Remote Desktop Protocol is a built-in Windows utility that allows you to connect to computers on the same or different networks without physically accessing them. This is useful because you can control the target system with a few mouse clicks from your office or home. There are numerous third-party RDP utilities available. Although the built-in RDP may not be the best of them, most users prefer to use it. Of course, it has flaws, just like any other piece of software. The error code 0x104 is the one we’ll be looking at in this article.
When you attempt to connect to the target system on the same or a different network, this error message appears. “We couldn’t connect to the remote PC because the PC couldn’t be found,” says the error message. Please provide the fully-qualified name or the IP address of the remote PC, and then try again”. This could be because of your DNS settings, network discovery options, or, on rare occasions, the Windows Defender firewall privacy settings. Below we have mention the steps to Fix Remote Desktop Error Code 0x104 in Windows.
How to Fix Remote Desktop Error Code 0x104 in Windows
Turn on Network Discovery
Network discovery is a feature that allows your computer to detect other devices on the same network. This makes it simple to share files and printers between networks. To establish an RDP connection, you must first check to see if this option is enabled. So, let’s look at how to enable Network Discovery:
- Open Windows Control Panel and type Network and Internet in the search box.
- Press Enter and on the next page select Network and Sharing Center.
- Select the Change advanced sharing settings link in the left sidebar.
- Expand the network profile that is currently used for your network connection.
- Then select the radio button next to Turn on network discovery.
- Finally, click the Save Changes button.
Allow Port 3389 in the Windows Firewall
TCP port 3389 is the standard port for the Windows Remote Desktop Protocol. This port is also used by the Windows Firewall to connect to other devices on the same or different networks. However, if the Windows Firewall prevents this, you will be unable to grant them access. To connect, you must allow port 3389 in the Windows Firewall. This is how you do it:
- Open Windows 11 Control Panel window and select the System item.
- In the left part of the next screen, select the Remote Settings link. The System Properties Wizard will open. Make sure that you are on the Remote tab.
- In the Remote Desktop section, select the checkbox next to Allow remote connections to this computer.
- Click the Apply > OK button to save the changes.
- Now open the Control Panel window again and select the Windows Defender Firewall entry.
- In the left pane, select the Advanced Settings link. On the next screen, select Incoming Rules.
- Switch to the right pane and look for Remote Assistance (RA Server TCP-In) in the Name column.
- Make sure that this option is enabled.
- Now look for Remote Desktop – User Mode (TCP-In) and Remote Desktop – User Mode (UDP-In).
Ascertain that both options are enabled and that the Local Port is 3389. Drag the horizontal scroll bar to the right end to make the local port visible. After that, try to reconnect and see if the Error Code 0x104 has been resolved.
Clear Custom DNS Servers to fix Error Code 0x104
If enabling Network Discovery does not resolve the issue, you can try clearing the custom DNS server before establishing the remote connection. It is simple to apply to both the host and target systems. Let’s see if we can clear custom DNS servers. To accomplish –
- Open the WinX menu with the key combination Windows+X.
- In the menu list, select Settings > Network & Internet.
- Go to the right pane and click Change Adapter Options.
- On the network connections page, look for your adapter.
- When you find it, right-click it and select Properties.
- In the corresponding wizard, make sure you are on the Network Connections tab.
- Then check the box next to Internet Protocol Version 4 and click the Properties button.
- Also make sure that the Get DNS server address automatically option is checked.
- Click the OK button to save the changes and then try connecting again.
Make Sure That All Computers Use the Same Type of Network Profile.
- First we click on the network icon in the taskbar.
- Then we connect to any network.
- Then we click Properties.
- In the Settings for all PCs window we select Public or Private.
- Now we try to see if this solves the problem.
Enable Remote Desktop settings
Here are the steps we take to determine whether or not the Remote Desktop settings are enabled on the computer.
- First we press the Windows key+I.
- Then we go to “System”.
- When the system window appears, we scroll down the left side and select “Remote Desktop”.
- On the right side, we check whether the “Enable Remote Desktop” option is set to “ON” or not.
Final Words
We hope you like our article on How to Fix Remote Desktop Error Code 0x104 in Windows. Will help you and resolve all your problems. The cause of the error message can differ depending on the scenario. Nonetheless, it is frequently due to the following factors: Turning Off Network Discovery: If the network discovery option in your Sharing options is turned off, this could be the cause of the error message. Windows Firewall has blocked the following ports: For RDP connections, Remote Desktop uses the 3389 port by default. You will be unable to establish a connection if it is blocked by Windows Firewall.
DNS Settings: If you use custom DNS servers, the problem could be exacerbated. In this case, you must first remove them before attempting to connect. With that said, you can fix your problem by solutions listed above. Please make sure you follow them in the correct order. If the problem persists and you are unable to resolve it by following the steps outlined above, the new user can visit their official Microsoft Support website and request additional information.
I hope you understand this article, How to Fix Remote Desktop Error Code 0x104 in Windows.
