Remote Desktop Connection is also the name of Microsoft's built-in app. People type it when they mean "open the other PC." This URL keeps that search. We do not write a how-to for mstsc. We point at a GitHub program you run on both sides. The letters page sits on RDP. A brand comparison sits on Remote desktop vs AnyDesk.
This is RustDesk. AGPL-3.0. We did not make it. Official files live on GitHub Releases. The repo is rustdesk/rustdesk. This site does not host the installer. Skip Softonic, CNET, and unofficial wrappers. Skip Chrome Remote Desktop. There is no winget command. The package was removed from winget.
The button on this page goes to Releases on the home page. Home is Remote desktop. Trust notes sit on Remote desktop download safe.
Get the file, then connect
Copy this filename, then take it from the latest GitHub release:
rustdesk-1.4.9-x86_64.exeCopy
An msi sits on the same release if you want an installer. Live tag observed: 1.4.9. If the box on home shows a newer name later, copy that one. File list sits on Remote desktop releases. LICENSE sits on Remote desktop GitHub.
How to make a remote desktop connection
- Open the latest GitHub release for rustdesk/rustdesk.
- Take
rustdesk-1.4.9-x86_64.exe, or the msi on that release. - Run it on this PC. Confirm a window with an ID.
- Run the same current file on the machine you want to open. Confirm that window also shows an ID.
- Type that machine's ID into this PC and connect. Use the desktop. Disconnect when you are done so the other desk is not sitting open.
That list is the remote desktop connection path we document. Two programs. One ID. No computer name in a Windows box. No mstsc.
What a connection needs besides the exe
Both PCs need a network. Same room Wi-Fi is the simple case. Across town still works when the project can reach its relay. We will not invent a server address. If connect fails after a correct ID, check that both copies are the same current release and that the remote PC did not sleep.
A password or one-time code may appear in the window. Use what the app shows. Do not invent a default password. Do not reuse an ID chat screenshot from last month. Start the app, read the ID that is on screen now, type that.
Full screen helps when you are working, not testing. Windowed is enough to confirm the pointer moves. Sound and clipboard are extras. If they are off, the connection still did its job: you can see the other desktop and click.
Who is sitting at the other desk
A remote desktop connection is a person at a keyboard that is not in the room. Tell someone if you are about to take their screen. A surprise pointer is rude at best. Stop if they need the machine. Disconnect is a real step, not an afterthought.
Unattended access is a different habit. The other PC stays on, lid open or set to stay awake, app running. We will not write a separate unattended page. This page is a connection you start on purpose.
Work files stay on the remote PC unless you copy them. This site does not host your session. We do not see the desktop. GitHub only published the exe.
What this remote desktop connection page will not do
It will not open the built-in Microsoft app. It will not tell you to type a computer name. It will not walk Windows Settings. It will not add Chrome Remote Desktop as a second vs. It will not mint /download. Home already is Remote desktop. This URL is the connection phrase with steps for the GitHub program.
If your workplace already installed Microsoft Remote Desktop Connection and gave you a host name, use that. We will not pretend this exe replaces an office policy. If you wanted a GitHub file you fetch yourself, this is that path.
After you disconnect
Look at the other PC if you can. Close documents you opened. Sign out of a site you used. A remote desktop connection that leaves mail open on a shared machine is a mess you made. The program will not tidy that for you.
If you copied the exe to a USB stick to reach the other PC, take the stick with you. Do not leave rustdesk-1.4.9-x86_64.exe on a public Downloads folder as the only copy. GitHub Releases still has it. The stick was a ferry, not the source.
Same release on both desks
Copy the filename from the box. Take it twice. Mixed versions are a common connect fail. If one PC still has last year's exe, replace it. GitHub Releases is the source, not a folder named Downloads from 2024.
A work laptop and a home desktop can still talk if both run the current file and both can reach the network the project uses. We will not invent a VPN requirement. If your office blocks unknown remotes, this exe will not punch a hole they closed. Use what IT already approved, or take the GitHub file on a machine you control.
When the picture is choppy, lower the other PC's resolution for the hour or sit closer on the same LAN. We will not invent an FPS number. A usable pointer beats a pretty wallpaper.
A second monitor on the remote PC can confuse the first connect. You may land on the empty screen. Cycle displays in the app if it offers that, or unplug the spare monitor for the test. Then plug it back once you know which desktop you are on.
Do not run two different remote tools at once on the same pair of PCs. Close AnyDesk or the built-in app if you are testing this exe. Two pointers fighting is not a feature.
Name the two machines in a note on your desk: this PC, that PC, today's ID. IDs change. A sticky note from last week is how people type a dead number and think the connection is broken.
How do I start a remote desktop connection?
Take rustdesk-1.4.9-x86_64.exe from GitHub Releases. Run it on both PCs. Type the ID from the machine you want to open. The file pointer is Releases on the home page. There is no winget command.
Is remote desktop connection the Microsoft app?
The name is. This page is not. We document a GitHub program. Microsoft's app is a different product. We do not write those steps.
Do I need a computer name for a remote desktop connection?
Not on this path. You use the ID the other window shows. A computer name is the built-in app's usual field. We skip that how-to.
Did you make this remote desktop connection?
No. The RustDesk team publishes RustDesk under AGPL-3.0. Official files live on GitHub Releases. This site only points at that page. We do not host the installer.