Microsoft Remote Desktop 8 App Reviews

This version broke my remote gateway connection. Get the following error: “Failed to establish RDG/HTTPS out channel” Would advise to not update to this version until fixed by MS.

On top of all the errors mentioned by others, my entire library of bookmarks, aka saved servers/configurations, disappeared. Great….real great….slow clap for M$

Running heavy in CPU (80% to100% on an imac quad core) just to keep a remote desktop session in background seems buggy. Running 8.0.13 on Yosemite 10.10.2

It was fine before, but now it fails on launch 20%, fails to negotiate a connection the other 80%. To add insult to injury, the application hangs and offers various messages about negotiating the connection, personalizing the desktop, establishing the connection, all the while one’s dinner is getting cold. Then “logging you off” and you’re looking at the RDP start panel again.

Like several other reviewers I only get the “failed to established RDG/HTTPS out channel” message. So can’t connect remotely which defeats the whole point of this app. Was this tested before it was released it?

This used to be a great application but the latest update broke alt-key combinations, which makes it very difficult to work with some Windows programs that utilize these hot keys. I hope the next update restores this functionality.

Since the latest update I can no longer type certain special characters. Such as @ . I use these symbols a lot for work when i am logged into my remote PC using this application and it is too the point where I have to stop using it all together because of this issue. If you can fix this issue then i have no problems with the application.

Alt hot keys no longer works for me. The option key used work for alt+hot keys. This is now broken as well as chars like @#. Dont upgrade to version Version 8.0.14 (Build 25823)

I used to be able to connect to my work PC and everything was working perfectly well. With the last few updates however, there are severe slow downs in the repainting of the desktop. I seem to need to shake my cursor around to get the screen to update making this completely unusable.

For someone who supports multiple customers and organizations, it’s frustrating to have one huge list of Desktops. If you can add the ability to group desktops that would be fantastic. And how about some retina display support? It’s the little things that matter!

It seems that with newer versions, the keyboard mapping behaviour is affected by the keyboard type you have selected at the time you establish the connection. What I find is that if I connect using a US keyboard, then all my keys are mapped correctly. If, however, I use Canadian English my tilde/backtick key gets mapped to pipe/backslash…this, even though I have a US layout keyboard. The program is clearly not using the proper key codes but is doing its own mapping somehow. 8.0.17 Edit: Says Canadian English is fixed but the tilde/backtick still maps incorrectly to the pipe/backslash key for me. :(

After latest update I can only run 1 connection at a time. To open 2nd connection I have to force close 1st. Extremelly annoying. MS - please fix.

I was hopping this would be fixed to connect to Azure’s instances, but no. So for now, I have to remote desktop into a Windows box, and then remote desktop into an Azure instance. EDIT: Still no Azure support, and still non-retina icons. The only apps that look bad on my Mac are form Microsoft. EDIT #2: Finally now works with Azure, the only use I have for that app.

If your dual monitor isn’t working with version 8.0.18 make sure you check "Mission Control" under System Preferences and ensure that the “Displays have seperate Spaces” is enabled.

haha “experience the power of windows” that’s hilarious! Swap out “power” for bugginess and "tortoise-like speed” and you’d be closer

Unable to connect to remote PC. Please verify Remote Desktop is enabled, the remote PC is turned on and available on the network, and then try again. Keep Recieving this error and I can succuessfully connect to from a windows machine so my login info must be correct. It is buggy please FIXX!!!!

thanks microsoft for playing it friendly!

It used to work fine connecting to my media pc running windows 8.1. Ever since I upgraded that machine to Win10 this app just sits there with a blue screen with a white dot in the middle of it. Nothing happens so I have to quit the app.

Good app for remote desktop however, you can not save binary files. If you’re using Office 2003 or other apps, you’ll have to save Word.doc files as RTF and Excel 2003 workbooks at HTML Webpages. Both of those formats are purely text based. If you attempt to save as a native .DOC or .XLS you will get zero bytes saved.

There is an issue that hides the top part(windows title) of the windows when you start the remote session in the OSX native mode and maximize to full screen mode during the connection state. To reproduce, connect to VPN, start the remote connection and immediately go to Full Screen mode.