rdp, aws,

Remmina can't remote into AWS EC2 Windows machine due to libfreerdp

Oct 01, 2021 · 1 min read · Post a comment

If you need to access your Windows-based server through your local Linux machine you should consider using some RDP software. A few days ago I needed to access a Microsoft SQL server from my local Ubuntu machine. The SQL server was hosted on AWS while I was trying to establish a connection through Remmina. It turned out that Remmina can’t establish a remote session due to libfreerdp error. This tutorial will help you to resolve the issue.

Prerequisites

  • Remmina
  • Windows Server

Solution

Step 1. If you try to establish a connection to your Windows server, using Remmina default settings, the first attempt will lead you to the following error:

You requested an H264 GFX mode for server ec2*.compute.amazonaws.com, but your libfreerdp does not support H264. Please check Color Depth settings.

Step 2. To resolve the issue you will have to open Remmina and click on the Green plus button.
remmina green plus button

Step 3. It will pop up a new connection window where you should find the Color depth line.
remmina color depth line

Change it as well.

High color (16 bpp)

Step 4. Once you made all the changes click on Save as Default button, and you will be able to establish a connection to your desired Windows based server.

Conclusion

This tutorial is aimed to show you how to fix the libfreerdp issue while accessing your remote Win server from your Linux machine. Feel free to leave a comment below and if you find this tutorial useful, follow our official channel on Telegram.