Virtualize everything, Access Anywhere. Your Virtual Workspace Defines Your Success.
USB for Remote Desktop is an optimal virtual solution that lets you access your local USB devices while working in remote desktop session. It allows you to manage your USB devices more efficient and simply. Its virtualization capabilities are able to ease your work in remote session. Windows and Linux ready.
Challenge
While working in remote desktop session, you need access to your local USB devices. You can easily redirect disk drive or a printer to the remote session. But all the rest of your USB devices can't be redirected just as easily. Unfortunately there is no standard way to make local USB devices available in remote session. The only standard solution is plugging USB device directly to the remote server. But in the most of cases that is not acceptable.
Solution
FabulaTech has successfully resolved the above mentioned challenges by implementing an innovative virtual solution. USB for Remote Desktop lets you manage and work with your local USB devices from remote desktop session.
Here's how it works
The program consists of a Server and a Workstation. Workstation is installed on the computer to which the USB device is physically connected. Server side installs on the remote side [Microsoft Terminal Server or Citrix]. Now as soon as a user opens remote desktop session via RDP or Citrix ICA, local USB devices display as if they were directly connected to the remote computer.
Quick Instruction
- Download USB for Remote Desktop.
- Install USB for Remote Desktop Server on remote server.
- Install USB for Remote Desktop Workstation on workstations to which USB devices are connected.
| Microsoft RDP | Complete |
| Citrix ICA | Complete |
| Teradici PCoIP | Complete |
32 and 64-bit: Windows Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, 10, Server 2008, 2008 R2, 2012, 2012 R2, 2016, 2019
Linux kernel 2.6.12 or greater.
Workstation: one or more clients should be installed: FreeRDP, Citrix Workspace app, VMware Horizon, Teradici PCoIP, Amazon WorkSpaces.
Server: only PCoIP protocol currently supported. Teradici PCoIP Standard Agent should be installed.
USB for Remote Desktop Workstation
32 and 64-bit: Windows Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, 10, Server 2008, 2008 R2, 2012, 2012 R2, 2016, 2019
Linux kernel 2.6.12 or greater.
Workstation: one or more clients should be installed: FreeRDP, Citrix Workspace app, VMware Horizon, Teradici PCoIP, Amazon WorkSpaces.
Server: only PCoIP protocol currently supported. Teradici PCoIP Standard Agent should be installed.
Request a consultation
-
Hi,
Maybe you could go about it in a slightly different way, that is to have a shortcut on your local C: drive [which will never disconnect] pointing to your local E: drive. That way you will always be able to access C on Local Computer Name\ShortcutToUSB.
-
But what qould happened once USB is disconnected?
-
I tried your suggestion in following way:
- Pluged USB drive into local machine
- Created the shortcut on local machine that points to this USB
- logged into remote machine
- I was able to see that drive on remote machine
- I unplugged the drive at local machine
- USB is not visible on remote machine
- Plugged USB back into the local machine
- USB is not visible on remote computer
Is there a way to make it work that drive is visible on remote machine without restarting remote session.
Thanks
-
Redirected ports and devices are set up in RDP during initial connection. So I doubt you will find a way to set it up via redirected drives. Also the session number will change each time so the makes desktop shortcuts to redirected anything difficult. I've seen people use scripts in the past but no easy automated way to do it.Also enabling redirected drives to a server environment can be dangerous and a way to introduce malware to the server.
Network drive mapping is probably going to be your best bet for what you want to achieve.
-
RemoteFX may give you what you want in terms of adding and removing additional devices through a Remote Desktop session. I've used it in the past to allow USB license dongles to pass through to an RDP session, as well as laptop web cams and other hardware devices. You'll need to adjust some GPO settings on both the client and host machines to allow it to work, but network shares may be a better route for what you're looking to do.
When using the app to create a USB remote desktop connection, devices can be used on the remote machines with the same level of functionality as if they had a direct physical connection.
FlexiHub makes it easy accessing USB devices in remote desktop session, and avoid most common issues related to redirecting USB over RDP.
FlexiHub works by sharing the USB ports of the local computer with remote desktop instances. This makes it possible to access USB devices in remote desktop sessions as soon as they are plugged into the local machine.
FlexiHub offers users a user-friendly and efficient method of setting up USB redirection in remote desktop environments.
Unlike some other solutions, there is not a separate server and client portion that needs to be installed. The application presents users with a unified interface that displays all available devices for remote desktop USB passthrough.
No special system configuration is required to run FlexiHub and it supports a wide range of USB devices.
Modified on: Fri, 10 Jul, 2020 at 10:36 AM
USB Network Gate Product Page
Suppose, you need to connect to the remote computer via Remote Desktop Protocol [RDP] to perform some actions there. Or, say, your computer is a thin client with limited capabilities, so you connect to a more powerful server each time you need to work. And in this remote desktop session you need to use your USB device which is attached locally. The task becomes even more difficult when one needs an application, which is installed on the server, to access and process the data provided by the USB device.
The only solution is to redirect the USB device from your local machine to the server.
Currently, RDP clients permit to redirect certain USB devices like printers and USB flash drives, but the list of supported devices is limited [e.g. scanners are not supported]. Electronic Team provides you with the solution to this problem!
USB Network Gate permits to access any USB device plugged into local machine while working in remote desktop session. In fact, you share USB port, to which you can attach any USB device. Moreover, you can unplug one device, and plug in another one, without any additional configurations.
All you need to do is install USB Network Gate on both machines which participate in connection:
- On the local machine [where the client for Microsoft RDP protocol is installed], USB Network Gate Server should be installed to share USB devices over Remote Desktop Protocol. The client for Microsoft RDP protocol will be Remote Desktop Connection.
- On the remote machine [where Terminal Server, the server component for Microsoft RDP protocol, is installed], USB Network Gate Client should be installed to access shared USB devices over RDP.
Note: Actually, Server and Client parts of USB Network Gate are conveniently united in a single application. Please pay attention that registration is required for the server part only. You do not need to register the client part. Clients will be able to access remote USB devices, which are shared on the server machine, via client module even when trial period expires without any additional configurations.
So, once you connect to the server via RDP and establish connection with the shared device, this USB device will appear in the server’s Device Manager and will be recognized by all applications as local one.
Note: Since USB Network Gate version 7.x, support for ICA protocol was added. USB devices plugged into a thin client appear in a remote session over ICA.
Now let’s see the process of accessing USB port/device in remote desktop session step by step:
Your actions on the local machine [thin client] running Windows:
- Install and launch USB Network Gate.
- Share the required USB port/device.
- Connect to the remote desktop via Remote Desktop Connection.
Your actions on the remote server:
- Enter the password if the remote server requires it.
- Once you connect to the remote server via RDP, launch USB Network Gate.
- For your convenience, only devices that you shared on the host will be displayed on the guest computer in your RDP session. Though search for shared devices on the network will still be available.
- If you tick “Enable RDP autoconnect” option, connection with devices, shared on the host, will be established automatically in future by the program service, without starting the program GUI. This is very convenient when you often have to work with shared devices on the guest machine.
Note: Even if access to a shared USB device is password-protected by the server, the password won’t be asked when accessing this shared USB device in remote desktop session. This is caused by the fact, that RDP protocol uses its own password protection. USB Network Gate encryption won’t be used as well, as internal RDP encryption algorithm will be used.
USB Device Isolation on Windows
Per-session USB device isolation allows assigning a particular USB device to a particular user, which is extremely useful in multi-user environment.
With the help of per-session USB device isolation, it is possible to isolate users’ USB devices in their RDP session, so that they become not visible and accessible by other users. Isolation is currently supported for the following devices: USB Flash Drives and USB cameras in test mode. To enable USB device isolation in RDP session, tick the corresponding option when connecting to the shared USB device over RDP protocol.
Note: In case multiple RDP sessions for the same user are run, a USB camera connected in one session will be available in all other sessions of this user.
Did you find it helpful? Yes No