Remote Desktop doesn't maximize to fullscreen

I have a problem with Remote Desktop connection in Windows 7. When I connect to remote computer I would like to switch to fullscreen like I did in previous versions - just by clicking maximize. When I was in fullscreen mode and I moved the mouse to the upper border of the screen, a nice bar appeared and I could minimize RDP or close it.

In Windows 7 when I click on the maximize button the window maximizes like a normal window - menu start/taskbar (whatever you call it) is still visible and because the resolution of the RDP client desktop is set like on the computer that I'm using it's not fully visible and scrollbars appear. That's really annoying.

Can anyone tell me what to do? Is it a bug or maybe there is a "magic shortcut" that is poorly documented and does the trick? (I was trying to find it myself first of course, but no result)

kubal5003

Posted 2010-01-11T23:27:31.053

Reputation: 449

1What do you have listed for your settings under the Display tab in the RDP client screen? Is it set all the way to the right? I can RDP to my 1680x1050 session with a 1280x1024 monitor without scrollbars in fullscreen. – Darren Hall – 2010-01-11T23:59:09.100

Answers

Try CTRL+ALT+BREAK - that should put you back in full screen mode.

Craig

Posted 2010-01-11T23:27:31.053

Reputation:

4@Manu The key is Pause/Break. I'm sure that you have the key, you just might have to use a function key to access it. – MiniRagnarok – 2014-10-01T12:49:38.360

@MiniRagnarok I thought so too, but I think they just removed it from the keyboard (dell inspiron 15). See http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/electronics/dell/cnet_inspiron15_rev3521_gallery_14_800.jpg

– Manu – 2014-10-01T13:19:17.777

3@Manu I can't believe Dell would leave you with no alternative. That's just dumb. It looks like most people had to resort to registry tweaks to map the Pause/Break key to something, use an external keyboard, or use the on-screen keyboard. It's absolutely ridiculous. – MiniRagnarok – 2014-10-01T13:33:36.290

@Manu Try Ctrl+Fn+Alt+Insert – sax – 2016-08-22T17:21:08.717

5What a weird (moronic) shortcut :O – Manu – 2014-02-18T15:13:34.397

2Plus, I don't have a break key on my laptop. – Manu – 2014-02-18T15:20:55.573

When you launch RDP dialog and before you logon/connect to the remote computer, select the Display Tab and set your display configuration. If you want full screen mode, set the slider all the way to the right.

cyclo

Posted 2010-01-11T23:27:31.053

Reputation: 429

Try clicking the "Restore down" button and then "Maximize" again, that worked for me. – Eugene – 2010-02-04T01:21:16.440

That works, but when I minimize I can't return to fullscreen is there a way to fix it ? – kubal5003 – 2010-01-12T01:03:52.260

Strange, when you minimize that shouldn't happen. Try restarting the remote session. – grooveDexter – 2010-01-12T02:59:32.557

This is a known issue with systems running Windows 7 / Server 2008 R2 whose resolution is set at 1366×768. Microsoft has created a hotfix which you can read about / request here:

Remote desktop is not displayed in Full-Screen mode when the screen resolution is 1366× 768 pixels in Windows 7 or in Windows Server 2008 R2

If you're lazy or don't want to give MS your email, you can just download it from here. Just know that by doing so Microsoft will have no way of notifying you if there is a recall on the fix.

Hobo Spider

Posted 2010-01-11T23:27:31.053

Reputation: 356

This is very similar to question Remote Desktop won't maximize--which offers helpful images of how to configure your RDP session prior to logging in.

Also, Craig's suggestion of pressing ctrl-alt-break works well if your session fails to maximize when logging in or if it randomly jumps out of full-screen mode while in a session.

Finally, if you happen to prefer having the RDP title bar visible at the top of the screen during full-screen mode, but without the annoyance of scrollbars to the right and bottom of your screen, open your saved .rdp session file in a text editor and edit the following lines:

screen mode id:i:1
desktopwidth:i:<set to screen width>
desktopheight:i:<set to screen height>

Consider adjusting desktopheight:i to a lower number than the screen height if you prefer to keep the taskbar of your local computer visible beneath the RDP window.

Waldhorn

Posted 2010-01-11T23:27:31.053

Reputation: 121

I resolved a similar problem. I am using Windows 10 and RDPing into a Linux box. Setting my RDP to full screen mode and having the session maximized did not prevent horizontal and vertical scroll bars from appearing. To get rid of these bars, I saved my RDP connection settings by pressing Save As... on the first tab of the configuration. Then, I opened the saved *.rdp file in a text editor (Notepad or Wordpad will work.) I then added this line to the top of the file, saved it and used this .rdp file to successfully log in without scroll bars:

smart sizing:i:1

Dan Spiegel

Posted 2010-01-11T23:27:31.053

Reputation: 11

If you have win 7 SP1 it high recommended to update to new rdp client 8.1 :

Update for RDP 8.1 is available for Windows 7 SP1

It go to full screen automatically, or by right click in title bar. new rdp client

hadj messaoud

Posted 2010-01-11T23:27:31.053

Reputation: 87

I am Using Dell Latitude E5450 Laptop with windows 7. Ctrl + Alt + Fn + B worked for me.

theBestIsYetToCome

Posted 2010-01-11T23:27:31.053

Reputation: 1

I've also seen users not being able to maximize because of the Screen setting "Use multiple monitors for this connection" - when this is checked, the Full screen slider remains locked.

Haakon

Posted 2010-01-11T23:27:31.053

Reputation: 1

Welcome to SuperUser - as this is not an answer, please post it as a comment as opposed to an answer. This will allow actual answers to be separated from commentary posts and help answers get found easier. – Fazer87 – 2015-01-16T09:19:11.593

When you log in, in the dialog box where you put your username and password, there is a little drop down arrow in the bottom left for "Show options". Under the display tab, first try full screen under Display Configuration. If that doesn't work, change it to the resolution of your screen -- mine is 1920x1080. This will allow you to go full screen.

I run 4 monitors, all of which are different. This confuses the RDM. Just change the resolution to your screen's maximum resolution and you should be fine.

user2766130

Posted 2010-01-11T23:27:31.053

Reputation: 1

-1

Though this thread is for RDP, I faced similar issue in RDCMan so sharing it FYI. I resolved it by unckecking "Lock Window Size" in View...

R.T.

Posted 2010-01-11T23:27:31.053

Reputation: 1

Welcome to Super User. You can freely edit your own posts but for your protection, this must be done under the original user account. It looks like you have created a second account. See Merge my accounts to get your accounts merged, which will solve the problem.

– fixer1234 – 2016-06-21T06:56:52.660

Could also include a screenshot on where to locate this option? – Burgi – 2016-06-21T07:38:31.193

-1

I solved this problem by going to the icons on my local toolbar and unpinning the most recent ones from my toolbar. Immediately, upon unpinning a password manager, my remote toolbar appeared.

user997459

Posted 2010-01-11T23:27:31.053

Reputation: 1

Thank you for trying to be helpful. However, your explanation indicates your problem was different than the one OP was trying to solve. – music2myear – 2019-02-12T18:07:35.217