How to Fix Common Remote Desktop Connection Problems

When facing RDP connection failures, the first thing you need to do is to verify whether the credentials are correct or not.

When credentials are incorrect, you will get the following error message "The logon attempt failed". There are some causes behind this issue.

Make sure username and password are copied right

One of the causes is that the username/IP/port, or the password, or all are wrong. You may be pretty postive that you have entered the right password as you only copy and paste it to the fields. However, it happens when you copy and paste a password into the password field, a white space is copied along with the password. This will cause logon errors. So please check if the username and password are correct and make sure that there is no blanks before your password.

Check if it's due to the Windows security settings

Another cause is Windows security settings. Some users have reported that while Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) functioned flawlessly on system versions like Windows 7, they encountered errors when using Windows 10 or after reinstalling their operating systems. This issue suggests that the problem could be attributed to the Windows security settings, specifically those designed to restrict non-administrative users from logging in. If you want to allow non-admin users to use RDP, you need to log in as admin and modify this policy first.

Make sure IP and port are correct

The default Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) port number for Windows servers is 3389. The default port are frequently targeted by ransomware attacks. Therefore, it's considered good practice to not use the standard port and change to a custom one. After the port change, you need to specify the server using the IP with the port included at the end by a colon (IP:port), for example, 1.1.1.1:3389.

If you are still using the default port, it's highly recommended to change it to a non-standard port. Check the written guide on how you can change the RDP port. Refer to the following tutorial if you prefer a video guidance.

When your hosting service is suspended or canceled for some reason, you will not be able to connect to your server. Therefore, do make sure that your hosting service is active. At Database Mart, clients can log in to their billing account and check the service status.

Suspension/cancellation can result from an overdue on payment. Before your server is canceled, it's recommended to make payment immediately to get servers unsuspended. If a server is canceled, you may not be able to make payment and are at the risk of losing all data in the server.

Suspension/cancellation can also be caused by IP abuse, including phishing, spam, DDoS, malware, hacking, and other similar attacks. Hosting providers often strictly prohibite IP abuse, which is crucial for maintaining network stability, resource allocation fairness, security, privacy, compliance, reputation, and trust within the digital ecosystem. If it's for IP abuse, you should already receive an email regarding this matter.

When the remote server is off, you definitely cannot connect to it.

You may come across an error message like below.

You can see if the server is turned on through a control panel that is used to manage your server. Database Mart provide free control panels, such as SolidCP and IPMI. If you have a control panel, then you can refer to the following guidance to reboot the servers by yourself. Otherwise, you may have to contact the hosting provider to restart the server for you.

For VPS, see How to reboot the VPS with SolidCP.

For dedicated server, visit How To Reboot the Dedicated Server with IPMI Remotely.

When you are using a remote server that is not from your own country, then it could result in RDP failures if your IP address or the server IP address is blocked by national firewall rules set by either of the countries.

You can Check if the server IP is blocked from any countries by visiting this site https://ping.pe/. Simply enter in an IP and see which countries are blocking it.Ideally, the “Loss %” column is showing 0% for each location and mostly solid green bars in the “Chart” column. China is usually the toughest firewall to get through.

Check the network using Ping, Telnet, and Tracert command.

Ping server IP

The following screenshot shows that a ping result.

If you get the result "Destination host unreachable" when you ping your server IP, it means the network configuration is incorrect. In this case, you can contact your hosting provider for help.

If the ping request has timed out or worked, please continue using telnet command to test the RDP/SSH connection.

Telnet RDP port

Open a command prompt. Type in "telnet IP-ADDRESS PORT" and press enter. For example, you would type "telnet 1.1.1.1 3389." If it works, you will see the following output.

If you get the "Connect failed" error like below, please contact your hosting provider for assistance.

If you get the internal error, the quickest method to resolve this is to reboot the server. Please refer to the following guide to reboot your server.

For VPS, see How to reboot the VPS with SolidCP.

For dedicated server, visit How To Reboot the Dedicated Server with IPMI Remotely.