Tutorial: How to Enable RDP File Transfer Port

What is RDP file transfer port?

When you copy a local file and paste it to a remote computer through an RDP session, the clipboard sharing is provided by the default RDP protocol. RDP requires TCP port 3389 to be open, therefore, the RDP file transfer is also tunneled through port 3389.

How to transfer files on RDP

There are two ways for file transfer over RDP port. Make sure you enabled RDP before operations.

Preparation work: Establish a remote connection between PCs

Firstly you need to establish a remote connection before file transfer.

Step 1. On the client computer, press Win + R to open the Run Dialog Box, type “mstsc”, and then click OK.

Step 2. Click Show Options and select Local Resources, and then click the button More in the last section. Please also make sure that the Clipboard option is ticked (copy and paste files will fail if the RDP clipboard is not working).

Step 3. Click “+” beside Drives and then select the disk you want to perform the transfer and then hit OK.

Step 4. Back to the General interface, type in the IP address and username of the host PC, and then select Connect.

Step 5. If you see the pop-up window, type in the password of the host PC and hit OK.

Way 1. Copy and paste directly

You can copy and paste directly over RDP file transfer port if the files are smaller than 2 GB. Please notice that the speed of RDP file transfer is rather slow.

Step 1. When the connection is achieved, you can see the files of the host computer.

Step 2. Use Ctrl + C to copy and Ctrl + V to paste the files or folders you want to move onto the desktop.

Step 3. If the files or folders are on the disk drive, go to “This PC” to find them, and then press Ctrl + C to copy the files and press Ctrl + V to paste the files onto the client computer.

Way 2. Use Move to function

How to transfer files on RDP? The Move to feature is recommended if the files you need to transfer are more than 2 GB.

Step 1. Click This Computer on the host computer desktop to find the Redirected drives and folders you checked before.

Step 2. Find the disk that stores the files you need and then select the files you want to transfer. Go to Home > Move to > Choose location, then choose the client drives you redirected before to achieve RDP file transfer between computers.

Bonus tip: How to disable RDP copy and paste

If you have an RDP connection with someone you don’t trust enough, you can disable the copy-and-paste functionality from Group Policy to secure your data.

Step 1. To open Group Policy, press Win + R and enter “gpedit.msc”. Click OK after that.

Step 2. Go to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Remote Desktop services > Remote Desktop Host > Devices and Resources Redirection.

Step 3. Double-click on Do not allow Clipboard redirection and then choose Enabled. Then click OK.

Step 4. Enable the following policies by the similar steps above.

• Do not allow drive redirection Enabled
• Do not allow COM port redirection Enabled
• Do not allow LPT port redirection Enabled

AnyViewer: Easier way to transfer files between PCs [quick & safe]

Is it possible to move files between PCs more quickly? The response is "YES" Using the professional file transfer application AnyViewer, you may move data between PCs without having to deal with complicated settings. Here is a list of the advantages of AnyViewer to help you understand the software better.

Easy-to-use. It has a simple interface and easy operations to transfer files without limitations.

Fast. It has a fast file transfer speed, for example, it only costs about 20 seconds to transfer a 2 GB zip file when both computers are on LAN.

Compatible. It supports several Windows versions, including Windows OS and Windows Server OS, while RDP does not support Windows Home editions.

Multi-function. In addition to file transfer, AnyViewer also allows you to share screen, manage your computer remotely, communicate via the chat box in a remote session, etc.

Secure. It is secured by Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) encryption, preventing your data loss during the whole remote session.

Multi-session. AnyViewer supports multiple remote desktop connections to one PC, while for RDP, you need to buy more CALs to have multiple connections.

Download, install and launch AnyViewer on your devices, and follow the next steps to transfer files via AnyViewer.

Step 1. On the host PC, go to Log in interface and then click Sign up (log in directly if you have already signed up).

Step 2. Fill in the sign up information.

Step 3. When you successfully logged in to AnyViewer, your devices are automatically assigned to the account you’ve logged in to.

Step 4. On the client PC, go to the Device interface to choose the target device you want to achieve file transfer, and then click File transfer.

Step 5. Now you can see a File Transfer dialog box. The host PC is displayed there on the left of the box, while the client PC is displayed there on the right. To send the selected files to the client PC, click the right arrow after selecting the files you wish to send. To transfer files to the host PC, select the files and click the left arrow on the opposite side.

The transfer status is at the bottom of the box. Right-click to pause or remove the tasks.

Notes: AnyViewer file transfer support for a single file smaller than 100 MB for the free account, and you can transfer no more than 100 files per time. Upgrade to a Professional or Enterprise plan to transfer larger files. Then you'll have the following rights:

Transfer multiple files at once. You can get more details on the AnyViewer pricing website.

Speedier file transfer speed. Transfer speed for a free account is 500 KB/s, and for a paid account is up to 10 MB/s.

Assign more devices to the same account to achieve direct file transfer.

Connect to distant computers in privacy mode so that you can disable the remote device’s keyboard and mouse and completely black out its screen.

The bottom line

This post introduces how to enable RDP file transfer port. To transfer files using RDP, firstly you need to enable RDP on your computer and change the Firewall settings to make it accessible on the local Internet. If you want to use RDP over Internet, you need to set up port forwarding, which is a complicated process. Besides, the distinguished drawbacks are that RDP does not support Windows Home editions and the RDP file transfer speed is rather slow. In this case, AnyViewer might be the ideal option for you.