign more devices, you can upgrade to Professional Edition; after that, you can enjoy many other benefits, including high-quality image mode,  accessing in privacy mode, and so on. 

Get remote access by device ID and remote control request

Step 1. On the client PC, create an anyViewer account and log into it.

Step 2. Input the device ID of the remote PC, and then click on “Connect”.

Connect

Step 2. On the client PC, for the pop-up option, choose the first one “Send a control request to your partner”, and then click on “OK”.

Send a Control Request to Your Partner

Step 3. On the host PC, click on "Allow" to receive the request control, then you can enjoy the remote session without any trouble.

Request to Control Your Device

Conclusion

2 top ways to keep RDP session alive are illustrated in this post. I guess you must realize “RDP keeping session”. However, if you’re still struggling to find ways to keep Remote Desktop alive, how about choosing AnyViewer? It is a great remote access software, which can give you definitely fantastic feelings on remote sessions.