How to Migrate an Application to the Cloud: A Technical Roadmap for Application Migration
Learn how to migrate an application to the cloud with a technical guide for IT professionals. Explore strategies, tools, security tips and best practices.
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RDS TOOLS BLOG
Maintaining secure authentication across remote connections is essential for organizations using Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP). Whether you are managing Windows servers, administering remote user accounts or enforcing credential policies, knowing how to change a password on Remote Desktop is a foundational IT skill to maintain operational security and compliance .
This article explores the most reliable methods for changing passwords in RDP environments, outlines common issues and solutions, and recommends best practices for secure password management at scale.
RDP remains a critical remote access method for IT administrators and support teams, but also for remote employees. However, it is an infamous target for cyberattacks, particularly brute-force attempts and credential stuffing attacks.
A compromised password can grant unauthorized access to sensitive systems, which is why secure mechanisms and monitoring policies must be in place regarding password modification. Cyber risks are magnified in environments with weak password enforcement or outdated login controls.
Implementing strong password management practices is consequently not only a basic network defence measure but also a quintessential factor for meeting industry regulations and security standards.
Changing a password within a remote desktop session is not as straightforward as on a local machine, due to limitations in how key combinations are interpreted across remote layers. Below are standard methods supported by Windows RDP sessions.
The most widely supported method:
NB: Ctrl+Alt+Del is intercepted by the local machine. Therefore, Ctrl+Alt+End is the correct sequence for the remote session.
For devices that cannot send complex key combinations (e.g., tablets, thin clients):
This method works well in virtual or restricted environments, stopping the USB keyboard from communicating.
For system administrators managing multiple machines or headless environments, command-line tools offer a scriptable GUI-independent method of changing passwords.
Open an elevated Command Prompt and run:
net user username newpassword
Example:
net user admin SecurePass2025!
To update the password of a local user securely:
Set-LocalUser -Name "username" -Password (ConvertTo-SecureString "NewP@ssw0rd" -AsPlainText -Force)
In domain environments, use:
Set-ADAccountPassword -Identity "domainuser" -NewPassword (ConvertTo-SecureString "NewDomP@ss!" -AsPlainText -Force) -Reset
Ensure the Active Directory module is imported and run the script as a domain admin or a user with delegated permissions.
A common issue with RDP is login failures due to expired passwords, especially when the user is not given the opportunity to change it at login.
Enable NLA password change support:
Set the
Allow Password Reset
policy in both the
RDP host and client
.
Configure password expiration alerts:
Use Group Policy to notify users before expiration.
Reset manually via administrative tools:
If the user is unable to change their own password, an administrator can reset it via Active Directory Users and Computers (ADUC) or PowerShell.
Changing passwords is only part of a broader security strategy. To reduce the risk of compromise in RDP environments, consider implementing the following:
Restrict access to known and trusted IP ranges only.
Block brute-force attempts by locking accounts after a defined number of failed login attempts.
Permit remote sessions only during predefined time windows.
Require complexity, minimum length and regular expiration.
Deploy tools that detect weak passwords or login anomalies in real time.
These measures, when combined with secure password change practices, form a layered defense against unauthorized access. Indeed, by implementing proper controls, anticipating expiration issues and integrating password change workflows into your RDP infrastructure, your organization can significantly reduce its attack surface and improve compliance posture. But for enhanced protection and centralised control of your Remote Desktop infrastructure, read on to explore how our RDS-Tools Advanced Security solution can further harden your environment against modern cyber threats.
Implementing reliable password change procedures is only one aspect of securing Remote Desktop Protocol environments. To ensure a robust and resilient remote access infrastructure, organizations must go beyond basic configurations and adopt a layered security approach. This is where RDS Tools Advanced Security becomes indispensable.
Designed specifically for RDS and Windows Server environments, RDS-Tools Advanced Security offers a comprehensive set of tools to harden your infrastructure. against modern cyber threats It includes intelligent IP address filtering, real-time brute-force attack protection, country-based access restrictions and time-limited login windows. Every one of these is essential for controlling who can connect, when and from where and keeping your data safe.
Administrators can also enforce security policies such as working hours restrictions, user and group-level access rules and detailed event logging. These features help reduce the attack surface while improving traceability and compliance. With intuitive dashboards and actionable alerts, security teams gain full visibility into suspicious activity and can respond quickly to unauthorized attempts.
Importantly, RDS-Tools Advanced Security operates seamlessly alongside existing RDP deployments, requiring minimal setup while delivering enterprise-grade protections. Whether you are managing a small remote support operation or a large-scale server infrastructure, it provides the control and assurance needed to keep your systems secure.
For any organization relying on Remote Desktop, RDS-Tools Advanced Security is not optional: it is essential. Investing in proactive protection not only prevents breaches but also reinforces user confidence and operational continuity across all remote access points.
Essential for both end-users and IT administrators cyber-safety, knowing how to change a password on Remote Desktop is a critical administrative task; one which must be approached with both flexibility and security in mind. Whether through keyboard shortcuts, command-line utilities, scripting or administrative consoles, IT professionals have several reliable methods at their disposal to manage password updates efficiently.
However, secure authentication is only the first step. In today’s threat landscape, protecting Remote Desktop infrastructures requires a broader, policy-driven strategy. As outlined above, RDS Tools Advanced Security provides that essential second layer, thus enabling organizations to actively defend against unauthorized access, enforce contextual access controls and maintain a hardened environment for remote users.
By combining technical know-how with robust security tooling, businesses can ensure their RDP set-ups remain not only functional but resilient. Adopting best practices and integrating solutions like RDS Tools Advanced Security will help your organization stay compliant, reduce vulnerabilities and keep critical systems safeguarded against ever-evolving cyber threats.
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