Remote Desktop iOS

Remote Desktop Access for iOS (iPhone & iPad)

You must know the name of the computer to which you want to connect. If you are connecting to your office PC at Olin, you can determine your computer name by doing the following.

  • In the search box, type “computer name” and click View your PC name. Your computer name will be listed as PC name or Device name. Append “.olin.wustl.edu” to this for the full computer name. For example, if your computer name is 1200-WD-12345, the name you need to use is 1200-WD-12345.olin.wustl.edu.

Setup Remote Desktop

  1. If you have not installed Microsoft Remote Desktop, download and install Microsoft Remote Desktop from the App Store.
  2. Open the Remote Desktop client.
  3. Tap Settings.
  4. Tap
  5. Tap Add gateway.
  6. Tap Gateway name, enter RDS Olin, and tap Save.
  7. Tap Server, enter olin-gateway.wustl.edu, and tap Save.
  8. Tap Save on the Gateway 
  9. Tap Settings.
  10. Tap Done.

You have now added a Remote Desktop Gateway. Your next step is to create a computer connection.

  1. Tap New Remote Desktop.
  2. Tap Connection name and enter a name for this connection.
  3. Tap PC name, enter the full name of the computer to which you are trying to connect, and tap Save.
  4. Tap User name and enter your username and password where indicated. Make sure you enter your username in the format ACCOUNTS\username. Replace username with your username. Tap
  5. Tap Gateway, then tap RDS Olin.
  6. Tap Save on the Remote Desktop 

You have now added a computer to the list. If you have other computers to which you need to connect, repeat steps 11-16.

Using Remote Desktop

  1. Open the Microsoft Remote Desktop app.
  2. Tap the computer name to which you want to connect.
  3. If you are prompted to enter a logon, enter yourusername and password when prompted. Make sure you enter your username as ACCOUNTS\username. Replace username with your username. For example, if your username is JOHNSON, you would ACCOUNTS\JOHNSON, depending on which account you are using. Select Store to save the credentials.

Ending your Session

To end your Remote Desktop session, we recommend you logoff. If you just close the Remote Desktop program or if you select Disconnect, your remote session remains open. Only use the disconnect option if you need to stay logged in.

  1. In the remote session, go to Start and select Logoff (to logoff your remote session) or Disconnect (to keep your remote session logged in).

Adding Remote Gateway to an Existing Connection

If you already have connections that are not using a gateway, follow these steps to add a gateway. If you do not add a gateway, you must connect to the VPN using Cisco AnyConnect before using Remote Desktop.

  1. Click Preferences.
  2. If RDS Olin is already listed, you can stop here.
  3. Click the plus sign (+) to add a new gateway.
  4. Click Gateway name, enter RDS Olin, and click Save.
  5. Click Server, enter olin-gateway.wustl.edu, and click Save.
  6. Click Save on the Gateway screen.

To edit a connection to use a gateway, do the following:

  1. Tap the information icon for the connection you want to change.
  2. If RDS Olin is already listed for the Gateway, you can tap Cancel and stop here.
  3. Tap Gateway.
  4. Tap RDS Olin.
  5. Tap Save.
  6. Repeats these steps for any other connections you may have.

Additional Information

For additional detailed information, please refer to Microsoft’s Getting Started with Remote Desktop Client on iOS and FAQ for Remote Desktop Client on iOS.