RemoteApp - auto open .rdp file

[elltommo]

Hi All,

When we log on to microsoft remoteapp and open an application from Edge the .rdp file doesn't auto-open. I am sure this is by design for security purposes. Is there a way we can specify that a specific file type or any file from a specific URL auto opens e.g. auto open .rdp files from remoteapp.mycompany.com? 

Thanks!

[#2 · Accepted solution]

We managed to get RemoteApp working in Edge  We did this by forcing our RemoteApp login page to open in IE mode. 

[#3]

@elltommo  The only browser that opened RDP files automatically was IE since it used the MSTSC ActiveX controls that knew how to call the RDC client to process it.  With other browsers such as Chrome or the new Edge it going to hand it off to Windows to do a file association lookup when you select open but we do have a workaround.  If you click on the 3 dots next to the downloaded RDP file you will see the option "Always open files of this type".  If you choose that then select mstsc.exe it will then know just to call upon the RDC client to processes those files going forward. 

[#4]

@JLouque Is there any way for an administrator to configure this option through policy, rather than requiring each user to set it individually?

[#5]

I've seen "Open With" done by GPO but to my knowledge I haven't seen it for "Always open files of this type"

[#6]

@Steve Whitcher 

According to a July 2020 reply in another thread controlling autoopen for file types via GPO was added in V85.

[#7]

Try this GPO setting, it works with RDWEB just nicely:

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/DeployEdge/microsoft-edge-policies#autoopenfiletypes

I would also recommend setting AutoOpenAllowedForURLs for certain security considerations. Easiest way to do this is just to enter yourcompanydomain.com to the list without anything else and that's it.

However... This setting does not work with new RD Web Client for some reason:

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/remote/remote-desktop-services/clients/remote-deskto...

With that Edge just downloads the file and does not auto open. Reason might be that Web Client generates URLs as blob:https:// instead of https://. So this is something that I think Microsoft should be fixing either at Edge or then with Web Client.