Today we decided to write about RDP port, in the following article, major features and uses of the RDP port we will get into it in more detail.
To put in the simplest terms, RDP stands for Remote Desktop Protocol. This protocol’s main function is to allow the user with a graphical interface to connect to another device over any preferred network remotely. When using this protocol, the user must use the RDP client software. On the other hand, the receiving end should use the appropriate server software to establish the RDP connection.
RDP is a popular proprietary protocol developed by Microsoft, and the client service for using this exists for most operating systems like Linux, Android, iOS, UNIX, Windows, and more. This is a safe-to-use protocol as the network is shared only over an encrypted channel, ensuring the sender and the receiver’s security.
What is the RDP port?
Now that you see what RDP is and what it does, the next question is, what is an RDP port? The RDP port refers to the digital port used by the client or terminal server to run an RDP session.
You can check your computer’s RDP port number through a series of simple commands. In general, it is found to be port number 3389. As mentioned already, this RDP allows remote access through a graphical interface over a network, but it is very secure. This is done mostly by the network or software administrators to diagnose any problems that might affect your system.
Who uses this?
RDP allows remote access to your device. This can be scary for you to think that someone has access to your device over a network, but that is a misconception. RDP is a protocol that is only a protocol used by network administrators to identify issues in the network or the system that you might be facing.
There are multiple users on a network, and there will be issues that top-up from time to time while you are using the system. Using the RDP port is the best way the network administrators can get remote access to your system to diagnose the potential issues that might be causing the problems and working towards resolving them. To do this, they use the client and server software mentioned at the beginning. So in simple terms, the RDP can also be considered an enhanced version of the application sharing protocol.
Major features/uses of the RDP port
The RDP port is a very secure network connection between users, allowing them to operate on it to remove the system issues. This feature or ability to create a secure connection among the clients and servers makes it very handy to be used for different purposes, so the RDP port has several features other than just being a diagnostic tool.
Remote data storage is a strong suit of this protocol, allowing it to establish connections with increased physical security.
Some of the major features of RDP are as follows:
- Authentication of smart cards by establishing a connection between the server and the client
- Reduction of bandwidth
- Allows the user to connect to multiple displays with ease
- Can temporarily be used to disconnect from a system without logging off
- Widely used for offering virtualized GPU services
- Mouse, keyboard data can be secured through 128-bit encryption which is achieved by using RC4 encryption
- Has the ability for redirecting the audio from a remote system to the user’s interface
- The previous feature is also applied to the local files to provide them to the user
- Allows the user to use the remote desktop’s local printers
- Applications that are being used in the session using the RDP can also access the local ports of the desktop the network is connected to
- The clipboard that is in use will be shared as a common one between the local and the remote systems
- The user’s computer can also access and run the local applications of the remotely connected device
- Offers TLS support or Transport Layer Security
How does this protocol operate with the help of the RDP port?
This has been mentioned already, but for clarity, it is elaborated in this section. Using the RDP port allows the user to connect to any remote device over a network. This opens up both ends for multichannel communications.
The Remote Data Protocol or the RDP operates by accessing the RDP port or port number 3389. The number is the same in almost all the systems.
The RDP application sorts the data to be transmitted into packages. The data packets are then sent through an RDP channel with the help of the Microsoft Communications Service. For the rest of the process, the operating system itself encrypts the data for security purposes.
Now there is a lot of activity happening in the RDP based on what the users are using it for. The Terminal Server Device Redirector Driver handles all these activities and functions. The two most important components of this driver are the RDP driver and the transport driver. Out of these, the RDP driver maintains and handles the interfaces, transmission, and encryption. On the other hand, the transport driver’s responsibility is to arrange and sort the protocol in a manner, such that it can be communicated across a TCP/IP network layer.
Is it secure?
RDP ports grant access to the local files and devices connected to the remote system to enjoy mostly unlimited access to the client system. That’s why it is ideally recommended that the RDP port is used only by the network administrators and that too, in very necessary situations. Since there is an abundance of control offered by RDP, it is recommended that the user follow the guidelines for ethical RDP practices and operate at the lowest level of privilege possible.
Over the years, RDP’s security has been enhanced, but there have been some lapses in the past. The older versions of this protocol often allowed a man-in-the-middle attack. This allowed the intruder to barge into the communication channel and gain unbridled access to the host device. These versions were vulnerable to computer worms and hash attacks as well. Normal forceful hack attacks can also be attempted against RDP, but they have proven to be very less effective.
Microsoft, who is the developer of this protocol, has made the RDP way more impenetrable in recent years. Special features have been added that allow the user to specify the clients who can communicate through the RDP session. The modern RDP sessions do not allow any user end communication unless they have a network level authorization. So there is nothing to worry about because the modern RDP port is very safe to use.