How to View Connection History Remote Desktop on Windows 10, 11

Can I view Remote Desktop connection history on Windows 10?

“I want to know who (IP address) and when have logged into my computer via Remote Desktop. Is there any way to achieve this? Thanks!”

How to view connection history of Remote Desktop on Windows 10, 11

Windows built-in Remote Desktop Connection makes it possible to access the computer remotely.  Wonder can you check remote desktop connection history? The answer is Yes! Here in this part, we provide you with two methods to view connection history of Remote Desktop on Windows 10, 11.

Method 1. Check the RDP connection history via Event Viewer

Step 1. Press Win + R to invoke the Run dialog box, then type in “eventvwr.msc” and press OK to open Event Viewer.

Step 2. Navigate here: Applications and Services Logs > Microsoft > Windows > TerminalServices-RemoteConnectionManager > Operational. Right-click Operational and choose Filter Current Log.

Step 3. The EventID of Remote Desktop Services is 1149. Then enter 1149 to filter the log.

Step 4. Then you will get an event list with the history of all RDP connections to this server.

Step 5. Click one of them, then you can see the details of the RDP connection, including IP address, computer name, login time, etc.

Method 2. Check the RDP connection history via Registry

Step 1. Press Win + R to invoke the Run dialog box, then type in “regedit” and press OK to open Registry.

Step 2. Navigate here: HKEY_CURRENT_USER > SOFTWARE > Microsoft > Terminal Server Client > Default. Then you can see the RDP connections you’ve made here.

How to clear connection history of Remote Desktop on Windows 10, 11

If you want to clear RDP connection histories, here we provide you with two options as well.

Option 1. Clear the RDP cache from the Registry

Step 1. After you’ve seen the RDC history, follow Method 2 in the last section,  right-click it and then choose Delete.

Step 2. On the left pane, find and expand the Servers key; this contains the details of all the RDP connections that have ever been made from this machine. Choose the user (or users) you want to delete, then right-click UsernameHint to delete it.

Step 3. Finally, delete the default.rdp file found in your home path. This is a hidden file and will not show or delete by default. Press WIN + R and then type in “cmd” to open the Command Prompt.

Step 4. Then enter the following delete command:

del /ah %homepath%\documents\default.rdp

Option 2. Clear RDP cache via CMD

Open Command Prompt, enter the following commands and press enter one by one. Here we take the first command as an example. You only need to enter the next command once the former operation has been completed successfully.

• reg delete “HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Terminal Server Client\Default” /va /f
• reg delete “HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Terminal Server Client\Servers” /f
• reg add “HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Terminal Server Client\Servers” del /ah %homepath%\documents\default.rdp

  

Further reading: a free alternative to RDP to manage and access remote PC easier

If you want to access and manage your computer easier, we suggest you use AnyViewer, a free and easy third-party remote desktop software. Check out the following steps to see how easy to get started with it, you can check out its connection histories and delete connection histories.

 Step 1. Download, install, and launch AnyViewer on both computers.

Step 2. Go to Log in, and then click Sign up. (If you already have signed up on its official website, you can log in directly.)

Step 3. Fill in the signup information and you can see you successfully logged in to AnyViewer. Your device will automatically be assigned to the account you've logged in to.

Step 4. Log in to the same AnyViewer account on the two devices, then click One-click control to achieve unattended remote access.

✍ Note: If you want to assign more devices to achieve unattended remote access, then you can upgrade your account to a Professional or Enterprise plan. Also, you can connect to another computer in privacy mode, which means you can black the screen and block the mouse and keyboard of the remote computer; enjoy high-quality image; transfer files at a higher speed; and so on. 

Step 5. Go to the Device tab, then you can see all your connection history here.

If you want to delete the connection history, you can right-click the device and choose Remove device.

Conclusion

This post mainly introduces two methods to view connection history of Remote Desktop on Windows 10. Besides, two options to clear remote connection histories are also included. But if you would like to try remote desktop software that is easy to check out connection histories, you can use AnyViewer.