RDP to Windows 10 hangs at Please wait screen

kiran kumar 81

RDP to Windows 10 hangs at the 'Please wait' screen forever until rebooted.

In our organisation, we are often seeing this issue on domain-joined systems & VMs with Windows 10 OS

This happens when users are trying to log in with their domain accounts. When the issue is reported, we IT team can log in with our Domain ADM accounts and reboot the system/VM. The user will be able to log in now, but the issue comes back again after a day or two. These systems/VMs are updated with the latest patches.

Even after running SFC Scan, the issue remains.

Frank Alexander van Ede 6 Reputation points

2021-06-28T14:37:42.083+00:00
I am having the exact same behaviour with a user working from home on a domain-joined laptop, connecting to the office over VPN to a domain-joined workstation.

It is a unique case and I am wondering if it is related to how the RDP session is ended.

Our IT group works similar and never has issues. We connect to the VPN, open RDP, do our stuff, close RDP/disconnect, close VPN
The user leaves everything connected and closes the lid of the laptop. That action puts the laptop to sleep.

To resolve the issue we connect remotely with RDP to the computer of the user, and after a reboot, she can connect again over VPN, with RDP.

It seems something gets stuck; googling I saw this link: where they recommend killing the rdp client with

taskkill /f /im msrdc.exe

`
Leila Kong 3,706 Reputation points

2021-07-06T09:45:14.443+00:00

Hello @kiran kumar ,

We haven’t heard from you in a couple of days.
Is there any update from your side?
Fardy Chandra 1 Reputation point

2021-07-12T12:08:36.743+00:00

I encountered the same thing. i dont think you can check those details until you are connected.
I just did windows update on the client PC and i could not connect to remote pc after that
operation420.net 1 Reputation point

2021-08-16T01:40:48.933+00:00

I am getting this issue on two machines using Remmina in a Linux VM...

EDIT: It happened on a third after I restarted the other two and it happened on the other one again. 3 Machines within an hour, are you kidding me?
Lourdes Suman 1 Reputation point

2021-08-16T16:10:17.277+00:00

Hi, I have the same problem, any solution?
Ter 1 Reputation point

2021-11-10T02:50:38.413+00:00

I encountered the same issue.
Moreover, I can always use my laptop with the same Microsoft account logged in to connect RDP, while my phone, my pad and other people's Windows PC will be stuck at Please Wait screen.
Eric 261 Reputation points

2021-11-10T13:44:17.327+00:00

To Leila-MSFT and everyone else with this issue:

I found a solution in MS RDP for the issue of RDP getting stuck at "Please Wait" after connectng, but I am only willing to explain and post it if I can speak with Leila-MSFT or someone at Microsoft directly. I would appreciate not having to post back and forth and be asked to "try" things when I clearly provided a possible solution in my last post that could be tested and confirmed by Microsoft support. If anyone from MS is willing to speak directly, please send me a direct message so that I can explain the problem and temporary solution, at which time you can confirm that it will become a permanent fix in updated versions of MS RDP. If you are willing to discuss the solution you will be helping many people with this issue, and if not at least I figured out the culprit of the issue and can post the solution elsewhere.
Marschos 1 Reputation point

2021-11-16T12:29:36.653+00:00

Hey, I have the same issue on certain machines.
It is a riddle to why some experience the problem and others dont.

If you have a solution I would love to hear it.
It seems this place has no way to private message it, but maybe you can still post it here after all.

I dont think you will be successful with the approach you took here.
Marlow Schlebusch 11 Reputation points

2021-11-18T12:31:44.03+00:00

Just post the solution here, why be so difficult?
Eric 261 Reputation points

2021-11-19T06:39:33.94+00:00

Please see my new reply in the thread. Thanks.
Eric 261 Reputation points

2021-11-19T06:39:42.36+00:00

Please see my new reply in the thread. Thanks.
Jerad Ries 11 Reputation points

2021-11-19T18:21:20.72+00:00

The scope of the problem isn't limited to not being able to RDP in my experience. When the "Please Wait" RDP issue starts, other issues are introduced as well; logging in to the system locally and trying to "Run as administrator" for any program doesn't work as the UAC box never comes up. Curious if others have seen similar.
Marlow Schlebusch 11 Reputation points

2021-11-25T09:45:05.003+00:00

Since the solution was posted we have not had the problem, but will post the outcome if it happens again.
Frenchy 1 Reputation point

2021-11-25T11:46:01.693+00:00

Exactly the same issue here !
Frenchy 1 Reputation point

2021-11-25T12:17:21.403+00:00

Exactly the same issue here !
MMM12 1 Reputation point

2022-01-31T23:53:40.67+00:00
After getting past the "please wait" by starting a RDP session with a smartcard, the account does not seem to work as expected:

it will not start a admin powershell or admin cmd window

it will not start the event viewer
For both of these cases, it just spins for a while then ignores the request.

And here's more strange behavior. I am able to avoid the "please wait" problem by connecting to the remote host using a saved (password) credential. Then, after deleting the saved credential and manually entering the password again, the "please wait" problem immediately reappears (until I reboot). I created the saved credential by mounting a shared drive from the remote computer.

Could this be the cause of the problem: Before accessing the computer with a password and encountering the 'please wait' issue, I mounted a drive from the remote host using a smartcard credential for the same domain account. Is windows confused because I am simultaneously using both types of authentication, smartcard and password?
chris dickey 1 Reputation point

2022-02-23T17:57:39.367+00:00

I am having this exact problem today. I try to reconnect to a disconnected RDP session. I get the Please Wait blue screen after I submit the RDP Enter Your Credentials screen.
I am not using a smartcard, only typed in password. Connect over Microsoft VPN.
It has been an intermittent problem for many months.
Somebody has had to physically go to the stuck computer to restart it.
Microsoft needs to provide a solution for this problem. Microsoft, are you listening???
Eric 261 Reputation points

2022-02-23T22:48:23.78+00:00

Please try my solution posted Nov 26 2021 at 4:09 AM . Look above your post a couple replies back. I suggested a workaround solution involving saving the connection details to an .rdp file and adding the line "enablecredsspsupport:i:0" to the file using notepad.
David Fosbenner 101 Reputation points

2022-03-04T15:12:39.767+00:00

Disabling NLA is not an option in our organization. NLA is required to use Remote Desktop for us, and disabling it is a security risk.

I just started rolling out Duo 2 days ago for 50 users, and already I've had a user unable to login because of this issue. Setting their account to Bypass mode didn't help either. I was able to remote to their PC from another computer using their account, but we couldn't get them connected from the original computer they were using. Only rebooting the target computer resolved it, but this isn't a solution for the long term.

I NEVER FAILS, anytime I implement a new product or tech practice, things like this happen. Solutions always seem to bring more problems.
Travis Lamming 6 Reputation points

2022-10-17T21:11:07.357+00:00

Has anyone actually figured out what causes this and how to fix it? It appears to be when sessions are disconnected and when you try to reconnect from the same machine.
BruceK 6 Reputation points

2022-10-18T18:54:04.503+00:00

My guess is it is when someone either has their computer go to sleep or closes their laptop before logging off the RDP session. This is an amazingly rare occurrence for me and the people I support in a number of businesses. I have only seen it happen with one person and it has only happened with him twice now. There are a number of solutions for rebooting the remote computer which you might gather from this topic. Alterative RDP clients may work, especially to reboot the remote PC.
Smeddeu 1 Reputation point

2022-10-18T20:05:28.797+00:00

We also see these problems with RDS Gateway/Hosts
For some reason this "Please Wait" issue mostly occurs with our customers trying to connect from a Microsoft Surface to one of our RDS Hosts.
A simple solution would be to manually logoff the user at the server end.. Sadly enough the user would lose all of his work.

I couldn't reproduce the "Please Wait" by disconnecting the session with the X on top for several times.
I figured out that by disabling Sleep on the Microsoft Surfaces the problem just vanished.
When I set the computer to go into sleep (after 5min) I can sometimes reproduce the "Please Wait" problem after few sleep cycles.
Travis Lamming 6 Reputation points

2022-10-19T15:48:00.403+00:00

Remote reboot is just not a fix for an end user who would have to contact someone more knowledgeable at all hours of the night. I get that its rare, but it sure would be nice to reproduce this strange one and find an actual fix.
||v|| || ((=;; ||_|| ||£ ||_ 21 Reputation points

2022-10-26T23:30:33.957+00:00

Stumbled upon this post after a user inquired about the issue. This was after not having seen the issue in (maybe 10) years.

Old school trick: try pressing CTRL+ALT+END (not DEL) on your keyboard -- this will effectively send a "CTRL+ALT+DEL" to your Remote PC and can sometimes fix the issue/give you additional options or insight into what's happening... or at least snap the system out of it.

I tried again this time and the workaround was still effective in my environment.
yirmiuc saat 0 Reputation points

2023-06-16T18:42:04.8133333+00:00

I am on macOS and set the option to "Ask when required" for credentials.

When prompted i gave just my user name and it attempted to login but since i didnt give password it shows the windows login screen.
yirmiuc saat 0 Reputation points

2023-06-16T18:42:39.46+00:00

Please I need a solution
Ahmed Suluks 0 Reputation points

2023-06-16T18:49:24.6333333+00:00

I am getting this issue on two machines using Remmina in a Linux VM...
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SPH 75 Reputation points

2023-07-15T19:42:30.5233333+00:00
Had the same problem at work after transferring settings between identically configured machines (first working, the second had this issue). After trying things on this site and others, I believe I have the answer. After fighting the problem for two months, i have had no issues since applying this Group Policy (gpedit.msc) setting:

Computer Configuration >> Administrative Templates >> Windows Components >> Remote Desktop Services >> Remote Desktop Session Host >> Connections

At that level Enable the following setting

Restrict Remote Desktop Services User to a Single Remote Desktop Services Session
Alexander Niazi 1 Reputation point

2023-10-19T11:05:47.5+00:00

SPH fix solved the issue for me, found the below article useful for creating a clean .reg key on my PC then exporting it for easier importing to other users in the future. https://admx.help/?Category=Windows_10_2016&Policy=Microsoft.Policies.TerminalServer::TS_SINGLE_SESSION
Alexander Oliva 0 Reputation points

2024-09-04T02:58:29.46+00:00

Recently I got the same problem and after losing my mid for 2 days and alredy given up, A sudden idea crashed my mind, should I do the fix on the PC that I want to connect? IT WAS THAT!!

the solution is to do as @SPH describes but ON THE HOST/REMOTE MACHINE the one you want to log in

Computer Configuration >> Administrative Templates >> Windows Components >> Remote Desktop Services >> Remote Desktop Session Host >> Connections

'Restrict Remote Desktop Services User to a Single Remote Desktop Services Session' and enable it and restart

I don't know why, but in my 2 PCs I was able to connect without problems, then I full reinstall windows 11/10 on 1 pc and It was stuck on the 'please wait screen', but in the other PC it was still working, so I try to apply the fix on the client PC (my PC) not on the host (remote PC)... ahh so much time wasted. Why in old installs works but not on new installs? no idea, use the fix
Mark Lin 0 Reputation points

2025-01-16T18:37:32.6666667+00:00

Easiest solution is to add this line in the rdp file:
enablecredsspsupport:i:0
adrianTNT 0 Reputation points

2025-04-18T19:46:29.0666667+00:00

Microsoft doesn't care to give us some answers ?

This is not an isolated incident.

Among other things, I cannot start command prompt in administrator mode, it just doesn't start if I right click and select run as administrator.

To me it looks like it is a feature that locks it out of admin priviledges. Microsoft not providing a solution means they know what this is and they need it to remain like this.

Updates were paused normally (no tweaks) when this happen last time, so it is not a bug because of partial updates.

24 answers

RS Cosmetics 0 Reputation points

2023-08-12T19:27:29.8566667+00:00

I am facing the same issue when I connect from my PC that is on connected network ie main system/server connected to another connected router there all the pc/laptops connected to that router able to connect without “please wait” issue ,but my this PC is on connected router most of the time it gets stuck on “Please Wait”.

On this router when I connect via my laptop which is from my another organization’s ,it has an option to connect entering Windows Hello Pin (6 digit pin which I use to login into my laptop everytime I start it or unlock it) after entering pin it takes me to start screen of server where there are Users listed I can select the user an enter password for it and am successfully able to login, seems issue is with RDP client on my Pc??
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SPH 75 Reputation points

2024-03-13T00:10:55.9833333+00:00
I am occasionally having still having this issue in my office where i cannot do some of the things posted here. Seems to happen most often after an update.

One of the techs recommended i add the following to my registry

Regedit.

Locate and then click the following registry key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System

On the Edit menu, point to New, and then click DWORD Value.

Type verbosestatus, and then press ENTER.

Double-click the new key that you created, type 1 in the Value data box, and then click OK.

Quit Registry Editor.

After reboot the messages from Windows provides a little more clarity. The Please Wait condition was now reported as "Please Wait for Group Policy Services"

What i found was GP was being shutdown and not restarted. Because i do not have total control, i could not change from Automatic (Triggered) to Automatic so I am still at the whim of this not automatically restarting when i return to the desktop, but perhaps this will help some of you and maybe even MS to figure out what they haven't got quite right.
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Anonymous

2024-04-08T11:49:12.4466667+00:00

Anybody a solution for this problem? We have also 200 virtual desktops with windows 11 and everyday another user with the problem...
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gj 0 Reputation points

2024-10-08T11:15:36.5733333+00:00

In case this helps anyone, for some reason it happened in my case as I was running large data consuming python scripts on the computer. Stopped them and everything became normal again.
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Hal078 1 Reputation point

2025-05-30T07:37:01.6+00:00
I have a solution that always work on Windows clients (not terminal servers) for this issue. Unfortunately it requires two different user accounts.

Your primary user logs in and you receive the "Please wait" at logon and nothing happens. Do not close this window.

You then log in with a second account. Note that this user might need to be added to the local group "Remote desktop users" at the target computer.

You will be presented with at text that the session is already taken by your primary account: "Another user is signed in. If you continue, they'll be disconnected. Do you want to sign in anyway?". Select Yes.

The other RDP session will popup with a message "Do you want to allow" <the other user> "to connect to this machine?" You have a 30 second timeout but just click Yes. You will now be logged in with the secondary account.

While keeping the secondary window open, now re-logon to the primary account using RDP. Do the same for this account and you will kick out the secondary user.

Voila! You are able to connect without this Please wait issue! (Optional: The secondary account is still logged in on the computer even if the session is not active. To completely kick out the secondary account, open task manager and kick him out under Users (requires admin access) ).

I don't know why this happens, but it's clearly a bug in Remote Desktop that has started to appear more often in the later years.
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Nathan Phillip Brink (binki) 26 Reputation points

2025-05-30T15:01:18.99+00:00

This sounds promising. I want to test it, but I don’t know when I will encounter this issue again.

Note that for most Windows Server editions I have worked with, there is an active session limit of 2. So you might need 2 secondary accounts to fix such a system. I have yet to personally use a Terminal Services system which would likely have a much higher limit.
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RDP to Windows 10 hangs at Please wait screen

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