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How to secure your Windows RDP server

Servers with open RDP are attacked all the time. Do these things.

Must do

• Change the Administrator password to a long, unique one.
• Run Windows Update regularly.
• Create a normal user for daily work and keep Administrator for changes.
• Use Windows Defender (or another antivirus) and keep it updated.

Strongly recommended

• Turn on Network Level Authentication (it is on by default on current Windows Server).
• Limit who can connect with Windows Firewall: allow port 3389 only from your own IP if it does not change.
• Rename the Administrator account.
• Set an account lockout policy (lock after 5 wrong tries).
• Take backups of important files outside the server.

Never

Do not share the password in chat. Do not install software from unknown sources. See our acceptable use policy.

More in Windows RDP

• What is RDP and why do people use it?
• How to connect to a Windows RDP server from Windows
• How to connect to RDP from Mac, Android or iPhone
• Cannot connect to RDP? A troubleshooting checklist
• RDP vs VPS vs VPN: what is the difference?

Still stuck? Open a support ticket.