Forum Discussion
sign RDP file with timestamp
Currently, Microsoft does not provide an official method to timestamp `.rdp` file signatures.
`rdpsign.exe` only supports embedded signing of RDP files and unfortunately does not support RFC3161 timestamping or Authenticode timestamps. This means the signature validity is tied directly to the certificate validity period.
A few important points:
* `signtool.exe` cannot sign `.rdp` files because they are not PE/Authenticode-supported formats.
* `Set-AuthenticodeSignature` works only with standard Authenticode-capable file formats and often has issues with HSM-backed CSP/KSP providers depending on vendor implementation.
* `rdpsign.exe` uses the Remote Desktop signing mechanism, which is separate from standard Authenticode signing.
Because of this, timestamping RDP signatures is currently not supported by Microsoft tooling.
The practical/recommended approaches today are usually:
1. Use a long-validity code-signing certificate dedicated for RDP signing.
2. Renew/re-sign generated `.rdp` files before certificate expiration.
3. Automate RDP file regeneration and signing during certificate rollover.
4. Distribute the signing certificate chain properly to avoid additional trust warnings.
If using an HSM:
* Ensure the certificate is exposed through a legacy CSP or supported KSP provider.
* Some HSM vendors expose keys in a way that `rdpsign.exe` cannot consume correctly.
You can verify whether the private key is accessible with:
certutil -store my
and:
certutil -csp
Also check whether the certificate appears as:
“You have a private key that corresponds to this certificate”
inside `certlm.msc`.
Unfortunately, there is currently no supported Microsoft-native workflow for:
* RDP signing
* HSM-backed key usage
* AND RFC3161 timestamping together