Do you know what is the biggest annoyance when it comes to Windows 11/10? It’s upgrading from one version to another. One of the recent updates to Windows 11/10 has caused a lot of problems for folks who use Remote Desktop on a daily basis. In general, the error stacks up as Windows 11/10 RDP client is not working or won’t connect and can’t find the computer HOSTNAME. We have seen two cases around it.
1] I’m trying to reach a specific website or folder on the network
This error shows up when one tries to run the Network Troubleshooter. When you add the server name inside it, it still cannot identify the problem. Surprisingly, the drives seem to appear and disappear now and then. Even after connecting, the network commands do not work. The user had multiple PCs, and many a time all the other systems not seeing themselves on the network.
2] Remote Desktop can’t find the computer “HOSTNAME”.
This error showed up when using the classic remote desktop software. It kept failing with the message
Remote Desktop can’t find the computer “HOSTNAME”. This might mean that “HOSTNAME” does not belong to the specified network. Verify the computer name and domain that you are trying to connect to.
Sometimes it used to work after the user tried to connect multiple times. However, when using the UWP version of Remote Desktop, it seems to connect 100% of the time.
Related: Remote desktop can’t connect to the remote computer.
Remote Desktop can’t find the computer in Windows 11/10
This is a clear-cut case of DNS issue. It is possible there are two different records on the DNS server, and this is why sometimes it connects while other times it doesn’t. When it can resolve to the right address, the drives connect to the PC, but after a few minutes, they will disappear. You can check this by using nslookup for the hostname, multiple times, and see if you get the same result every time.
nslookup [–SubCommand …] [{ComputerToFind| [–Server]}]
If that’s the case, you need to change your DNS server or ask your admin to resolve this issue for you.
The second option which has worked for many is to disable IPv6 on your network adapter. By default, Windows prefers IPv6 over IPv4. So if you are having problems using IPv6 to connect to the servers, you can force your computer to use IPv4 only.
Open Settings > Network and Internet > Ethernet > Change Adapter options
Right-click on the adapter for which you want to disable it, and select properties.
Look for the checkbox which says Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6), uncheck it.
Click on OK, and restart your computer.
This should resolve your problem!
Troubleshoot: Remote Desktop connection issues on Windows.
