Remote Desktop Services vs. MobaXTerm

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Remote Desktop Services
Score 8.8 out of 10
N/A
Remote Desktop Services from Microsoft is virtual desktop and remote user session technology.N/A
MobaXTerm
Score 9.5 out of 10
N/A
MobaXterm is presented as an enhanced terminal for Windows with X11 server, tabbed SSH client, and network tools. From this console window, users can run any Unix commands need: ls, cd, grep, awk, tail, cut, sed, wget, rsync, telnet, ssh, rlogin, rsh, etc.N/A
Pricing
Remote Desktop ServicesMobaXTerm
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Remote Desktop ServicesMobaXTerm
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoYes
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Remote Desktop ServicesMobaXTerm
Considered Both Products
Remote Desktop Services
Chose Remote Desktop Services
Because it is a built-in, free solution for a small set of managed computers. No extra licenses required. No budget. Setup and configuration is instanteneous.
Chose Remote Desktop Services
TeamViewer and Splashtop
Chose Remote Desktop Services
Same functionality but RDP is already installed on Windows so no client to install and it's cheaper.
Chose Remote Desktop Services
All remote desktop or desktop virtualization services are quite costly and very complicated to set up. Microsoft's Remote Desktop Services has the advantage of being very available for many years, meaning practically any device can be used as a workstation. Tablets, …
Chose Remote Desktop Services
Remote Desktop is great for onsite or point-to-point connections without having to have a mediator type server.
Chose Remote Desktop Services
We used RDS on-site primarily because of how easy it is for users to transition from their own desktop to a remote desktop. However, from off-site, there are VPN and other security considerations to take into account, and the process gets a little more complex. In this …
Chose Remote Desktop Services
Solutions can be expensive and often offer more options than you need/want. Paying those extra dollars is tough when you have a budget. RDS in many cases works well and is cost effective.
Chose Remote Desktop Services
I use Remote Desktop Services only and have never used other services to replace it.
Chose Remote Desktop Services
Since Remote Desktop Services comes with the Windows OS, there's no need to install any additional software or agent for it to function. Even on the Mac, there's a client that can be installed for this to run properly. Unfortunately, unlike TeamViewer or Ultra VNC, Remote …
Chose Remote Desktop Services
Among all the reasons I've previously listed the main reason for choosing RDS is for the reliability and fast connection.
Chose Remote Desktop Services
Remote Desktop Services is an initiation from Microsoft in my view. The rest all are adapters for this and have a considerably inovated feature base.
Chose Remote Desktop Services
We have reviewed Citrix Xen Desktop and VMware's VDI solutions. For the cost, when compared to what Remote Desktop Services can provide us there was no contest. Remote Desktop Services can provide us all the features we require with little to no cost since we are an EA customer …
Chose Remote Desktop Services
I also used 2x Client and Citrix in the past. Both worked nice. Citrix is a little more complex and once with Windows updates damaged a Citrix installation causing all ICA traffic to not accept connections. 2x Client was simple and free for 3 connections (or used to be). Both …
Chose Remote Desktop Services
We selected Remote Desktop Services based upon price alone. Other solutions on the market are significantly more expensive, but if your company can foot the bill you should seriously consider products that have been on the market for longer. The lack of an ability to easily …
Chose Remote Desktop Services
Mainly licensing optimization, as Remote Desktop Services CALs are needed anyway for other products.
Chose Remote Desktop Services
Remote Desktop Services is close to free, it is native and performs far better from a user experience point of view with almost no lag and excellent integration to the normal desktop environment. Even if another product is used Remote Desktop Services still forms part of the …
MobaXTerm
Chose MobaXTerm
We did not review anything to compare to this. We had colleagues discover this tool and let us know to try it out. We did for about 2 days and immediately paid for it and several seats.
Chose MobaXTerm
The biggest advantage of MobaXTerm against others is ability to group servers in folders (according to the client, for example) and feature that allows you to connect to all kinds of servers: SSH, SFTP, RDP, WSL,

Also, it is relatively cheap.
Chose MobaXTerm
The colorful terminal in MobaXTerm is a great feature, especially when reading multiple outputs or logs. These small, colorful highlights could lead to solving network issues or help with troubleshooting. MultiExec feature is a huge feature that only a network engineer with a …
Chose MobaXTerm
The list is not working, but comparing is not so great to other. The great best think of MobaXTerm is the unifing of the various program into one. The organization by folders, the storing of keys, the licence managemnt for teams. I liked much and was a plus it have some server …
Features
Remote Desktop ServicesMobaXTerm
Remote Administration
Comparison of Remote Administration features of Product A and Product B
Remote Desktop Services
8.9
Ratings
9% above category average
MobaXTerm
9.0
Ratings
10% above category average
Screen sharing9.30 Ratings9.50 Ratings
File transfer9.30 Ratings9.50 Ratings
Secure remote access with Smart Card authentication8.00 Ratings9.00 Ratings
Access to sleeping/powered-off computers8.00 Ratings9.00 Ratings
Over-the-Internet remote session8.60 Ratings9.30 Ratings
Initiate remote control from mobile10.00 Ratings8.00 Ratings
Remote management of servers & workstations9.00 Ratings9.50 Ratings
Remote Active Directory® management9.00 Ratings8.00 Ratings
Centralized management dashboard9.00 Ratings9.30 Ratings
Session record9.50 Ratings9.00 Ratings
Monitoring and Alerts8.00 Ratings8.50 Ratings
Instant message00 Ratings9.00 Ratings
Annotations00 Ratings8.50 Ratings
Multi-platform remote control00 Ratings9.30 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Remote Desktop ServicesMobaXTerm
Small Businesses
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Medium-sized Companies
Remote Desktop Manager
Remote Desktop Manager
Score 9.0 out of 10
Remote Desktop Manager
Remote Desktop Manager
Score 9.0 out of 10
Enterprises
Remote Desktop Manager
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Score 9.0 out of 10
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Score 9.0 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Remote Desktop ServicesMobaXTerm
Likelihood to Recommend
9.3
(0 ratings)
9.8
(0 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
6.0
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Usability
6.6
(0 ratings)
9.5
(0 ratings)
Performance
5.0
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
3.0
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Ease of integration
5.0
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Remote Desktop ServicesMobaXTerm
Likelihood to Recommend
Remote Desktop Services provides access to work environments from any device. This allows us to ensure business continuity in case of disaster. It provides admins more control over access and security. Remote Desktop Services simplifies software updates and compliance management by reducing the need to act on end users devices.
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Before, I used to work with Putty application, but when I know MobaXTerm I am starting use in it untill know, bucause MobaXTerm allows me to puch confegations to multiball switches at the same time without any issue, and the color helps me to dedacte speciface issue for example the errors on the switch intrface.
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Pros
  • Relative ease of setup: in comparison to some of the other solutions on the market (Citrix, etc.), Remote Desktop Services is rather easy to set up and get configured in your environment.
  • Feature set: Microsoft offers a good deal of the same features many competitors offer in the same space including a mobile app and the ability to have a "native" app feel for a remote application.
  • Inexpensive Licensing: in comparison to other solutions on the market Remote Desktop Services is inexpensive.
  • Move LOB applications closer to their server counterparts: this goes for all remote solutions, but if you have a line of business application that makes a great deal of calls across the network to your data center, your remote office users will likely benefit from the performance and stability side by moving those client side applications into the data center.
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  • Storing ssh session setting for easy click and go access
  • Various Network scanning tools easy to use even for non-technical people
  • SFTP filesystem browser is simple and straightforward
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Cons
  • Advanced configuration is required.
  • Off-site access from a different network is very insecure unless a VPN can be used.
  • It's complicated and relatively costly for multi-user environments, as each user or device requires a CAL on top of the server licensing.
  • Incredibly complicated licensing strategy from Microsoft.
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  • Transferring of files can take more time
  • Heavier application compared to its competitors like Putty
  • Can seem a bit complex for first time users
  • Need to use paid version for advanced features
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Usability
Once set up it works well and is extremely easy for users. Getting it right can be difficult, it is easy to setup insecurely. Maintenance can be difficult with only a single broker and with manual switchover required for redundant gateways. Troubleshooting access issues can also be difficult
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It's very easy for any IT administrator to use, it's highly customizable and you can download it free for personal use. It supports every protocol you can think of, has built in power shell and allows for drag and drop of SFTP file browser. I recommend this tool for any IT professional.
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Performance
There are some third party tools available that allow you to manage multiple connections.
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No answers on this topic
Support Rating
As with any Microsoft Server product, support for Remote Desktop Services requires a paid support package. These are license-based and very costly, on top of the already costly product licensing. Microsoft's licensing is complicated to begin with, so setting up licensing alone essentially requires a licensing expert's counsel. There is community documentation and support available on Microsoft websites, as well as community websites.
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No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
We used RDS on-site primarily because of how easy it is for users to transition from their own desktop to a remote desktop. However, from off-site, there are VPN and other security considerations to take into account, and the process gets a little more complex. In this situation, especially if you're trying to support a user who is outside the local network, it can be easier to use something like Chrome Remote Desktop or TeamViewer. However, the Windows functionality of RDS is totally unmatched.
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The colorful terminal in MobaXTerm is a great feature, especially when reading multiple outputs or logs. These small, colorful highlights could lead to solving network issues or help with troubleshooting. MultiExec feature is a huge feature that only a network engineer with a large organization can appreciate the work it can do and the time it can save when doing big configuration changes on the whole network.
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Return on Investment
  • Remote Desktop Services has had a major positive ROI impact at our firm. There were a number of times when our staff was traveling abroad to business meetings with a laptop that had missing presentations. But once they had internet access, a Remote Desktop Services connection is established, and presentation data can now be shown directly from their laptops as if theyr'e sitting in our office.
  • Remote Desktop Services has made it possible for Mac staff users to use their computing devices to access our network system to run Windows applications and access all our network data.
  • Remote Desktop Services has made it possible for our staff to successfully work remotely from outside the office. There were many occasions when emergencies came up which prevented staff from coming into the office to work. But as long as they have a computer with an internet connection, they used Remote Desktop Services to connect to our terminal server and successfully ran the programs to modify data files on the network without losing a beat.
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  • better efficiency with a range of user and project tickets
  • one pane of glass for a very fair fee
  • easier management
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ScreenShots

MobaXTerm Screenshots

Screenshot of MobaXterm Xserver with SSH, telnet, RDP, VNC and X11Screenshot of the MobaXterm terminal, dark.Screenshot of the MobaXterm ribbon / toolbar.