Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) Reviews & Product Details

Parallels Remote Application Server adds a valuable layer of security and control on top of standard Windows Remote Desktop. It centralizes access to applications and desktops, allowing tighter policy enforcement, access controls, and session management without relying solely on native RDP configurations.

The customization is particularly useful. It allows fine-tuning of how applications are published, how users authenticate, and how sessions behave, which improves both security and user experience. This reduces the need for complex manual configuration across multiple servers. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Parallels Remote Application Server can be slow to integrate with third-party 2FA solutions, which limits flexibility when aligning with existing authentication standards. This can delay deployments or require workarounds when stronger or preferred MFA methods are needed.

Mac support is also more limited compared to Windows. Features and updates tend to lag, which creates inconsistencies in user experience and can complicate support in mixed-device environments.

Overall, these gaps impact integration flexibility and cross-platform consistency. Improvements in faster 2FA integration and more aligned Mac development would make the platform more balanced. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I use Parallels to remotely access some of our client's servers hosted in the cloud. So far I have not had major issues with it. It works as expected and most importantly it is more secure than other applications for remote access like the windows remote desktop application.

I like that Pararells allows for the creation of different user rights. You can create a username and limit the access rights as needed. One of our major clients uses this feature since all the users access the server but with limited rights. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Sometimes the application hangs and you are forced to close it up and open it up again. This can lead to wastage of time. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

RAS allows easy management of multiple Virtual desktops and Remote apps in one convenient location. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

RAS doesn't have an easy way to share a physical client with multiple Virtual desktops. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Parallels RAS brings all your IT infrastructure (servers, applications, shared drives, private cloud, printers) in a browser at a fingertip, with excellent user experience, low latency, and high security. It provides the agility complex businesses need. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Although there is a heavy client to access the virtualized items, setup the client in an enterprise environment with serious network security policies in place is complicated, leaving you only the HTML5 access. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The RAS system from Parallels (originally was 2x) is extremely easy to get up and running quickly and has a very nice interface. Especially if you compare it to the more involved solutions. I am not using this currently but the pricing structure was also very reasonable at the time. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

It has its limitations, for example if you have a lot of applications and limitations on who it's published to, it can be very cranky. In the case I was most recently involved in the applications were published to multiple organizations with specialized differences for each organization using it. That ended up with a significant number of published applications with 4-8 being shared per client. At a point the application stopped properly serving clients and would start denying incoming connections. After a significant number of attempts at correcting the issue we ended up needing to use another solution. I don't mean 10-15, this was a significant number of applications published which is probably a very rare situation for non-hosting companies. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The best part is its deep integration into the system so that the application runs very smoothly and without any problems. It works really fast and it is easily adapted to the Mac system which means it opens within several seconds. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I don't like that we have to decide the percentage of the utilization by the application at the very beginning and it is hard to change it when the application is already installed. It means that you once have to decide how many GB you will dedicate to the application and then no matter how hard and intensive the activity can get, there is no way to change it around. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Simultaneous work in different places, perfect for saving time and consulting pre-configured applications. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I have no problems with my current system. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I like that it is easy to access another desktop for school work. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I do not have any problems with this software at all. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What I love the most with Parallels is that when I’m not connected directly to the company’s server I can remote into any of the applications that I need to with if not at the office. So it’s great when I’m off sick or at home when a problem arises, I can pull out my computer and remote directly to all my work data. When the server is down at airport and we cannot check in I still have my laptop that we can remote in to get any check in data needed. It also has a really good mobile app too which is a really good plus. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

There’s not much that I don’t dislike with Parallels, at first it seemed a bit confusing but now it’s so easy. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The feature set, performance and quality increased over the years. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

the licensing changed some time ago and after Parallels purchased RAS from 2X the price unfortunately increased extremely and the german support office was closed. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.