't IsGoud

Connecting to a Remote Desktop can be a rude awakening when you are confronted with jagged edges on the otherwise smooth icons. If you use it remote administration this is not a problem. On the other hand if you want to use it for developing software or as a regular desktop, you really want 32-bit color on your remote desktop.

Without the 32-bit color depth you do not have Clear Type fonts you do not see the icons as they were meant and Aero is also out of the question. What you do get is extra strain on the eyes while reading the screen.

When I first encountered the 16-bit limitation I was looking at the client-side to bypass the limitation. No luck there. Until I ran into an blog post that talked about enabling Aero in a remote Windows 2008 session. The solution was not on the client but was on the server.

The 16-bit limitation is set on the server side and can be changed in the Terminal Server Configuration:

• Open the Terminal Server Configuration on the remote host.
• Select the RDP-Tcp connection, right click on it and select “Properties”.
• Select the “Client Settings” tab.

The screen below shows the default 16-bit limitation.

• Select the “32 bits per pixel” option in the dropdown menu.
• Click on OK and close the Terminal Services Configuration.

The only thing left to do is to set the color depth in the Remote Desktop Connection. If you want to set this up for Windows 2008 R2 you first have to add the “Remote Desktop Services” role and enable option “Desktop composition”. Read the previously mentioned post “Aero Glass Remoting in Windows Server 2008 R2” for more detailed instructions.