How to RDP from a Mac to a Windows host

Embedded RDP client in macOS — no window-switching to Microsoft Remote Desktop, full keyboard mapping, encrypted via SSH if needed.

Estimated time: 4 minutes

RDP (Remote Desktop Protocol) is Microsoft's graphical remote-access protocol. From a Mac, the obvious tool is Microsoft Remote Desktop — works fine, but it lives in its own window away from your terminal and SFTP pane. SSHive includes a built-in RDP client (powered by IronRDP, a Rust implementation of the protocol) that opens RDP sessions as tabs alongside SSH/SFTP — one window for everything.

Step-by-step

1
Enable RDP on the Windows host
Windows: Settings → System → Remote Desktop → toggle Enable. Note the PC name or IP. On Windows Server: Server Manager → Local Server → Remote Desktop → enable. Add your user to the Remote Desktop Users group if you're not admin. Port 3389 in the Windows firewall is usually opened automatically by enabling RDP.
2
Create the RDP profile in SSHive (Pro required)
Sidebar → +. The connection dialog has a **type selector** at the top: SSH | RDP | VNC | Local | Tools. Pick **RDP** — port flips to `3389` automatically. Fill Name, Host, Username, Password (with the "Save" checkbox to put it in macOS Keychain), and the optional **Domain** field for Active Directory (placeholder shows `DOMAIN`). RDP is **Pro-only**: in Free, picking RDP triggers the upgrade modal at save time — it never reaches `LicenseService.check('session.rdp')`.
3
Pick a Quality preset and a Resolution — that's it
Two visible knobs: **Quality** = Auto (default, adjusts dynamically based on inter-frame latency) / High (95% / 60fps) / Balanced (80% / 60fps) / Low (50% / 15fps). **Resolution** = Auto (matches the SSHive window) / 1280×720 / 1366×768 / 1600×900 / 1920×1080 / 2560×1440 / 3840×2160. Compression (RDP6 + bulk + JPEG via libjpeg-turbo SIMD on Mac App Store builds), bitmap cache, clipboard redirect (bidirectional CLIPRDR), and audio I/O are **on by default and not exposed in the UI** — leave Auto unless you have a measured reason to change.
4
Connect — the window resizes the remote desktop live
Double-click the profile to start the session. SSHive resizes the Windows desktop dynamically as you resize the SSHive window (500ms debounce on the resolution event). Cmd is mapped to Ctrl (Cmd+C → Ctrl+C, etc.); AltGr is mapped for international keyboards. Drive redirect and printer redirect are not available — copy files via SFTP in parallel if needed.
5
Tunnel RDP through SSH if 3389 is not Internet-exposed
There is **no "via jump host" field on the RDP profile itself** — the chaining is done via two profiles. (1) Create the SSH profile of your bastion, add a Local forward `13389 → windows-host:3389` under Advanced. (2) Create the RDP profile pointing at `localhost:13389`. Connect the SSH profile first (the tunnel auto-mounts), then the RDP profile. Never expose 3389 directly — RDP brute-forcing is industrial-scale.

Frequently asked questions

Does SSHive RDP work with cloud-hosted Windows VMs?+

Direct RDP to a Windows VM with a public IP or VPN-reachable IP: yes. Brokered connections (e.g., Azure Virtual Desktop's broker handshake) are not in scope — use the corresponding vendor client for those.

Can I copy-paste files between Mac and the Windows host?+

SSHive's RDP supports text clipboard syncing. For files, the simplest path: enable OpenSSH on the Windows host and use SSHive's SFTP pane in parallel — usually faster than RDP file redirection anyway.