How to View and Change Windows Remote Desktop Port (3389 → 3388)

Overview

The default port for Windows Remote Desktop is 3389. For security reasons, many users want to change this default port to reduce the risk of malicious attacks and port scans.

1 View Windows Remote Desktop Port

Step 1: Find the TermService process PID

Open the command prompt (Start → Run → cmd) and run: tasklist /svc | find "Ter" If the PID is not displayed, ensure you run the command with appropriate permissions.

Then locate the PID in the output (e.g., 13388).

Step 2: Find the port used by the Remote Desktop service netstat -ano | find "13388" The output shows the listening port; in the example it is the default 3389.

2 Modify Windows Remote Desktop Port

Step 1: Open the Registry Editor

Start → Run → regedit and press Enter.

Step 2: Change the port number in the registry

Navigate to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\TerminalServer\Wds\rdpwd\Tds\tcp

Double‑click PortNumber, switch from hexadecimal to decimal, and set the value to 3388.

Also modify the second location:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\TerminalServer\WinStations\RDP‑Tcp

Again double‑click PortNumber, change to decimal, and set 3388.

Step 3: Restart the computer

The changes take effect after a reboot.

Step 4: Test the remote connection

Connect using the IP address followed by the new port, e.g., 192.168.1.10:3388. Verify that the remote desktop reports the port has been changed to 3388.