Menu
Is free
registration
home  /  Problems/ Remote desktop keyboard shortcut. Keyboard shortcut for minimizing remote desktop

Remote desktop keyboard shortcut. Keyboard shortcut for minimizing remote desktop

Keyboard shortcut for minimizing remote desktop

is there a way to use the keyboard to switch from the expanded (full screen) remote desktop connection back to the host computer?

I have about 4 remote desktops that I switch between and it would be nice not to switch to mouse every time I want to switch.

I know I can press Ctrl + Alt + Break and this will normalize the remote desktop screen. - It's close, but I would like a way to just minimize it (so I don't need to normalize -> switch -> maximize every time I want to switch screens)

13 replies

Ctrl + Alt + Home will bring focus to your local machine (at least in Win 8). Ctrl + Alt + Home then Win will open windows menu on local computer.

using virtual machine I often have multiple RDP sessions open and switch to Ctrl + Alt + Home then Win + T then arrow keys to select the RDP session I want to be.

it bothered me for a long time.

initial attempts to solve it with AutoHotkey failed because the Remote Desktop client installs a Keyboard Hook and swallows all input.

I finally found that Caps lock the key is passed to the local system.

So this AutoHotkey script will do the trick by doing Ctrl + Shift + CapsLock to minimize the remote Desktop:

#IfWinActive ahk_class TscShellContainerClass ^ + CapsLock ::; Need a short sleep here for focus to restore properly. Sleep 50 WinMinimize return #IfWinActive

fixed version that works for me:

#IfWinActive ahk_class TSSHELLWND ^ Capslock ::; Ctrl + Caps Lock (couldn "t make Ctrl + Shift + Caps Lock work for some reason; Need a short sleep here for focus to restore properly. Sleep 50 WinMinimize A; need A to specify Active window; MsgBox, Received Remote Desktop minimize hotkey ; uncomment for debugging return #IfWinActive

you can use this usual, convenient combination shortcuts to exit Full Screen Remote Desktop, but a slightly different setup is required before connecting. Instead of minimizing the remote system, I just switch to another local program and leave the remote system in the background with the following:

  1. before connecting to a remote computer with a remote desktop connection, on the “local resources tab”, I set “keyboard” to “on this computer.” This allows you to use Alt + Tab to return to any other program on the local system.
  2. when I want to switch between programs on a remote system, I use Alt + Page Up, which works the same way as Alt + Tab would, but only on the remote system.

Alternatively, you can use Alt + Pages (or Alt + Shift + Page Up) to switch between active programs on remote computer in the opposite.

for me on Windows 7 64 bit, to make the sum work I had to change the 1st line from #IfWinActive ahk_class TSSHELLWND to "IfWinActive ahk_class TscShellContainerClass now the whole script looks like this:

#IfWinActive ahk_class TscShellContainerClass ^ Capslock ::; Ctrl + Caps Lock (couldn "t make Ctrl + Shift + Caps Lock work for some reason; Need a short sleep here for focus to restore properly. Sleep 50 WinMinimize A; need A to specify Active window; MsgBox, Received Remote Desktop minimize hotkey ; uncomment for debugging return #IfWinActive

CTRL + ALT + Home brings focus to the Remote Desktop Connection pane. The connection panel contains a Minimize button.

in Windows 7, If I uncheck the box next to Show connection bar when I use Full Screen"option when connecting, then keys to minimize the RPD session CTRL + ALT + Home spacebar.

Show (default) in the connection string requires hitting Tab a couple of times to minimize the RDP session: CTRL + ALT + Home Tab Tab space.

I'm doing the same thing. The best solution I found in XP was a virtual dimension with virtual desktops always on top. Then I can switch between 4 remote desktops in full screen mode one click each. However, Virtual Dimension does not work quite correctly on Windows 7 (at least 64-bit). It seems to work, but it loses "always on top", although the checkbox remains checked, the virtual desktop switch does not. This is so close to what we both want, but so far away.

Alt + Caps Lock without caps lock annoying state changes ( ok if you don't have scroll lock)

Is there a way, using the keyboard, to switch from the maximum (full screen) remote desktop connection to the host computer?

I have about 4 remote desktop connections that I switch between and it would be nice if I didn't switch to mouse every time.

I know I can press Ctrl + Alt + Break and it will normalize the remote desktop screen. It's close, but I would like to just minimize it (so I don't have to normalize-> switch-> maximize every time I want to switch screens)

Ctrl + Alt + Home will bring focus to your local machine (at least in Win 8). Ctrl + Alt + Home and then Win will open a menu on your local machine.

When using a virtual machine, I often open multiple RDP sessions and switch Ctrl + Alt + Home, then Win + T, then arrow keys to select the RDP session I want to be in.

This has bugged me for a long time.

Initial attempts to fix the issue with AutoHotkey failed because the Remote Desktop client installs a keyboard hook and swallows all input.

I finally found that the Caps Lock key is being passed to the local system.

So this AutoHotkey script will do the trick by making Ctrl + Shift + CapsLock minimize the remote desktop:

#IfWinActive ahk_class TscShellContainerClass ^ + CapsLock ::; Need a short sleep here for focus to restore properly. Sleep 50 WinMinimize return #IfWinActive

Corrected version that works for me:

#IfWinActive ahk_class TSSHELLWND ^ Capslock ::; Ctrl + Caps Lock (couldn "t make Ctrl + Shift + Caps Lock work for some reason; Need a short sleep here for focus to restore properly. Sleep 50 WinMinimize A; need A to specify Active window; MsgBox, Received Remote Desktop minimize hotkey ; uncomment for debugging return #IfWinActive

Alt + Tab

You can use this normal, convenient keyboard shortcut to exit Full Screen Remote Desktop, but a slightly different setup is required before connecting. Instead of minimizing the remote system, I just switch to another local program and leave the remote system in the background with the following:

  1. Before connecting to a remote computer with Remote Desktop Connection, on the Local Resources tab, I set Keyboard to On This Computer. This allows you to use Alt + Tab to return you to any other program on the local system.
  2. When I want to switch between programs on a remote system, I use Alt + Page Up, which works the same as Alt + Tab, but only on the remote system.

Alternatively, you can use Alt + Page Down (or Alt + Shift + Page Up) to cycle through the active programs on the remote system in reverse order.

One of Luke's mentions should be mentioned: with this setting, all keyboard shortcuts with Windows key sent to the local system. An example would be Windows Key + E to open windows explorer which will take you to local file system rather than the remote one.

It took quite a while to get used to, but this setup worked well for me without the need for additional software or more than one label.

For me on Windows 7 64 bit to work with #IfWinActive ahk_class TSSHELLWND I had to change the 1st line from #IfWinActive ahk_class TSSHELLWND to “IfWinActive ahk_class TscShellContainerClass so now the complete script looks like this:

#IfWinActive ahk_class TscShellContainerClass ^ Capslock ::; Ctrl + Caps Lock (couldn "t make Ctrl + Shift + Caps Lock work for some reason; Need a short sleep here for focus to restore properly. Sleep 50 WinMinimize A; need A to specify Active window; MsgBox, Received Remote Desktop minimize hotkey ; uncomment for debugging return #IfWinActive

Not exactly what you asked, but might be helpful enough:

CTRL + ALT + ← - switches you to the host computer

CTRL + ALT + → - switches you back to the remote computer

A source

Bring up the host task manager, then switch the task:

  • Ctrl + Alt + Delete (Windows Security)
  • T (task manager)
  • Alt + Tab (task switcher on the host computer)

I found that you need two combinations of shortcuts. It works on Windows 7.

  1. CTRL + ALT + BREAK minimizes the maximum window to the host computer.
  2. Win + M Minimize Remote Desktop Window

Or in the first step, you can change the window with ALT + TAB.

I'm doing the same thing. The best solution I found in XP was virtual dimension with virtual desktops always on top. Then I can switch between 4 remote desktops full screen with one click. Nevertheless, virtual size does not work perfectly correctly on Windows 7 (at least in 64 bit). It seems to work, but it loses the "always on top", although the checkbox remains, the virtual desktop does not work. This is so close to what we both want, but still.

CTRL + ALT + Home allows you to focus on the Remote Desktop Connection pane. The connection panel includes a minimize button.

On Windows 7, if I disable the option "Show connection bar when I use full screen" when connected, then the keys to minimize the RPD session are CTRL + ALT + Home Spacebar.

If the connection bar is set to a value (which is the default), it requires you to press Paste several times to minimize the RDP session: CTRL + ALT + Home Tab Space.

I found this workaround using mutli-desktop manager:

  1. Installing Dexpot
  2. Tune hotkey Next Desktop on ALT + ScrollLock
  3. Configuring Remote Desktop to Capture All Keys Full Screen

Then you can switch between full screen desktops with ALT + ScrollLock.

I set the number of desktops to 2 since I only have one remote desktop.

Also, I installed Clavier, which allows me to use ScrollLock to switch between desktops. (Clavier config: Add-> Write Text ... -> Shortcut: ScrollLock -> OK -> Write-Text :)

Alt + Caps Lock without caps lock annoying state changes ( Ok if you don't have Scroll Lock)

Tired of setting up at first, but most comfortable in the long run. I like to switch quickly with just my left hand

Dexpot 1. Set the next desktop to Alt + Scroll Lock (if you don't have a scroll lock, use the onscreen Windows keyboard to press "ScrLk"). 2. Set the previous desktop to Alt + Scroll Lock. 3. Install general review screens. Ctrl + Scroll Lock

Now use Autohotkey to redirect (this way Caps Lock cannot change its state):

GetKeyState, state, Capslock; ; Alt + Caps Lock becomes Alt + Scroll Lock! Capslock :: send! (ScrollLock) return; Alt + Shift + Caps Lock becomes Alt + Shift + Scroll Lock! + Capslock :: send! + (ScrollLock) return; Ctrl + Caps Lock becomes Ctrl + Scroll Lock ^ Capslock :: send ^ (ScrollLock) return

Ready. You can now use Alt + Caps Lock to switch between screens without changing the Caps Lock of its states. Also, if you only need two screens, you can set dexpot to use only two desktops, which will make the Alt + caps lockable for the remote desktop.

Ctrl + Alt + Home worked for me. I am using a windows 10 host with teamviewer for windows 8 running a terminal server. I was able to connect the terminal connection panel.

Remote Desktop(RDC, Remote Desktop Connection or Microsoft Terminal Services Client) is a useful multi-channel protocol that allows the user to connect to the administration remote computer with full support screen.

However, in order for the Desktop Connection remote screen to work effectively on the territory of the host Windows, users who often use Hotkeys may get confused about the keyboard shortcuts to use when working on remote computer desktop, or get wrong, erroneous, or unexpected behavior using keyboard shortcuts and accelerators.
For example, keyboard shortcut Ctrl-Alt-Del often used to invoke dialogue Windows security where users can launch the task manager, change the password, log out, shut down the computer, lock the desktop, turn on the user, etc. When pressing the Ctrl-Alt-Del keys on the keyboard, the interrupt sequence will always be captured and processed locally Windows system despite the full screen Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) connection window.

Another example is pressing Alt-Tab keys to switch between multiple open windows and launching tasks or processes. Alt-Tab keyboard shortcut works entirely on remote computer, when Remote Desktop Connection will open in full screen mode, but it will only be possible to switch between windows when the RDC window is restored at the bottom, where the RDC windows are one of the windows in rotation.

To get the desired result, used keyboard shortcuts for Remote Desktop Connection are slightly different when applied to a window remote desktop... Here is a list of commonly used hotkeys and key combinations for use in navigation remote connection to the desktop, along with the action of the keys, the equivalent keyboard shortcuts on the local computer (in parentheses) are also executed.

  • CTRL + ALT + END: Opens a dialog box Microsoft Windows NT Security (CTRL + ALT + DEL)
  • ALT + PAGE UP: switch between programs from left to right (CTRL + PAGE UP)
  • ALT + PAGE DOWN: switch between programs from right to left (CTRL + PAGE DOWN)
  • ALT + INSERT: Switch between programs in the last used order (ALT + TAB)
  • ALT + HOME: Display the Start menu (CTRL + ESC)
  • CTRL + ALT + BREAK: Switch the client computer between windowed mode and full screen mode
  • ALT + DEL: Opens the Windows menu
  • CTRL + ALT + minus sign (-): snapshot the entire area of ​​the client window to the terminal server clipboard and provides the same functionality as pressing the ALT + PRINT SCREEN keys on the local computer (ALT + PRT SC)
  • CTRL + ALT + Plus sign (+): snapshot the active client window to the terminal server clipboard and provides the same functionality as pressing PRINT SCREEN on the local computer (PRT SC)

Today we will tell you how to make your work at the computer more convenient and efficient. If you are already, or have updated, then you have the opportunity to create virtual desktops.

it a great opportunity Conveniently perform different tasks on one computer.

Windows 10 desktops

One of the major innovations that Windows 10 has made most of its users happy is virtual desktops. Previously, this function was present only in operating systems based on Linux, as well as in Mac OS. Those who actively used the function of switching between virtual workspaces, but could not afford to constantly work, for example, in Linux, can now safely switch to Windows 10, while continuing to use convenient function.

Why is it so useful? Optimization of the workspace. On one virtual desktop, you can run, say, video rendering, file conversion or anti-virus scanning, and then switch to another workspace and continue doing your business.

How do I switch between desktops?

There is no separate button for this function - to go to creating and editing desktops, you need to click on the Task View icon or Task View next to the Microsoft logo and the search icon. Clicking on it leads to the display on the screen of all running on this moment applications, and also opens the possibility of creating new virtual desktops - just click on the "Create Desktop" button, which is located in the lower right corner.

To switch to the desired desktop, just click on it. In addition, there are a number of hotkeys that will make it easier to switch between workspaces:

  • You can get to the "Task View" without unnecessary gestures - just press Win + Tab.
  • You can also create new desktops according to a simplified scheme - by pressing Win + Ctrl + D, you instantly create a new workspace.
  • It is rather inconvenient to use Task View to switch to the required virtual desktop every time - that is why the developers have added the ability to quickly switch using the Win + Ctrl + left or right arrow combination.
  • In addition, there are situations in which there are too many desktops, and you do not want to delete them with the mouse at all - in this case, the Win + Ctrl + F4 combination will help, which deletes the active desktop. Note that it is exactly the one that is deleted. Workspace which you are currently on. Accordingly, after deleting the active desktop, you will be taken to the next one in order.

Also, Windows 10 provides the ability to move active applications to other virtual desktops - just right-click on the desired program, choose in context menu item "Move to" and decide on the desktop. To enlarge the screenshot, click on it.

When you delete a virtual desktop, all programs that were running on it at that time will be automatically moved to the adjacent desktop.

The settings for this feature can be found in Options, under System, under the Multitasking tab.

There are not many settings there. You can customize the display of windows, and configure the action for the keyboard shortcut ALT + TAB.

disadvantages

Despite the fact that Microsoft has thoroughly approached the implementation of the function of switching between desktops, there are some shortcomings in it:

  • You cannot swap desktops on the screen of their choice (although for many this is not a disadvantage).
  • You cannot change the name of the created desktop - you will have to get used to the serial numbers and remember where and which program is running.
  • Owners of two or more monitors will not be able to create different workspaces in order to simultaneously see different virtual desktops on the monitors.