What Is mstsc.exe and How to Repair it?

About mstsc.exe

mstsc.exe, an executable exe file of the Windows operating system, stands for Terminal Service Client, is the client application for RDS (Remote Desktop Services). Press Windows + R, input “mstsc.exe” and click “OK”. Then you can run Remote Desktop Connection and connect to a computer that has RDP over the network to view the desktop and run the apps on the remote computer.

mstsc.exe syntax and parameters

Having realized what is mstsc.exe and what it can be used for, keep reading if you want to learn about mstsc.exe syntax and parameters.

Step 1. Press Windows + R to open Run windows.

Step 2. Input “mstsc.exe /?” and hit the “Enter” key.

Then you can see a pop-up window where demonstrates the syntax and parameters: MSTSC[] [/v:[:][/g:][/admin] [/f[full screen]] [/w:/h:]/public][/span][multipmon][/edit“connectionfile”][/restrictedAdmin][/RemoteGuard][/Propmt[/shawdow:[/control][noConsentPrompt]

 

The function of every parameter is also listed on the window. And we can use the syntax and parameters to achieve corresponding goals. For example, to run Remote Desktop in full-screen mode, you can use “mstsc.exe /f”; to specify the resolution of the Remote Desktop window with 1280*1024, you can use mstsc.exe /w:1280 /h:1024.

mstsc.exe is broken, what to do?

mstsc.exe is essential for remote connection. Sometimes, events like Windows update can break the Remote Desktop client. Then you may get kinds of RDP issues, like “Remote Desktop can’t connect to the remote computer for one of these reasons…”. To solve the problem, you can try one or more solutions shown below.

Solution 1. Run sfc/scannow to fix system files

System File Checker tool (SFC) is a command prompt-based tool and it requires administrator rights to open and run the app. With it, you can scan Windows system files and fix them by exacting the correct file and replacing the incorrect version. Here is how to use it.

Step 1. On the Search box, type “Command Prompt”, right-click it, and select “Run it as administrator”.

Step 2. Input "sfc/scannow" in the window and hit Enter key.

 

Then the Windows system will scan the interscan integrity of all the protected system files and repair the damaged files. This process can take several minutes and please wait patiently.

Solution 2. Restore your system to a previous status

Since the issue that mstsc.exe file is broken occurs after the Windows update, you can restore your system to a status where there is nothing wrong with mstsc.exe file, if you have created a system restore point. Here are the detailed steps to restore your system (Take Windows 11 as an example).

Step 1. Type "System Restore" in the search box and choose “Recovery”.

Step 2. Choose “Open System Restore” among the three options. And then click “Next”.

Step 3. Here you can choose the restore point and restore your computer to the state.

 

Step 4. Then, you’ll need to confirm the operation.

 

Or if you are willing to try third-party remote desktop software, you can try AnyViewer. A free, easy-to-use, reliable, and secure remote access solution for Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7 and Windows Server 2022/2019/2016/2012 R2. You can click the following button to download it to have a try!