Microsoft eventually issued a security advisory (CVE-2020-0760) and recommended that users stop using RDCMan immediately. The tool, which had been a staple on every admin's desktop since the Server 2008 days, was suddenly marked as a security risk.
For Windows Server 2012, Remote Desktop Connection Manager (RDCMan) was the go-to utility for managing multiple remote desktop connections in a single, organized interface. While newer versions have since been released, the tool remains a lightweight favorite for sysadmins managing older environments. Core Overview Remote Desktop Connection Manager (RDCMan) version 2.7 was the primary release supported during the Windows Server 2012 era. It allows you to group multiple servers into "Groups" or "Files" (.rdg), enabling you to connect to an entire cluster of servers with a single click. Key Features for Windows Server 2012 Hierarchical Grouping remote desktop connection manager windows 2012
Then came the .
– older RDCMan versions had a vulnerability. Always use RDCMan 2.7 or later. Never run RDCMan on a public or untrusted machine. While newer versions have since been released, the
The application stored connection settings and credentials in .rdg files. While convenient, the encryption implementation for these stored passwords was eventually deemed insufficient. If an attacker gained access to an admin’s workstation, they could potentially harvest these .rdg files and crack the stored credentials, essentially giving them the keys to the entire kingdom. Key Features for Windows Server 2012 Hierarchical Grouping
To get started with RDCMan, you'll need to configure it: