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I am currently having issues with sound redirection while using remote desktop connecting to a Windows 10 Pro Creators update host.

I am able to connect using RDP, however the hosts sound is not transmitted to the RDP session. I can see the 'Remote Sound' icon in the tray, and it shows when audio is playing with the volume bar.

Things I have tried:

  • Rebooting
  • Checking host and client volume control
  • Verifying that RDP client has 'Play on this computer'
  • Using different RDP clients to connect (Android/Windows Default/Windows Store)
  • Disabling Firewall/AV
  • Checking sound service / Remote Desktop service are started
  • Checked group polices for RDP sound redirection
  • Checked reg value for fDisableAudioCapture
  • Safe Mode (Unable to start required services in safe mode)

I have Realtek HDA audio drivers and NVidia audio drivers installed on the host, but that shouldn't affect the remote desktop sound redirection as far as I know.

Edit:

Also the drive redirection doesn't appear to be working, so it looks like an RDP issue rather than a sound issue.

I'd rather use RDP rather than other software like VNC

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  • I just had a similar issue, with one additional detail: on the remote PC, if I clicked on the volume icon in the notification tray, then clicked on the volume meter, that sound did redirect. But all other sounds, including the sound testing functions in both the 32-bit volume mixer (SndVol.exe) and Sound Control Panel (mmsys.cpl), did not.
    – Dan Henderson
    Jun 28, 2023 at 17:11

11 Answers 11

Reset to default
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The solution to this problem was that the following service was disabled:

Remote Desktop Services UserMode Port Redirector

After enabling this service and setting to automatic (by pressing win + r and opening services.msc) all was working again.

Edit:

@SemVanmeenen in the comments mentions that restarting the Windows Audio service on the host fixed it for them, and it appears to fix the issue for a lot of other people too.

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    In my case, I needed to restart the service 'Windows Audio' on the host.
    – SemVanmeenen
    Aug 24, 2018 at 9:37
  • @SemVanmeenen any chance you have experience with remote audio capture issue ? I have a server that I make remote connection to and there is currently after, windows update, no recording device, only sound play is working
    – serup
    Jan 16, 2019 at 7:24
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    @SemVanmeenen That worked right after I restarted that service (called Audiosrv) with an active remote desktop session open. Thanks!
    – KristianB
    Nov 15, 2019 at 13:30
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    @SemVanmeenen this was it! Restarting Windows Audio service worked! Thanks so much, I really struggled with issue a lot.
    – anaotha
    Sep 26, 2020 at 9:25
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As @SemVanmeenen mentioned, restarting the Windows Audio Services (I used the AudioEndpointBuilder as this is the root service) worked for me. This is a case I see often and results in Windows beeing unable to "pick up" the new device registered by the RDP Port Redirector.

Thus I think we're seeing different root causes here, as restarting the Audio Services forces the system to pick up the new Audio Devices, while the RDP Port Redirector creates those devices in the first place. This service of course has to be enabled for audio redirection to work

For the German users out there, the RDP Port Redirector is called "Anschlussumleitung für Remotedesktopdienst im Benutzermodus" in German in case you're looking for it...

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  • I had the same problem even trying to use RDP Audio setting "Play on remote computer" and restarting these services fixed it. (In my case, the symptom was that clicking on the volume control to make windows "ding" did work but playing audio in a browser or itunes did not.)
    – Coxy
    May 3, 2021 at 23:52
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I had the same problem. I found a reason is plug and play device not auto using.

If anyone using plug and play devices can fix:

  1. Click Show options:

    Show options

  1. Switch tab Local Resources => Click More:

    More

  1. Check allow all:

    Allow

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2

I tried all the above mentioned tips but none resolved my remote sound issue.

What did resolve it was going to the settings->system->sound on the client PC, scrolling down to "Advanced sound options" and selecting "App volume device preferences" and lone behold the "RDP app" volume was set at zero. Once increased to 100 all worked fine.

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In addition to all the above, in the RDP session, open volume control options, make sure the Remote Audio is checked.

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In my case the following values were missing from the registry, preventing the Remoteaudio device from showing in "mmsys.cpl" on the Win10 virtual guest (Hyper-v):

HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Terminal Server\WinStations
    ConsoleSecurity
    DefaultSecurity
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I think these problem are created by a group directive.

First of all, try to connect from a different computer. If you have the same problem, then, it's a server problem, and probably, regedit problem or group directive stablished by the network administrator.

If your computer is on a windows Active Directory domain, tell this problem to the AD administrator.

IF you aren't on domain, check this registry value:

HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Terminal Server\WinStations\RDP-Tcp

fDisableAudioCapture REG_DWORD 0 | 1

This key control the audio redirection. You need to check it on TS Server, not on the client machine.

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  • This was already set to 0, updated question.I am able to see remote audio availble, just can't hear anything.
    – mt025
    May 31, 2017 at 19:35
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I had a user whose PC was working fine with local audio, but would not play audio back to a remote session. Furthermore, programs attempting to do so were occasionally crashing (most notably, Windows' own Control Panel and Outlook).

Lots of head-scratching and digging led me to check the Event Viewer, which revealed the culprit: ff_acm.acm, a part of ffdshow, which is no longer maintained.

Changing ff_acm.acm and ff_vfw.dll (I'm guessing this was installed, somehow, as part of a video for windows codec pack?) to .old files in the system32 directory and giving the machine a reboot solved the issue.

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For me restarting Windows Audio Service didn't work. I had to :

  1. Change [Session start] to "local system account", reboot and change it back to "This account".
  2. Select "Local Service" and put in my login password.
  3. Restart the service.

Sorry if the names are not accurate, my system is in Spanish.

PD: I think windows update did something to break it, was working before.

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For me this usually happens when I reboot the client. My workaround in the last 2+ years has been to unplug my USB headset (my mic is part of this headset) from the host and plug it into another USB 2.0 port. Sometimes I must do this 4 or 5 times before the mic starts working. I use 2 USB ports to do this procedure, I alternate between them.

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  • As it’s currently written, your answer is unclear. Please edit to add additional details that will help others understand how this addresses the question asked. You can find more information on how to write good answers in the help center.
    – Community Bot
    Apr 3, 2023 at 16:29
  • Today I was able to resolve the problem without unplugging any cables. It took some 6 or 7 attempts. I tried multiple things from this discussion, so I am not sure which fix was actually effective. That said, I had to restart MSFT Teams on the client - that was the last thing I did, then the mic started working.
    – Radim Cernej
    Apr 5, 2023 at 14:10
  • More troubleshooting completed: The fix seems to be to restart the above listed services (RDP Port XXX, Windows Audio Endpoint Builder) on the host. But that is not enough, after that step I must restart MSFT Teams on the client.
    – Radim Cernej
    Apr 5, 2023 at 14:32
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As @SemVanmeenen said in a comment, for me it worked after restarting Windows Audio service

win + r type services ENTER, look for Windows Audio in the list, right click it, select restart

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