Remote Desktop

[darkskylayton]

I'm running my scanner stream on Broadcastify through a remote Intel NUC. I configure it using remote desktop to the windows 11 Pro. Everything works fine up until I close the remote session. The audio of the scanner stops but the broadcast continues without audio traffic from the scanner. I have to re-remote back in and restart the broadcast software to get it working again. This happens both with ScannerCast and Proscann. I am using a BCD430hp. My remote desktop configuration also keeps the audio at the remote computer as well. Any help would be appreciated, Thanks.

 

[Whiskey3JMC]

Welcome to the RR forums. Consider using Anydesk in place of RDP. That's what I use and nothing is ever interrupted when I close the session

 

[Chronic]

Sounds like the PC is hibernating or going to sleep , Go into power options and turn sleeping and hibernating off

 

[darkskylayton]

Sounds like the PC is hibernating or going to sleep , Go into power options and turn sleeping and hibernating off

Good thought, but both screen and sleep is set to never. It's still serving to Broadcastify just not the radio traffic. I can ping it and everything. so I don't think it's that. I even tried it on a different PC and it does it as well. It stops the audio immediately when I close the Remote connection but still stays connected to the Broadcastify server.

 

[Whiskey3JMC]

Sounds like the PC is hibernating or going to sleep , Go into power options and turn sleeping and hibernating off

Broadcast wouldn't continue as the OP reported if the PC went to sleep...

 

[LimaZulu]

That's rough explanation but basically RDP is hijacking audio devices and creates "virtual" audio device which uses to relay audio to the remote machine. As a result the applications that need to be bonded to a specific in/out device no longer sees them because they have been "hijacked".
The easiest way to deal with that is to use apps like AnyDesk, as mentioned above. Just be prepared that if you use it on a regular basis, soon or a later AnyDesk servers will suspect you in commercial use and will limit your sessions to a maximum of 1 hour and will gradually increase the wait time before establishing connection. I have seen timers counting a 1000 seconds before connection and another 1000 seconds after that. That's total of 2000 seconds just to start using the computer you are connecting to

 

[darkskylayton]

That's rough explanation but basically RDP is hijacking audio devices and creates "virtual" audio device which uses to relay audio to the remote machine. As a result the applications that need to be bonded to a specific in/out device no longer sees them because they have been "hijacked".
The easiest way to deal with that is to use apps like AnyDesk, as mentioned above. Just be prepared that if you use it on a regular basis, soon or a later AnyDesk servers will suspect you in commercial use and will limit your sessions to a maximum of 1 hour and will gradually increase the wait time before establishing connection. I have seen timers counting a 1000 seconds before connection and another 1000 seconds after that. That's total of 2000 seconds just to start using the computer you are connecting to

Thanks so much. I will try that and keep you posted.

 

[LimaZulu]

As an alternative I can suggest RustDesk for remote connection. It is as good as AnyDesk, it's free, it's multiplatform and so far connections are limitless in time

 

[BinaryMode]

And let me be another user to suggest my solution.

I use the VNC (RFB protocol) for my "RDP" capability. Specifically with a program called TightVNC. There's also UltraVNC.

Out of the box, VNC allows you to see other computers over your LAN in you home. But if you want remote access you can do one of two things: Use the reverse VPN called Zerotier or create an OpenVPN or Wireguard server in a compatible router running third-party firmware like ASUS Merlin, DD-WRT, and the likes. I use OPNsense as my router/firewall appliance that has all three capabilities of Zerotier, OpenVPN and Wireguard. Even IPsec actually. Probably way beyond most people's pay grade. But worth a mention. Yes, there are VNC, and Zerotier smartphone Apps so remote capability is within your grasp on a phone or tablet. There's even a TeamSpeak App so if you run a local TeamSpeak server you can pipe that audio over a VPN or Zerotier.

By far the easiest would be to use Zerotier rather than spin up your own home VPN solution. So then you'd use the Zerotier App on your phone or tablet and once that connection is established you can use a VNC App to remote into the computer at home. What Zerotier effectively does is gives you local access like you're actually at home.


Tips:

I personally don't trust RDP (or Samba/NetBIOS for that matter)...

Grab your external WAN IP address and head on over to Shodan or Censys. See your awesome open port there? Yeah, anyone can pry it open if they wanted to. There are tools in Kali Linux or Parrot OS to do so.

Anydesk, TeamViewer, meh... That's someone else's server, not your own and who knows if they're monitoring the traffic. I mean, the privacy invasion, you know? Not only that, but they can and will get hacked. Account take over has happened with TeamViewer. That's why if you do chose to use one of these remote desktop solutions you make sure to use REAL 2FA with the account. When I say real 2FA (Two Factor Authentication) that means at least the OTP (One Time Password) capability that uses a simple base32 number and time. You may have heard of such software like Authy or Google Authenticator. Those are two Apps you can use, but I don't. I use something open source and not so privacy invading called Aegis. Aegis is a 2FA Android App that you can find in the Google play store or at F-Droid. I'd use F-droid (or you can use the Aurora play store) My password manager of choice for my phone is Keepass2Android and it too offers 2FA ability. And I use both Aegis and the Keepass2Android password manager for redundancy with 2FA. The only downside is that you MUST backup these databases yourself. That's the price and cumbersomeness you pay for privacy and security.

Some people just want to use it and forget it and that's what we dorks call a "normy." LOL Also, the paid for password manager Bitwarden ($10/year) offers 2FA ability. And they are cross platform all over hell. At this time of my post I highly recommend Bitwarden. It's not perfect, but I like it for what it does and its open source nature, security audits (I take "audits" with a grain of salt, really) and whatnot and I use it to augment my MAIN password manager on the computer called KeePass. Not KeePassXC, but KeePass. Didn't care for the XC version. In KeePass there is a 2FA plug-in you can add. All the plug-ins are listed at the KeePass website. Again, you MUST back up its database yourself. And do so all over hell, too. I do.

If Anydesk et al offers Yubikey and the likes I'd be inclined to use that. 2FA with a phone number or e-mail address is extremely insecure and privacy invading to say the least.


Here are all the links with what I'm talking about. Read, and read some more.


TightVNC (main website isn't working right now).

Home - UltraVNC VNC OFFICIAL SITE, Remote Desktop Free Opensource

VNC remote desktop support software for remote PC control. Free. Anydesk , teamviewer alternative

uvnc.com

ZeroTier | Next-Generation Connectivity and Cybersecurity

Connect everything, from cloud to IoT, with the next-generation global network solution. Simple, resilient, and secure networking in minutes.

www.zerotier.com

Aegis Authenticator

Aegis Authenticator is a free, secure and open source app for Android to manage your 2-step verification tokens for your online services.

getaegis.app

KeePass Password Safe

KeePass is a free open source password manager. Passwords can be stored in an encrypted database, which can be unlocked with one master key.

keepass.info

Plugins - KeePass

keepass.info

Best Password Manager for Business, Enterprise & Personal | Bitwarden

Bitwarden is the most trusted password manager for passwords and passkeys at home or at work, on any browser or device. Start with a free trial.

bitwarden.com

Compliance | Bitwarden

Bitwarden is dedicated to compliance with international standards for security and privacy.

bitwarden.com

Yubico Home

Get the YubiKey, the #1 security key, offering strong two factor authentication from industry leader Yubico.

www.yubico.com

(and for extra credit LOL) OPNsense® a true open source security platform and more - OPNsense® is a true open source firewall and more

This is why I'm not married, folks... LOL

As an alternative I can suggest RustDesk for remote connection. It is as good as AnyDesk, it's free, it's multiplatform and so far connections are limitless in time

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nzHm3xGz2I

 

[darkskylayton]

And let me be another user to suggest my solution.

I use the VNC (RFB protocol) for my "RDP" capability. Specifically with a program called TightVNC. There's also UltraVNC.

Out of the box, VNC allows you to see other computers over your LAN in you home. But if you want remote access you can do one of two things: Use the reverse VPN called Zerotier or create an OpenVPN or Wireguard server in a compatible router running third-party firmware like ASUS Merlin, DD-WRT, and the likes. I use OPNsense as my router/firewall appliance that has all three capabilities of Zerotier, OpenVPN and Wireguard. Even IPsec actually. Probably way beyond most people's pay grade. But worth a mention. Yes, there are VNC, and Zerotier smartphone Apps so remote capability is within your grasp on a phone or tablet. There's even a TeamSpeak App so if you run a local TeamSpeak server you can pipe that audio over a VPN or Zerotier.

By far the easiest would be to use Zerotier rather than spin up your own home VPN solution. So then you'd use the Zerotier App on your phone or tablet and once that connection is established you can use a VNC App to remote into the computer at home. What Zerotier effectively does is gives you local access like you're actually at home.


Tips:

I personally don't trust RDP (or Samba/NetBIOS for that matter)...

Grab your external WAN IP address and head on over to Shodan or Censys. See your awesome open port there? Yeah, anyone can pry it open if they wanted to. There are tools in Kali Linux or Parrot OS to do so.

Anydesk, TeamViewer, meh... That's someone else's server, not your own and who knows if they're monitoring the traffic. I mean, the privacy invasion, you know? Not only that, but they can and will get hacked. Account take over has happened with TeamViewer. That's why if you do chose to use one of these remote desktop solutions you make sure to use REAL 2FA with the account. When I say real 2FA (Two Factor Authentication) that means at least the OTP (One Time Password) capability that uses a simple base32 number and time. You may have heard of such software like Authy or Google Authenticator. Those are two Apps you can use, but I don't. I use something open source and not so privacy invading called Aegis. Aegis is a 2FA Android App that you can find in the Google play store or at F-Droid. I'd use F-droid (or you can use the Aurora play store) My password manager of choice for my phone is Keepass2Android and it too offers 2FA ability. And I use both Aegis and the Keepass2Android password manager for redundancy with 2FA. The only downside is that you MUST backup these databases yourself. That's the price and cumbersomeness you pay for privacy and security.

Some people just want to use it and forget it and that's what we dorks call a "normy." LOL Also, the paid for password manager Bitwarden ($10/year) offers 2FA ability. And they are cross platform all over hell. At this time of my post I highly recommend Bitwarden. It's not perfect, but I like it for what it does and its open source nature, security audits (I take "audits" with a grain of salt, really) and whatnot and I use it to augment my MAIN password manager on the computer called KeePass. Not KeePassXC, but KeePass. Didn't care for the XC version. In KeePass there is a 2FA plug-in you can add. All the plug-ins are listed at the KeePass website. Again, you MUST back up its database yourself. And do so all over hell, too. I do.

If Anydesk et al offers Yubikey and the likes I'd be inclined to use that. 2FA with a phone number or e-mail address is extremely insecure and privacy invading to say the least.


Here are all the links with what I'm talking about. Read, and read some more.


TightVNC (main website isn't working right now).

Home - UltraVNC VNC OFFICIAL SITE, Remote Desktop Free Opensource

VNC remote desktop support software for remote PC control. Free. Anydesk , teamviewer alternative

uvnc.com

ZeroTier | Next-Generation Connectivity and Cybersecurity

Connect everything, from cloud to IoT, with the next-generation global network solution. Simple, resilient, and secure networking in minutes.

www.zerotier.com

Aegis Authenticator

Aegis Authenticator is a free, secure and open source app for Android to manage your 2-step verification tokens for your online services.

getaegis.app

KeePass Password Safe

KeePass is a free open source password manager. Passwords can be stored in an encrypted database, which can be unlocked with one master key.

keepass.info

Plugins - KeePass

keepass.info

Best Password Manager for Business, Enterprise & Personal | Bitwarden

Bitwarden is the most trusted password manager for passwords and passkeys at home or at work, on any browser or device. Start with a free trial.

bitwarden.com

Compliance | Bitwarden

Bitwarden is dedicated to compliance with international standards for security and privacy.

bitwarden.com

Yubico Home

Get the YubiKey, the #1 security key, offering strong two factor authentication from industry leader Yubico.

www.yubico.com

(and for extra credit LOL) OPNsense® a true open source security platform and more - OPNsense® is a true open source firewall and more

This is why I'm not married, folks... LOL

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nzHm3xGz2I

Oh wow! What great information. You're probably better skilled than him but I do follow NetworkChuck. He has given me just enough knowledge in the area to get myself in trouble......lol. I like the direction you are talking about. I will try to dive right in because my server most likely has all kinds of holes.

I do have a subscription to splashtop that I use to remote into my sister and mother's PC's to do IT with them. It did corrected the audio problem but I agree with you, it's a temporary fix. Your solution seems a much better way to go.

I am experimenting with wireguard with a raspberry pi to link my remote observatory build with my home network and will look into a better secure route. I just think the native RDP in windows seem to have the best graphics and "snappiness" when it comes to working with all my remotes.

Thanks so much for all the information. I hope its ok to ask you more questions as I rebuild a better and more secure network?

Ryan

 

[BinaryMode]

Now that's very cool, man. I'm surprised that photo doesn't include photo bombing satellites. Is it post edited? Pretty cool none the less.

Yeah, Network Chuck... LOL The YouTube algorithm is interesting isn't...? It only shows what it wants people to see, and everyone is a part of it... Check out the GrayJay App.

I like his incite into things networking and whatnot, but it's all pretty much stuff I already knew and he's only making those videos for the money as a YouTube content creator. I mean, that's the name of the game, right? He did introduce me to Wazuh though and I did deploy that which is pretty cool. I kinda stopped using Wazuh though since I run a heavily stripped down version of Windows 10 and Wazuh doesn't like that. Wazuh - Open Source XDR. Open Source SIEM.

OPNsense has some awesomeness for malware/IDS stuff though...

I used to participate in many tech forums all across the Internet landscape (I never use the same username) typing at least ten paragraphs worth of information. But I got tired of contributing to a platforms that never really cared and it was all free information on my part. So with that I took off. About to do the same thing here...

 

[wuzafuzz]

RDP did similar dirty deeds here, which sucked after paying extra for the privilege of having RDP. As others mentioned above, VNC rode to the rescue. Just had to find one of the free versions. In my case it's TightVNC. VNC will leave your audio alone.

If your remote computer is "really remote," there is an easy option for connectivity that allows you to use VNC over the internet, which would normally be risky. Add Tailscale to the mix.

I have a Winlink/VARA FM station (ham stuff) remoted at a relative's house. Tailscale lets me connect to the computer without opening firewall ports or the brain damage often associated with setting up your own VPN. Use the previously mentioned VNC for remote control. You can pay for higher tiers with a ton of clients, but for most of us Tailscale is free.

This setup has been working for me for about a year, all trouble free. It even handles Windows updates without visiting the computer in person. Everything is set to startup on boot so restarts aren't the drama they used to be.

Ack, I just re-read some of the posts above and saw someone mentioned ZeroTier. Tailscale is a similar product. But I already typed everything so adding to the discussion.

 

[bharvey2]

As I recall, RDP differs from many other remote desktop apps in that it is logging into the computers as a separate instance (like a differnt user) whereas LogMeIn, Anydesk etc. are logging in as the user at the console. I first notice this many years ago with my backup software. I'd install it at the computer and create desktop shortcut icons but when I'd RDP into the same computer, the icons weren't present.

 

[BinaryMode]

That's just one reason why I don't rely too much on Microsoft technologies built into the OS. Whether it's NetBIOS, Task Scheduler or the aforementioned RDP, I use alternative solutions.

Ideally I should be a massive Linux fan boy, but having to use the terminal and remembering loads of commands is very cumbersome and frustrating. I once spent 10, count them ten hours trying to get VMware tools installed into Debian. I typed the exact commends VMware said to type, but nope. Error after error. Then I'd google it, find a solution at Stack Exchange and wouldn't you know it, another error. So I found myself at Stack Exchange again and tried this other command, but nope! More errors. To make a long story short, bound and determined this wasn't going to win, it took me 10 hours of messing around to get VMware tools to finally install.

Mind you this was before ChatGPT et al. AI today has been a life saver for me in so many ways. I have deployed OPNsense and even I don't know some things about it, but when I asked ChatGPT or whatever it's sure to tell me the answer. Even Linux terminal command help. I've used and do use Linux, but it's such a learning curve! I'm more accustomed to Windows and can solve damn near any issue. Some of which were like born from Windows hell and damnation. LOL Perfect example of that was when I had accidentally created a hard drive signature collision (don't ask me how, I did it). Took 4 hours of research to figure out what it was and how to fix it. I still have all the saved HTML webpages from that little adventure. It was very important I solve it, too because the other hard drive was my cloned backup! I use Clonezilla once per month.


Anyway...

Edit-

Don't get me started on how grotesque Windows 10 and 11 are, how Tiworker likes to suck the life out of your CPU (I solved that little jolly PITA) and how some parts of the OS are integrated in a way that you can't strip them out. They do that on purpose! Like searchapp.exe. I don't want it and I don't use Windows search. I use everything.exe by Voidtools, but Windows search mechanisms are now integrated in the OS. In Windows 7 I shut down the entire service. In 10 it's embedded in! Some low IQ bipedal chimp took their ten digits and coded that!

 

[darkskylayton]

Now that's very cool, man. I'm surprised that photo doesn't include photo bombing satellites. Is it post edited? Pretty cool none the less.

Yeah, Network Chuck... LOL The YouTube algorithm is interesting isn't...? It only shows what it wants people to see, and everyone is a part of it... Check out the GrayJay App.

I like his incite into things networking and whatnot, but it's all pretty much stuff I already knew and he's only making those videos for the money as a YouTube content creator. I mean, that's the name of the game, right? He did introduce me to Wazuh though and I did deploy that which is pretty cool. I kinda stopped using Wazuh though since I run a heavily stripped down version of Windows 10 and Wazuh doesn't like that. Wazuh - Open Source XDR. Open Source SIEM.

OPNsense has some awesomeness for malware/IDS stuff though...

I used to participate in many tech forums all across the Internet landscape (I never use the same username) typing at least ten paragraphs worth of information. But I got tired of contributing to a platforms that never really cared and it was all free information on my part. So with that I took off. About to do the same thing here...

That's so cool! I appreciate the information and help.

 

[darkskylayton]

RDP did similar dirty deeds here, which sucked after paying extra for the privilege of having RDP. As others mentioned above, VNC rode to the rescue. Just had to find one of the free versions. In my case it's TightVNC. VNC will leave your audio alone.

If your remote computer is "really remote," there is an easy option for connectivity that allows you to use VNC over the internet, which would normally be risky. Add Tailscale to the mix.

I have a Winlink/VARA FM station (ham stuff) remoted at a relative's house. Tailscale lets me connect to the computer without opening firewall ports or the brain damage often associated with setting up your own VPN. Use the previously mentioned VNC for remote control. You can pay for higher tiers with a ton of clients, but for most of us Tailscale is free.

This setup has been working for me for about a year, all trouble free. It even handles Windows updates without visiting the computer in person. Everything is set to startup on boot so restarts aren't the drama they used to be.

Ack, I just re-read some of the posts above and saw someone mentioned ZeroTier. Tailscale is a similar product. But I already typed everything so adding to the discussion.

Great! I will look into it. I'm now using vnc for it and it fixed the problem. Good of Microsoft....lol

 

[darkskylayton]

That's just one reason why I don't rely too much on Microsoft technologies built into the OS. Whether it's NetBIOS, Task Scheduler or the aforementioned RDP, I use alternative solutions.

Ideally I should be a massive Linux fan boy, but having to use the terminal and remembering loads of commands is very cumbersome and frustrating. I once spent 10, count them ten hours trying to get VMware tools installed into Debian. I typed the exact commends VMware said to type, but nope. Error after error. Then I'd google it, find a solution at Stack Exchange and wouldn't you know it, another error. So I found myself at Stack Exchange again and tried this other command, but nope! More errors. To make a long story short, bound and determined this wasn't going to win, it took me 10 hours of messing around to get VMware tools to finally install.

Mind you this was before ChatGPT et al. AI today has been a life saver for me in so many ways. I have deployed OPNsense and even I don't know some things about it, but when I asked ChatGPT or whatever it's sure to tell me the answer. Even Linux terminal command help. I've used and do use Linux, but it's such a learning curve! I'm more accustomed to Windows and can solve damn near any issue. Some of which were like born from Windows hell and damnation. LOL Perfect example of that was when I had accidentally created a hard drive signature collision (don't ask me how, I did it). Took 4 hours of research to figure out what it was and how to fix it. I still have all the saved HTML webpages from that little adventure. It was very important I solve it, too because the other hard drive was my cloned backup! I use Clonezilla once per month.


Anyway...

Edit-

Don't get me started on how grotesque Windows 10 and 11 are, how Tiworker likes to suck the life out of your CPU (I solved that little jolly PITA) and how some parts of the OS are integrated in a way that you can't strip them out. They do that on purpose! Like searchapp.exe. I don't want it and I don't use Windows search. I use everything.exe by Voidtools, but Windows search mechanisms are now integrated in the OS. In Windows 7 I shut down the entire service. In 10 it's embedded in! Some low IQ bipedal chimp took their ten digits and coded that!

Yeah, I hear ya about the Linux stuff. The command line is so outdated. It's still fun to tinker around with it....especially for retro-gaming. Space Invaders 5 minutes a day is healthy.....haha.

 

[chris451rr]

I'm running my scanner stream on Broadcastify through a remote Intel NUC. I configure it using remote desktop to the windows 11 Pro. Everything works fine up until I close the remote session. The audio of the scanner stops but the broadcast continues without audio traffic from the scanner. I have to re-remote back in and restart the broadcast software to get it working again. This happens both with ScannerCast and Proscann. I am using a BCD430hp. My remote desktop configuration also keeps the audio at the remote computer as well. Any help would be appreciated, Thanks.

I don't use Ms remote desktop because that leaves the pc in a locked desktop and the original session is background inactive.
If you can get RealVNC then it will leave with the desktop as it was. RealVNC has the encryption option (alwasy on for me) Recently I found out about remotedesktop.google.com which is used with a google account, that will not disturb or lock the desktop after you disconnect. It ships audio and video without disturbing other audio apps.
It has far better video performance than VNC using the vp8 and vp9 encoders. Its a much faster hook to desktop video than VNC which had to be set to low resolution to get good performance.
Logmein hamachi Mesh network is a pretty good app that is basically a VPN for networking. I use that on travel missions. I have not checked out Broadcastify but I do like the remote SDR sites although most of them only cover narrow bands.

if its an app that never shows a panel but you won't be able to change its settings this way.

For shipping your audio around use Mumble with the local server option enabled. Its a chat server with voice audio and encrypted connections, vox, compression, noise reduction or cancelling, adjustable bandwidth, and has a reconnect option. It will do a great job of client reconnecting to the server given brief interruptions. There is a mumble client on IOS and a mumla client on android. Ive used that on trips to 'tune in' on home base.