Sometimes, it is necessary to view the desktop interface of a Raspberry Pi (RPi) from a remote location or without an attached keyboard and monitor. Both VNC and RDP are available to help. VNC and RDP are client-server remote desktop protocols.
Parts List
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Installed network connected Raspberry Pi
Overview
Start with a Raspberry Pi image. This is an image saved after following the [RPi Initial Setup Guide](rpi_initial_setup.html). This must be a full desktop image.
Write the image
Write the image to the MicroSD as described in the RPi Initial Setup Guide. Insert the MicroSD into the Pi and boot.
Connect Pi to your Internet
Use an Ethernet cable to connect the pi to the network. DHCP will assign the pi an IP address. Find the address of your pi from your network’s DHCP server.
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SSH to the pi at that IP address or yourpiname.local
Choose VNC or RDP
| Versions of Raspian newer than September 2016 come with the PIXEL desktop. These versions have RealVNC preinstalled. It is recommended to use RealVNC. |
There are benefits and drawbacks to each protocol. RDP is faster but is mostly available from Windows. VNC is universal but may have lower security. Some other opinions from Coding Horror and TheTechVoid.
Generally, use the preinstalled version of RealVNC. It is possible to switch to RDP but this requires uninstalling RealVNC.
Enable RealVNC
RealVNC is already installed on your pi, it just needs to be enabled to start on boot. RealVNC is also more secure than many VNC implementations.
From the Desktop
Navigate the menu system, Menu > Preferences > Raspberry Pi Configuration > Interfaces to enable VNC.
From the Command Line
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sudo raspi-config -
Navigate to Advanced Options > VNC and select Yes
Firewall and Security
If you are using the iptables firewall, see [RPi iptables](rpi_iptables.html), make certain the port is open.
# Allows RealVNC connections. Uncomment this to allow VNC. Again, this is
# best restricted to certain IPs
#-A INPUT -p tcp -m state --state NEW --dport 5901 -j ACCEPTNOTE: VNC may open a security vulnerability. Permit access to vnc servers on the local network only.
If you feel you need to run an Internet accessible VNC Server, at a minimum, use SSH tunneling for all connections. Also view https://help.ubuntu.com/community/VNC
Connect to VNC
Download and install the VNC viewer for your system from https://www.realvnc.com/download/viewer/. If you have a pi, the viewer is already installed.
If you notice screen resolution issues or other problems, please see https://support.realvnc.com/Knowledgebase/Article/View/523/2/troubleshooting-vnc-server-on-the-raspberry-pi
RDP
Using RDP now, unfortunately, means first uninstalling RealVNC.
Remove RealVNC
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sudo apt-get purge realvnc-vnc-server
Installing RDP
Installation is a breeze.
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Update your sources,
sudo apt-get update -
Install,
sudo apt-get install xrdp -
At this point RDP is ready to use on the pi
If you are using the iptables firewall, see [RPi iptables](rpi_iptables.html), make certain the port is open.
# Allows RDP connections. Uncomment this to allow RDP.
-A INPUT -p tcp -m state --state NEW --dport 3389 -j ACCEPTThe xrdp service
xrdp installs itself as a running service which may be controlled via the following commands:
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sudo service xrdp status -
sudo service xrdp start -
sudo service xrdp stop -
sudo service xrdp restart -
Disable xrdp from starting at boot,
sudo update-rc.d xrdp disable -
Enable xrdp to start at boot,
sudo update-rc.d xrdp enable
Connecting from Windows
An RDP client is a built-in feature of Windows. Just launch the client and enter the connection settings. Connection settings may be saved for easier reconnection. There are also some advanced options available.
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Windows-key r -
Enter
mstsc -
Connect to your pi
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Enter your pi’s login credentials
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Shortly, you will see the desktop of your pi
When done with the session, just close the window.
Conclusion
Viewing your desktop remotely is cool but remember, this may reduce security. VNC especially, should not be used unprotected over the Internet.