The remote desktop shortcut keys help and enhance the overall user experience. Here are all the remote desktop connection shortcut keys you should know.
If you have multiple computers to manage, the remote desktop feature in Windows is handy. You have to enable the remote desktop feature on the client machine and connect to it from your main computer. After joining, you can use it as if you are right next to it.
As good as the remote desktop feature is, if used for long enough, you might have noticed that the regular keyboard shortcuts won’t work on the remote computer. To be specific, when you press a keyboard shortcut, it is executed on the local computer. This is true even if the remote desktop window is in focus. For instance, if you press the “Alt + Tab” shortcut key to switch between windows on the remote computer, that shortcut is executed on the local computer. That means you switch between windows on the local computer, not the remote computer.
Microsoft created dedicated shortcut keys for the remote desktop connection to deal with this. So, whenever you use Windows through a remote desktop connection, you must use the below shortcut keys.
So, without further ado, let me share all the remote desktop shortcut keys or keybindings you should know and learn to get the most out of the remote desktop application.
Important Note: If the remote desktop is in full-screen mode (not in maximized mode), then you can use regular Windows shortcuts inside the remote desktop.
Remote desktop shortcut keys
The below table has all the remote desktop shortcut keys to manage and navigate remote Windows. These shortcut keys work in Windows 7, 8, 10, and 11.
| Shortcut Key | Description/Usage |
|---|---|
| Alt + Page Up | Switch between Windows/programs in the remote desktop. Works same as the “Alt + Tab” shortcut. |
| Alt + Page Down | Switch between Windows/programs in the remote desktop in reverse order. Works same as the “Alt + Shift + Tab” shortcut. |
| Alt + Insert | Cycle through open windows. |
| Alt + Home | Open the Start menu. Works as the Start key. |
| Alt + Delete | Open active window’s titlebar menu. Works as the regular “Alt + Space” shortcut. |
| Ctrl + Alt + End | Send “Ctrl + Alt + Del” shortcut/command. |
| Ctrl + Alt + Home | Open the connection bar (in full-screen). |
| Ctrl + Alt + Insert | Scroll |
| Ctrl + Alt + Left/Right Arrows | Swtich between remote sessions. |
| Ctrl + Alt + Up/Down Arrows | View session selection bar. |
| Ctrl + Alt + ‘+’ (Plus key) | Take a screenshot of the whole screen. Works as the regular “PrnSrc” key. |
| Ctrl + Alt + ‘-‘ (Minus key) | Take a screenshot of the active window. Works as the regular “Alt + PrnSrc” shortcut key. |
That is it. These are the remote desktop shortcut keys that you should use to emulate regular Windows shortcuts.
I hope this simple and easy Windows how-to guide helped you.
If you are stuck or need some help, comment below, and I will try to help as much as possible.
