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xddsg
Asked: 2012-02-15 06:30:18 +0800 CST

Send Ctrl-Alt-Del to nested RDP session

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Is there a way to send the Ctrl-Alt-Del command to an RDP session (Windows Server 2008 R2) inside another RDP session (also Windows Server 2008 R2) without the first session catching it?

Ctrl+Alt+End and Ctrl+Alt+Shift+End do not reach the 2nd level session.

Top-level environment is Windows 7 Enterprise.

rdp windows-7 mstsc keyboard-shortcuts windows-server-2008-r2

11 Answers

  1. Best Answer

    Use the On-Screen Keyboard (osk.exe). You can press Ctrl-Alt-Del virtually!

    (Note: you may need to hold the CTRL and ALT keys on your physical keyboard (Windows Server 2012-R2))

    On-Screen Keyboard

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  2. I found a way to make this work. I frequently work with nested RDP sessions that go in several levels deep. That's just how I prefer to work, especially with lots of VMs.

    Keep in mind that my environment is primarily Windows 7 and Server 2008 R2.

    Here's the scenario: I RDP from Computer A to Computer B and from Computer B to Computer C.

    1. If I want to send Ctrl+Alt+Del to Computer A, I type Ctrl+Alt+Del from Computer A

    2. If I want to send Ctrl+Alt+Del to Computer B, I type Ctrl+Alt+End from Computer A

    3. If I want to send Ctrl+Alt+Del to Computer C, I open the On-Screen Keyboard on Computer B and use it to type Ctrl+Alt+End, which sends Ctrl+Alt+Del to Computer C

    4. If I try to use the On-Screen Keyboard to send Ctrl+Alt+Del on ANY of those three machines, it refers me to the Start menu, which does not help me at all.

    So, to send Ctrl+Alt+Del to a remote machine, simply use the OSK to send Ctrl+Alt+End from the session just before the remote machine you are trying to send it to. Works every time.

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  3. You can also create a shortcut that performs the CTRL-ALT-DEL action for you (very useful in environments where OSK is not accessible.) Create a shortcut to the following:

    C:\Windows\explorer.exe shell:::{2559a1f2-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}

    Double-click that shortcut to access the CTRL-ALT-DEL screen.

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  4. Set both RDP sessions to Send Windows keys to remote window.

    enter image description here

    Now, to send Ctrl-Alt-Del to the first session, use Alt-Ctrl-Del. To send commands to the second window, use Alt-Ctrl-End.

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  5. There is another way you can specify where the Windows key combinations will be executed in the RDP Options Local Resources tab. In the section Keyboard you can choose On this computer, on the remote computer of Only when using the full screen. If you choose on the remote computer Ctrl Alt END will allow you to start a taskmanager in the nested rdp connection. Lifesaver if you managed to close the command Window on a core machine.

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  6. I came across this solution but it didn't work for me. The OSK had been disabled and I couldn't bring it up. Found this works if you're only looking at a single nested RDP session.

    i.e. Session B inside Session A.

    Shift + Ctrl + Alt + End

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  7. If you can setup TeamViewer or similar in the first session, Ctrl + Alt + End will then work for the second RDP session

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  8. I know this is old but I thought I would provide an answer as I figured out how to make the keyboard shortcut work. For me, I had to specifically use the Left Shift key and the Right Control and Alt keys and then press End to have it pass through to the second level RDP session.

    I suggest anyone having issues with Shift+Control+Alt+End to try every combination they can on their keyboard to see if it works.

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  9. In the nested RDP session:

    1. Turn ON [NumLock]
    2. Press: SHIFT(any) + CTRL + ALT + End (num pad - under 1)
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  10. In case someone finds this via a Windows 10 server setup where the OSK doesn't have an END key, I was also able to replicate this by enabling the full OSK keyboard under settings in the first nested RDP window, pressing CTRL + ALT on the OSK keyboard followed by END on my physical keyboard.

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