First-time install — the SmartScreen prompt

RDPMaster is currently distributed without an Authenticode code-signing certificate. We’re keeping operating costs low while we grow; the cert costs $150–500/yr and we’d rather invest it in support response time. The trade-off: Windows will show a one-time security prompt on your first install. About 10 seconds of friction. After that, Windows learns to trust the installer and you don’t see the prompt again on this machine.

Step 1 — Browser download warning

When you download RDPMaster-Setup-*.zip, Chrome / Edge / Firefox may flag the file as “uncommonly downloaded” or “not commonly downloaded.” This is browser smart-reputation — Microsoft and Google haven’t accumulated enough installs to mark the brand “trusted” yet.

What to do: in the download bar, click the small ^ chevron next to the file → Keep (Chrome / Edge) or Keep file (Firefox).

Step 2 — Windows SmartScreen modal

Double-click Install.bat from the extracted folder. Windows Defender SmartScreen shows a blue-purple full-screen modal:

Windows protected your PC

Microsoft Defender SmartScreen prevented an unrecognized app from starting. Running this app might put your PC at risk.

App: Install.bat Publisher: Unknown publisher

[Don’t run]

What to do:

1. Click More info (small link below the warning text — easy to miss the first time).
2. The modal expands. A Run anyway button appears.
3. Click Run anyway.

Step 3 — Standard UAC prompt

Windows asks for administrator permission (the yellow shield prompt every installer triggers). Click Yes.

Step 4 — Install proceeds

The installer copies RDPMaster to C:\Program Files\RDPMaster, creates Start Menu + Desktop shortcuts, installs the .NET 8 Desktop Runtime if needed, and registers the app in Settings → Apps → Installed apps.

“Done” message box appears when it finishes. Total time about a minute.

Why no Authenticode signature yet?

Sectigo / SSL.com / DigiCert sell OV (Organization Validated) code-signing certs for $75–300/yr and EV (Extended Validation) certs for $300–500/yr. We’ll buy one once RDPMaster sales justify the spend (around 12–25 paid customers a month at our $39–$249 ASPs). Until then, you’ll see the SmartScreen prompt above on first install.

Microsoft’s reputation system also tracks installs over time. After a few hundred installs across the user base, the prompt softens or disappears entirely — even without a cert.

What we DO promise

• Zero telemetry. Beyond the explicit RDP sessions you configure, RDPMaster makes one weekly Lemon Squeezy licence-validation HTTPS call. That’s it. No analytics, no crash reporting, no update phone-home. Verified by grep of the source tree (commercial/PRIVACY.md §1.2).
• Source of distribution is verifiable. The zip is published from hudsonenterprisesllc.com over Cloudflare-served TLS. The licence issuer is Hudson Enterprises LLC, Indiana.
• Refunds within 14 days via the Lemon Squeezy customer portal — no questions, no haggling.

If your IT department blocks unsigned installers

Some corporate environments block any unsigned .exe at the firewall or endpoint-protection layer. If your IT bounces the install:

1. Email support@hudsonenterprisesllc.com with your company name. We’ll send you the file’s SHA-256 hash and the publisher metadata as a separate verification artifact.
2. If your team needs a signed installer for procurement reasons specifically, let us know — that may accelerate our code-signing decision.

When SmartScreen reappears

The reputation Microsoft builds for a given installer is per file hash. When we ship a new RDPMaster version, the hash changes, and SmartScreen treats the new installer as unrecognized again. You’ll see the same prompt on the first install of every new version until the cert lands.

We’re aware. We’re working on it.