Connect to Windows and Windows Server Remote Desktops Using Android, OSX, and iOS

In a press release on October 7, 2013, Microsoft gave a single sentence prominence to remote desktop applications that would release the same time as the fall wave of enterprise cloud solutions (Windows Server, System Center, Visual Studio, Windows Azure, Windows Intune, SQL Server, and Dynamics). Remote desktop applications? What's so new about that?

Per the long one-liner, the remote desktop applications releasing were to be a bit different than what you're used to Microsoft offering…

…with Windows Server 2012 R2 Microsoft is introducing the Microsoft Remote Desktop app, available for download in application stores later this month, to provide easy access to PCs and virtual desktops on a variety of devices and platforms, including Windows, Windows RT, iOS, OS X and Android.

In the midst of the October 17^th, 2013 hubbub over Windows 8.1 being publicly available, the release news for the iOS, OSX, and Android remote desktop apps may have gotten lost or shuffled to the bottom of the stack, because they are, indeed, now available.

Here's where to get them…

Google Play: Microsoft Remote Desktop (requires Android 2.2 and up)

iTunes: Microsoft Remote Desktop (requires iOS 6.0 or later)

Mac App Store: Microsoft Remote Desktop (requires OS X 10.6.0 or later)

App Description

With the Microsoft Remote Desktop app, you can connect to a remote PC and your work resources from almost anywhere. Experience the power of Windows with RemoteFX in a Remote Desktop client designed to help you get your work done wherever you are.

Features

·         Access to remote resources through your Remote Desktop Gateway (Mac, iOS, Android)

·         Rich multi-touch experience with remote desktop protocol (RDP) and RemoteFX supporting Windows gestures (iOS, Android)

·         Secure connection to your data and applications with breakthrough Network Layer Authentication (NLA) technology (Mac, iOS, Android)

·         Simple management of all remote connections from the connection center (Mac, iOS, Android)

·         High quality video and sound streaming with improved compression and bandwidth usage (Mac, iOS, Android)

·         Easy connection to multiple monitors or projectors for presentations (Mac, iOS)

·         Print from Windows applications to any printer configured on your Mac (Mac)

·         Access local files on your Mac from your Windows applications (Mac)