Moving over
What it takes
Keep the official client for RemoteApp and Azure Virtual Desktop; bring the plain machines over, where having the shell in the same window pays for itself immediately.
You already have the desktop covered. The other four are the problem.
Microsoft's client does RDP properly, and so does Vandle - on a native surface, in the same window as everything else. The difference is what sits beside the desktop: the shell, the files and the web interface for that same machine.
Credit where it is due
The official client handles multi-monitor, RemoteApp and gateway scenarios that third-party clients quietly get wrong, and the protocol work behind it is first rate.
What changes
Four things you get that you did not have.
- One record per machine that opens a desktop, a shell and a file surface, instead of three inventories of the same servers.
- A route per connection, so a machine behind a jump path is a property of the record rather than a gateway profile.
- One row per protocol in the sidebar, colour-coded, so you see at a glance what a machine offers.
- The same client on Linux and macOS, with the same connection list.
Side by side
Windows App and Microsoft Remote Desktop and Vandle
| Aspect | Windows App and Microsoft Remote Desktop | Vandle |
|---|---|---|
| Protocols | RDP | RDP beside SSH, SFTP, WebDAV, the web and local shells |
| Inventory | One list of PCs and workspaces | One record per machine, one row per protocol |
| Routing | Gateway configuration | A route object per connection or per folder |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, web | Windows, Linux and macOS, from one codebase |
And the rest of it
Four more protocols came along
Replacing one tool gets you five. Whatever else that machine speaks is already a row on the same record - and every one of them takes the route you assigned.
Web
Real browsing, properly routed
SSH
A terminal that keeps up
SFTP
Two remote panes, no detour
WebDAV
The other half of file transfer
RDP
Desktops on a native surface
Local
Your own machine, in the same list
Also compared