Amazon WorkSpaces Windows Client Application

The following information will help you get started with the Amazon WorkSpaces Windows client application.

Requirements

The Amazon WorkSpaces Windows client application requires Microsoft Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 10.

Setup and Installation

Download and install the Windows client application from Amazon WorkSpaces Client Downloads.

Determining Your Client Version

To see which version of the WorkSpaces client you have, choose Amazon WorkSpaces, About Amazon WorkSpaces, or click the gear icon in the upper-right corner and choose About Amazon WorkSpaces.

Connecting to Your WorkSpace

To connect to your WorkSpace, complete the following procedure.

To connect to your WorkSpace for 3.0+ clients

1. The first time that you run the client application, you are prompted for your registration code, which is contained in your welcome email. The Amazon WorkSpaces client application uses the registration code and user name to identify which WorkSpace to connect to. When you launch the client application later, the same registration code is used. To enter a different registration code, launch the client application, and then on the menu bar, choose Settings, Manage Login Information.

2. Enter your user name and password in the login screen and choose Sign In. If your Amazon WorkSpaces administrator has enabled multi-factor authentication for your organization's WorkSpaces, you are prompted for a passcode to complete your login. Your Amazon WorkSpaces administrator will provide more information about how to obtain your passcode.

3. If your Amazon WorkSpaces administrator has not disabled the Keep me logged in feature, you can select the Keep me logged in check box at the bottom of the login screen to save your credentials securely so that you can connect to your WorkSpace easily while the client application remains running. Your credentials are securely cached up to the maximum lifetime of your Kerberos ticket.

   After the client application connects to your WorkSpace, your WorkSpace desktop is displayed.

To connect to your WorkSpace for 1.0+ and 2.0+ clients

1. The first time that you run the client application, you are prompted for your registration code, which is contained in your welcome email. The Amazon WorkSpaces client application uses the registration code and user name to identify which WorkSpace to connect to. When you launch the client application later, the same registration code is used. To enter a different registration code, launch the client application, and then on the menu bar, choose Options, Manage Registrations.

2. Enter your user name and password in the login screen and choose Sign In. If your Amazon WorkSpaces administrator has enabled multi-factor authentication for your organization's WorkSpaces, you are prompted for a passcode to complete your login. Your Amazon WorkSpaces administrator will provide more information about how to obtain your passcode.

3. If your Amazon WorkSpaces administrator has not disabled the "Remember Me" feature, you are prompted to save your credentials securely so that you can connect to your WorkSpace easily while the client application remains running. Your credentials are securely cached up to the maximum lifetime of your Kerberos ticket.

   After the client application connects to your WorkSpace, your WorkSpace desktop is displayed.

An interruption of network connectivity causes an active session to be disconnected. This can be caused by events such as closing the laptop lid, or the loss of your wireless network connection. The Amazon WorkSpaces client application for Windows attempts to reconnect the session automatically if network connectivity is regained within a certain amount of time. The default session resume timeout is 20 minutes, but this timeout can be modified by your network administrator.

Managing Your Login Information (3.0+ Clients Only)

You can view your registration code and what Region your WorkSpace is in. You can specify whether you want the WorkSpaces client application to save your current registration code, and you can assign a name to your WorkSpace. You can also specify if you want Amazon WorkSpaces to keep you logged in to a WorkSpace until you quit or your login period expires.

To manage your login information for a WorkSpace

1. In the Amazon WorkSpaces client application, go to Settings, Manage Login Information.

2. In the Manage Login Information dialog box, you can see the registration code and Region information for your WorkSpace.

3. (Optional) If you want the WorkSpaces client to remember your current registration code, select the Remember Registration Code check box.

4. Under Saved registration codes, select the WorkSpace that you want to name.

5. In the WorkSpace name box, enter a name for the WorkSpace.

6. (Optional) If you want WorkSpaces to keep you logged in until you quit or your login period expires, select the Keep me logged in check box.

7. Choose Save.

Client Views

You can switch to full screen mode by choosing View, Enter Full Screen (3.0+ clients) or View, Show Fullscreen (1.0+ and 2.0+ clients) in the client application menu.

While in full screen mode, you can switch back to window mode by moving the pointer to the top of the screen. The client application menu is displayed, and you can choose View, Leave Full Screen (3.0+ clients) or View, Exit Fullscreen (1.0+ and 2.0+ clients) in the client application menu.

You can also toggle full screen mode by pressing Ctrl+Alt+Enter.

Client Language

You can select the language displayed by the client by performing the following steps.

Note

The WorkSpaces client applications support Japanese. However, Japanese WorkSpaces are available only in the Asia Pacific (Tokyo) Region.

To select the client language

1. Depending on which client you're using, do one of the following.

   If you're using...	Do this
   3.0+ client	In the Amazon WorkSpaces client application, go to Settings, Change Language.
   1.0+ or 2.0+ client	In the Amazon WorkSpaces client application, open the Advanced Settings dialog box.

2. Enter your desired language in the Select a language list and choose Save.

3. Restart the client.

Display Support

Amazon WorkSpaces Value, Standard, Performance, Power, PowerPro, and GraphicsPro bundles support a maximum of four displays and a maximum resolution of 3840x2160 (ultra-high definition, or UHD). The maximum supported resolution depends on the number of displays, as shown in the following table.

Displays	Resolution
2	3840x2160
4	1920x1200

Note

Graphics bundles support only a single monitor configuration with a maximum resolution of 2560x1600.

The Amazon WorkSpaces client application extracts the Extended Display Information Data (EDID) of all attached displays and determines the best compatibility match before starting the session. If you have a High DPI display, the client application automatically scales the streaming window according to your local DPI settings.

Proxy Server

If your network requires you to use a proxy server to access the internet, you can enable the Amazon WorkSpaces client application to use a proxy for HTTPS (port 443) traffic. Proxy with authentication is not currently supported.

Note

The Amazon WorkSpaces client applications use the HTTPS port for updates, registration, and authentication. The desktop streaming connections to the WorkSpace require port 4172 to be enabled, and do not go through the proxy server.

To use a proxy server for 3.0+ clients

1. In the Amazon WorkSpaces client application, go to Settings, Manage Proxy Server.

2. In the Set Proxy dialog box, select Use proxy server, enter the proxy server address and port, and choose Save.

To use a proxy server for 1.0+ and 2.0+ clients

1. In the Amazon WorkSpaces client application, open the Advanced Settings dialog box.

2. In the Proxy Server Setting area, select Use Proxy Server, enter the proxy server address and port, and choose Save.

Command Shortcuts

The Amazon WorkSpaces Windows client supports the following command shortcuts:

• Ctrl+Alt+Enter—Toggle full screen display

• Ctrl+Alt+F12—Disconnect session

Release Notes

The following table describes the changes to each release of the Windows client application.

Release	Changes
3.0.5	Resolves an issue with the user interface displaying a login prompt if single sign-on (SSO) is enabled for Amazon WorkDocs
3.0.4	Minor bug fixes and enhancements
3.0.2	Adds keyboard shortcut to toggle full screen display Adds support for connecting to WorkSpaces Streaming Protocol (WSP) Beta WorkSpaces Minor bug fixes and enhancements
3.0.0	Improved user interface Friendly registration code labels Minor bug fixes and enhancements
2.5.11	Minor bug fixes
2.5.10	Resolves an intermittent issue related to invalid keystrokes sent when closing a laptop lid Minor fixes
2.5.9	Resolves the issue of displaying a blank app icon image on the Windows 10 taskbar after WorkSpace client upgrades Minor bug fixes
2.5.8	Resolves an intermittent crashing issue related to computer waking up when opening a laptop lid
2.5.7	Adds support for German keyboard layouts with Linux WorkSpaces Resolves an issue that results in a crash of Excel with clipboard direction
2.5.6	Minor fixes
2.5.5	Minor fixes
2.5.2	Resolves an intermittent issue with the Caps Lock key becoming stuck Minor bug fixes
2.5.1	Resolves an issue that periodically results in repeated key presses with WorkSpaces running Amazon Linux 2 Adds support for localized date and time formats in the user interface Minor user interface improvements
2.5.0	Adds support for user self-service WorkSpace management capabilities
2.4.10	Minor fixes
2.4.9	Minor fixes
2.4.8	Adds support for uniform resource identifiers (URIs), which enable login orchestration Minor fixes
2.4.7	Resolves an issue with the user interface text not displaying correctly on Microsoft Surface Pro 4 models (Windows only) Adds support for time zone redirection for more Regions: America/Indianapolis America/Indiana/Marengo America/Indiana/Vevay America/Indiana/Indianapolis Includes user interface text changes for the Login page
2.4.6	Adds support for configuring the logging level to include advanced logging for debug scenarios Minor improvements to session provision handling
2.4.5	Adds a check to ensure that certificates issued by Amazon Trust Services are trusted by Windows during installation. By default, an up-to-date Windows local Root CA list includes Starfield Service Root Certificate Authority - G2, and therefore trusts Amazon Trust Services certificates. If the local Root CA list is outdated, the client installer installs the Starfield Service Root Certificate Authority - G2 certificate to the system. If you do not have administrator access to the client device, you'll be prompted to confirm the installation of the Root CA certificate.
2.4.4	Minor fixes Improves copy and paste
2.4.2	Minor fixes
2.4.0	New logo Improves the user interface and stability
2.3.7	Addresses a gray screen issue that occurs when displays are in different orientations
2.3.6	Localization enhancements
2.3.5	Minor improvements
2.3.3	Improves the support for multiple monitors Localization enhancements Improves security and performance
2.3.2	Installer fixes
2.3.1	Minor fixes
2.3.0	Improves support for multiple monitors Improves security and stability
2.2.3	Resolves minor bugs and improves stability
2.2.1	Adds support for the German language Resolves time zone mapping issues for some Regions Resolves a connection issue on Russian systems Improves the Japanese user interface Improves stability
2.1.3	Closing the client expires the reconnect token. You can easily reconnect to your WorkSpace as long as the client is running.
2.1.1	Minor improvement to protocol handling
2.1.0	Adds support for the following new WorkSpace states: STOPPING and STOPPED Resolves minor bugs and improves stability
2.0.8	Resolves a conflict with running iTunes or Garmin processes during installation Adds support for a password-free installation experience if installing only for the current user Resolves an issue with Excel formatting when copying and pasting data in BIFF5 format If Remember Me is disabled, the user name is not shown on restart Adds a confirmation dialog box when deleting a registration code Improves stability
2.0.6	Resolves bugs and includes other improvements
2.0.4	Adds support for audio in, enabling you to make calls or attend web conferences Adds support for devices with high DPI screens Adds support for saving registration codes, enabling you to switch WorkSpaces without re-entering the registration codes Improves support for Windows 10 Improves usability and stability
1.1.80	Adds CloudWatch metrics for session latency, session launch time, and session disconnects Improves auto-session resume so that you are interrupted less frequently when network conditions are degraded Resolves specific issues and improves stability
1.1.6	Adds support for status notifications. The client application notifies you about the state of your WorkSpace when it cannot connect to the WorkSpace. Improves the reconnect experience. The client automatically redirects to the login screen after 10 hours of inactivity. You can reconnect again if the client fails to launch a session using reconnect. Adds support for auto-session resume. The client application automatically attempts to resume your session if network connectivity is lost and then regained within the session-resume timeout (default value is 20 minutes). Improves network health checks so they are faster and more reliable Adds client-side validation of registration codes Improves the synchronization of Caps Lock and Num Lock status between the local device and the WorkSpace
1.1.4	Adds support for saving your credentials, enabling you to easily reconnect to your WorkSpace Improves advanced connection-health checks Improves stability
1.0.8	Introduces a full-file installation package Improves network connectivity checks Adds version information to the About window
1.0	Initial release