RDP Bandwidth & Latency Recommendations

Unlike standard internet browsing, the Microsoft RDP protocol requires persistent connection to stay connected. It also requires sufficient bandwidth with the lowest latency for best end user experience. Please use the following sizing guide to determine required bandwidth and latency for best RDP experience.

Do NOT use satellite internet for RDP connections. Satellite connections have very high latency and some ISPs providing satellite internet block RDP traffic
Do NOT use 2.4GHz WiFi for end user connections. 2.4GHz conflicts with microwave ovens. 5GHz WiFi is recommended for end user connections

For RDP connections, latency is far more important than bandwidth. Given that LAN latency is typically 10ms, internet latency closer to 10ms is recommended. Here is how to measure RDP latency.
For RDP connections where end users will be using Microsoft Word, Excel, basic ERP with light graphics, and light internet surfing, please plan for 100Kbps of available bandwidth per user. For example, if 10 users will be remoting into a network for this purpose, recommended available bandwidth is 10 x 100Kbps = 1,000Kbps or roughly 1Mbps of available bandwidth. Available bandwidth means that this much bandwidth is recommended to be available, outside of other bandwidth consumption.
For RDP connections where end users will be using Office products in addition to graphics / light video applications such as PowerPoint, Skype, and Teams, TruGrid recommends available bandwidth of 200Kbps per user
For RDP connections where end users will be doing high end graphics such as AutoCAD and high end video such as video conferencing, TruGrid recommends 1Mbps per user or higher of available bandwidth.

Here is additional guide for using AutoCAD over RDP.

For additional details, please reference this Microsoft guide for RDP session optimization and bandwidth requirements.

Updated on: 08/03/2023