One of the neat little advantages of the new RDP protocol version that comes built into Windows Server 2008 R2 and thus SBS v7 is the ability to serve remote desktops out to clients that have multiple monitors and have that remote desktop session _on_ those multiple monitors.
The above screenshot is of the remote desktop session from home that has a 22” wide LCD on the right and an older Acer 19” 4x3 standard aspect ratio LCD on the left.
The 22” is sitting on top of a Mini-ITX system, so it is actually quite a bit higher than the Acer thus the shift between the two screens.
The Remote Desktop Connection Setting
To get the multiple monitor setup to work, we need to enable the following setting in the Remote Desktop Connection client:
Use all my monitors for the remote session
One thing to keep in mind is that with the additional monitors comes the need for additional bandwidth. As a result, for offices with smaller upload speeds, one will need to keep in mind which users should be able to connect with multiple monitors and which ones should not.
Web Site Animation Caveat
It should also be noted that when connected to a remote desktop session and there is a need to browse the Web, that sites that have some sort of animation on them will cause the session to grind virtually to a stop. So, after clicking the next link on the site, be patient as it may take a few rounds of animation for that click to be registered remotely.
Hopefully the next page does not have any animation on it!
Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists
Co-Author: SBS 2008 Blueprint Book
*Our original iMac was stolen (previous blog post). We now have a new MacBook Pro courtesy of Vlad Mazek, owner of OWN.
Nice post. I enjoy this blog,
ReplyDeleteJohn,
ReplyDeleteThanks for that! :)
Philip