Dual Monitors in RWA on SBS 2011

From the mailbag:

When I connect to the SBS 2011 server via RWA from a machine with dual monitors, it takes up both of my screens instead of one. Is there a fix for that on the server?

ANSWER

Yes, you can control the screen resolution when remoting into the SBS 2011 box via Remote Web Access. This will avoid the ‘double-wide’ screen like this:

1. From the remote PC login to Remote Web Access (RWA).
   (Typically https://remote.yourdomain.com/remote)
2. Instead of clicking on the “Connect” button next to the server name, hit the Computers link at the top.
   
3. Click Remote Desktop Options and then choose your resolution from the Screen size dropdown. Select any option except full screen.

   

4. Hit Save.

The next time you remotely connect to the server, it will no longer be spread across both monitors and will just be a movable window.

To test this, if you have split-DNS setup you can hit the RWA URL from inside the building without getting an SSL name error.

Note: You can also use dual-monitors on desktop PCs via RWA if those computers are running Windows 7 Enterprise or Ultimate.