Re: Remote control a PC with no set up
- From: Philip Herlihy <thiswillbounceback@xxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 03 Jun 2009 10:52:01 +0100
Jaimie Vandenbergh wrote:
On Wed, 3 Jun 2009 10:34:14 +0100, Jon <spam@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:
What do people use for this?
At home I use remote desktop etc, but what I really want is somethng that I can install onto machines that I service/look after/build for friends, family etc that will enable me to take control of the remote machine without having to faff about with port forwarding on routers etc.
In other words something that will enable me to ay to the other person "switch your machine on and make sure you're connected to the internet"
I've tried teamviewer about a year ago without success. I would consider web-based solutions but I don't really want to have to pay for anything if it can be helped.
https://secure.logmein.com/products/free/
Skype has a screen sharing thing now. Various VNC servers have a
"connect to remote viewer" option that should work too (you'd need to
set a port forward at your own router, and have some fixed method of
getting to you - fixed IP or some dynamic DNS service).
Cheers - Jaimie
If I can persuade customers to buy Vista Business or XP Pro then Remote Desktop is best because of performance and reliability, in my experience. I'd usually visit to configure their router.
Alternatively, as Jaimie mentions, you can run a listening VNC client on your own system (with appropriate port forwarding locally) and have the client connect to a remote viewer (you) from their machine. I install a simple script which does that if they double-click it, and all of this is within the capability of many clients to install for themselves, with guidance. VNC is slower and less reliable than Remote Desktop, in my experience - I've encountered situations where VNC falters constantly where RDC is steady as a rock. I've recently been monitoring conversations in Wireshark to try to get a handle on this.
Worth a plug for DynDNS, which allows you to set up a free account for the customer, and install an updater client which will update DNS so you can still connect to a machine/lan with a dynamic IP address. Only takes 5-10m for a new IP address to become accessible this way.
I've come across something called PC Helpware which allows you to build a stand-alone server which users can download (no installation) and run, but I found the performance poor. Haven't revisited this recently, but I mean to.
I don't mind paying for software (Vista Home needs a paid-for version of RealVNC to work, as does the Mac) but I ruffle at the services which want me to pay a subscription. I don't do quite enough remote work to justify it, although it's important for some customers.
Phil, London
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- Remote control a PC with no set up
- From: Jon
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