In a Windows environment, the primary way to remotely connect to another computer is via Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP). RDP is just not restricted to only Windows environments anymore, thanks to xrdp. xrdp is an open-source implementation of Microsoft Remote Desktop Connection (RDP) on Linux systems, including Ubuntu desktops. It provides graphical login to remote systems using RDP protocols. xrdp also enables two-way clipboard transfer, audio and drives redirection, and accepts connections from a variety of RDP clients: FreeRDP, desktop, NeutrinoRDP, and Microsoft Remote Desktop Client. For students and new users running Ubuntu desktop and want to connect to it via RDP, xrdp is the app to use in this case. For more about xrdp, please visit its homepage. To get started with installing and configuring xrdp on Ubuntu, follow the steps below:
How to install xrdp on Ubuntu
xrdp works on desktop systems. You won’t be able to connect to systems without a desktop environment. On Ubuntu servers, you must install a desktop environment before using xrdp. xrdp is available in Ubuntu default repositories. No need to add additional repositories to install. Simply run the commands below from the terminal to install it. After installing, run the commands below to verify that it is installed and running. You should see a similar result as shown below:
How to configure xrdp on Ubuntu
Now that you have xrdp installed on Ubuntu, configure it to make it so that connections can be made without facing numeral issues. First, add xrdp user account to the ssl-cert certificate key file groups. By default, xrdp uses the /etc/ssl/private/ssl-cert-snakeoil.key file which is readable only by users that are members of the “ssl-cert” group. The ssl-cert key file plays an important role in connecting via remote desktop on Ubuntu. Output: Next, add these lines into xrdp startup script to make help resolve some situations where users’ screens have black backgrounds. Open the startup script file. Then add these lines to the end file and save. Save the file and exit. Restart xrdp service. Make sure the firewall isn’t enabled and blocking port 3389. Replace the highlighted subnet with your own. Log out of Ubuntu. Make sure you’re not already logged in to Ubuntu while attempting to connect via Remote Desktop Connection. You can’t be logged in to Ubuntu while you connect via RDP.
How to connect to Ubuntu from Windows 11
Now try connecting to Ubuntu via Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP). When prompted to accept the certificate, click Yes. Type in your username and password for the Ubuntu system. That’s it! Conclusion: This post showed you how to install and configure xrdp to provide a remote desktop connection to Ubuntu. If you find any error above, please use the comment form below to report.
