Bifrost includes a full Remote Desktop (RDP) client, so you can reach a Windows PC or server right from your connection library — with clipboard, sound, printers, multi-monitor and more. It also works with any RDP server, including Linux machines running xrdp.
1. Add an RDP connection
Create a connection, set the protocol to RDP, then fill in:
- Host — the PC’s name or IP address.
- Port — defaults to 3389 (change it only if your server uses a custom port).
- Username and password — via a credential, or typed inline.
Logging in with a domain account
There’s no separate “Domain” field. For a domain account, type it in the username as DOMAIN\username (a backslash, e.g. CONTOSO\jdoe). A plain username with no backslash signs in as a local account.
On the Windows side, make sure Remote Desktop is enabled (System → Remote Desktop) and your account is allowed to connect.
2. Display and multi-monitor
In the connection’s RDP settings you control how the desktop is shown:
- Resolution mode:
- Dynamic — the remote desktop follows your window as you resize it (recommended).
- Fixed — a set resolution (e.g. 1920×1080), with a preset list or a custom size.
- Scrollbars — a fixed size, scrollable if the window is smaller.
- Color depth — 32-bit (default) down to 16-bit for slower links.
- Full screen — opens the session full-screen in its own window. (When on, the window mode and size options are ignored.)
- Multi-monitor — span the session across several of your Mac’s displays. Enable it in the settings (and pick which displays to use); once connected, toggle multi-monitor on/off any time with ⌃⌘M (Control-Command-M).
When multi-monitor is on, the resolution is automatically fixed — dynamic resize and multi-monitor can’t be combined (a dynamic resize would collapse the spanned desktop). Monitor selection is stored per-Mac and isn’t synced.
3. Clipboard, sound, printers and folders
Bifrost can redirect a range of devices between your Mac and the Windows session — each is a toggle in the RDP settings:
| Redirection | Default | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Clipboard | On | Copy/paste text between Mac and Windows |
| Audio output | On | Hear the remote PC through your Mac |
| Microphone | Off | Send your Mac’s mic into the session |
| Folder | Off | Share a Mac folder as a drive in the session (pick the folder) |
| Printer | Off | Use your local printers remotely — Windows needs a matching printer driver installed |
| Smart card | Off | Forward a local smart-card reader |
4. Security and connecting through a gateway
- NLA / TLS / RDP security are all on by default — leave them unless your server requires otherwise.
- Self-signed certificates: if the server’s certificate is unknown or has changed, Bifrost shows its fingerprint and asks you to accept or reject it before connecting.
- RD Gateway: to reach a PC behind a Remote Desktop Gateway, fill in the gateway host, port (443) and username in the RDP settings.
- Console / admin session: connect to the console session (the equivalent of
mstsc /admin) with the matching toggle. - Auto-reconnect is on by default and will retry a dropped session.
5. Performance on slow links
- Compression and H.264 encoding are on by default.
- Optimize for slow connection asks the remote to drop visual extras — wallpaper, themes, window-drag contents, menu animations — to save bandwidth over WAN/VPN. (These are hints; recent Windows versions may ignore some of them, such as the wallpaper.)
6. Set defaults once, per group
RDP options cascade: app defaults → group → connection. Put your common settings (port, security, display, redirection) on a group, and every connection inside inherits them. Override any of them on an individual connection when needed, and use Reset to defaults to drop a connection’s overrides.
7. Keyboard: AZERTY, PC keyboards on a Mac, Karabiner
An AZERTY keyboard (or any other) works perfectly over RDP — as long as the session’s layout matches. Characters that come out wrong almost always mean a mis-negotiated layout, not a broken keyboard. Fix it in two steps: set the layout first, then any remaps for specific keys (a PC/ISO keyboard, or a Karabiner remap). You usually set these once in the app’s RDP settings and they apply to all your connections (see below).
1. Set the RDP keyboard layout first. In the connection’s RDP settings, pick your layout (e.g. French (France)) rather than Auto. That alone fixes most characters (@, accents, punctuation…).
2. Find a key’s code with “Capture key”. If one key is still wrong, open Key mappings → ＋, click Capture key, then press the key: Bifrost shows its macOS key code (kVK). No more guessing — ideal for a PC/ISO keyboard or one remapped by Karabiner.
3. Remap with the presets. Pick a source (the captured code, or a preset) then a target. Common recipes:
| Symptom | Source | Target (preset) |
|---|---|---|
The < > key types something else | Capture key on the <> key | < > (OEM_102) |
| Windows and Alt swapped | Left Option (= physical Win key) | Left Windows |
| Left Cmd (= physical Alt key) | Left Alt | |
| AltGr does nothing | Right Option | Alt Gr (Ctrl+Alt) or Right Alt |
Get ² back on a spare key | Capture key on the key you want | ² (0x29) |
Karabiner tip — if you swapped Cmd ↔ Option, your physical Windows key arrives on the Mac as Left Option, and your Alt as Left Command. The two remaps above put them back the right way on Windows.
Where to set them: usually once, in the app’s RDP settings — the layout and remaps then apply to all your RDP connections. Only override on a group or a connection for a special case (e.g. a target that expects a different language). ⚠️ A connection’s remaps replace the inherited set (they don’t merge) — keep the full list at whichever level you edit.
Common RDP scancodes (reference)
| Key | Scancode |
|---|---|
| Left Alt | 0x38 |
| Left Windows | 0xE05B |
| Right Alt / AltGr | 0xE038 |
| Right Ctrl | 0xE01D |
< > (OEM_102) | 0x56 |
² (OEM_7) | 0x29 |
Troubleshooting
- “Remote Desktop can’t connect” — confirm Remote Desktop is enabled on the Windows PC, the host/port are right, and the PC is reachable (try it from the same network first). A firewall on the Windows side can block port 3389.
- Login is refused — for a domain account, check the
DOMAIN\usernameformat; for a local account, use just the username. Make sure the account is in the Remote Desktop Users group. - Certificate warning — expected for self-signed certs; verify the fingerprint, then accept.
- Wrong characters or keys over RDP (
<,@, AltGr, Windows/Alt…) — it’s first a keyboard layout question (set it in the RDP settings), then optional remaps for specific keys. See section 7. Keyboard above. - Black screen or odd size after resizing — switch the resolution mode to Dynamic, or reconnect; multi-monitor sessions use a fixed resolution by design.