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Simple, Free Web Remote PC Control?
MeatballCB writes "Hey folks. Being the 'technical' guy of the family, I often get calls from friends and family members when they're having PC issues. Most of these folks are not technical, so trying to troubleshoot problems over the phone can often be a challenge. Anyone know of a simple-to-use and (preferably) free service that would allow for remote viewing/control of their PCs? I know there's WebEx and GoToMyPC, but I hate to pay for something I'd use once every two months. I also know about VNC, but trying to walk someone through opening up ports on their router that thinks their Internet is broken when their homepage gets changed is not realistic. Anyone know of anything that would be easy to set up and use?"
It's a free service for home use. QED.
I'm a big fan of LogMeIn Free. It's pretty easy to setup, and it gives you access to the pc through any browser. You don't have to worry about port issues or anything. I think it's what you should really look into using.
I've found that teamviewer is the easiest way to connect without having to go through setting up port forwarding
I have had good success with TeamViewer (http://teamviewer.com/index.aspx) and no, I don't work for them..It is free for non-commercial use
UltraVNC single click. Its a reverse VNC, designed for this purpose. They double click the executable, and then automatically connects to your listening client.
Its customizable so you can make it look professional if needed. They only have to run the file, it does everything else.
I've used Crossloop (http://www.crossloop.com/) and TeamViewer (http://www.teamviewer.com/index.aspx) with good success. The client only has to run an exe, give you their address code over the phone, and accept your session. Simple enough for my mom.
... you just need to know that your friends (and family members) DO NOT need to mess with their routers. Just YOUR router needs to open a single port (5500/tcp) and forward it to your workstation. Make your friends run the VNC server as usual, start the VNC client on your workstation in LISTENER mode, tell your friends to select "add new client" from the VNC server icon context menu, and make them enter your IP or dyndns address into the popup dialog.
(Technically, this swaps the roles of client and server on the TCP level, but VNC still behaves as expected.)
Tux2000
Denken hilft.
Crossloop. Seriously. You don't need to create an account, you can just close the login window and still use the application. It's free, never had any spyware or adware in the past. (I haven't checked it recently)
We used this at work and I use this at home. It's secure because the application doesn't run as a service, you need a unique code every time you connect to a client and they need to authorize you. It's based on VNC.
If you can't get someone to install Crossloop to help them, you might as well them tell to bring their computer over or send it to a shop because it's that easy.
With UltraVNC Single-Click, you can give them a smallish program to run and click. No need for opening ports or anything, as the connection is initiated from their side. For this to work, only you need to open and forward a port on your side (and have ultravnc listen server running).
http://forum.ultravnc.info/viewtopic.php?t=15865&sid=b6c0c94c99f3095d318eace245e09b49
The single-click program could be easier to use, though...
UltraVNC SC is what you need.
Check it out here!
If you're doing this over your residential connection or if you might be in different locations, set yourself up with a dynamic DNS service (such as www.dyndns.org) and create yourself a hostname on there. Build your VNC-SC download to point to that address.
I have mine set up on my family website where they can download it easily so I don't have to drive over to their house every time they can't print.
It fixed my problems instantly when I quoted them my rate. I got tired of being abused by people who refused to learn how the system worked. This was a directed refusal they take pride in. I made my point that I was not longer their slave. Now they get to pay someone who likes the abuse. I would point out the relationship has a whiff of BDSM but they'd not understand that either.
I'd go on a Vegan diet but the delivery time from Vega is too long. --brownkitty
For a couple of family members I support I find the Remote Assistance function (essentially Remote Desktop with a different make-up job) works fine. They have MSN Messenger (or Live Messenger, or what-ever it is branded as today) accounts as do I so all they have to do is click select "request remote assistance" from the "activity" menu. You will need to have port 3389 pointing open at your firewall and pointing to the machine you will be answering the call on though, which is a disadvantage (make sure all your passwords are well chosen!), but the other end doesn't need any open ports.
Pre XP I had OpenVPN and VNC installed on their machines. All they had to do was open the VPN and I could take/share control via VNC. RDC/RA works better though, as it is more responsive over slow ADSL lines and does not require any setup on the machine the person is asking for support on, though for family members who I have built machines for still have the VPN installed so I can connect it if I want/need to try interact with the machine by anything other than the RA connection (accessing fileshares directly for instance, if the problem being reported is "I can see the MP3s on the main machine from my laptop" or such), but I've not needed to do that for some time.
I suggest using Crossloop for the remote screen control. It is like VNC, in fact it is based on VNC, but it uses it's own code and Crossloop server to bypass any problems of getting past NAT routers, which often present a problem for novice users to configure properly and safely for VNC services. Crossloop offers no voice connection, so also use a high quality audio link like Google Talk, or just keep them on the phone. In trying to figure out a way to become profitable, Crossloop has taken to marketing it's members "services" to others, but they have (IMHO) gone over to the dark side by putting themselves in league with PayPal (who are in turned owned by an electronic fencing organization). But users don't have to participate in this, it's still available for free private use.
I'm an American. I love this country and the freedoms that we used to have.
I like Crossloop. It is setup as a Support site, but you/they don't pay anything unless you charge for support. There is a simple website to point the people to to request support.
I have a similar issue and have found that MS Live Mesh, and I think that it is a great solution to your issue. It will allow you to control any PC in your mesh from any other PC, and remotely via a web browser. You can easily share documents on each of the machines as well, a nice solution for backing up your own data. Finally, you have he software works on Windows and OSX; however, you can only sync files to a Mac. It would appear that they are working on being able to control a Mac remotely.
Logmein is great, and I use it for all my own computers. However, it requires an install on client-side, and for some situations (over the phone support with an ignorant user), trying to get them to install is a long, painful process.
I also use reverse VNC, which is nice. You have to open up a port on our own router, have the VNC viewer listening on the right port, and then setup the reverse VNC binary to connect to your computer (ultravnc has easy programs for this), but it's reliable and pretty simple for end-users... one download, one click, done.
I haven't found a web-based, no-install remote desktop sharing program yet that's free. Would be nice to have.
Have all parties sign up for a free account at Acrobat.com. Includes screen sharing and remote control for free. No troubles with ports etc...but does require Flash.
...do watcha like...
well for Teamviewer is kick ass. free fopr personal use and does all sorts of other things you mighty like such as VPN.
have a looksee, it really is quite nice and i have found there is much less lag on it as compered to other remote control apps
Mod parent up!
Remote Assistance comes with all versions of windows, so you don't have to worry about sketchy third-party apps or waste time downloading and installing something. It's a little more tricky to do with the home edition, but I've helped family members using XP home on both ends. As long as you follow the directions, it's not too much of a hassle.
Other operating systems have similar functionality as well under different names. (OS X, for instance calls it "screen sharing", offers several ways to use it - iChat is probably the dumbed-down-est way, but if you want to get fancy, you can tunnel it over SSH and even enable it from within the terminal session. Ubuntu calls it "Remote Desktop" and has a whole slew of applications in the repository that do varying levels of VNC. tunneling over ssh is as trivial as on the mac, or maybe it's the other way around. I doubt apple was the leader in having secure shell implemented.)
There's really no need to go buying fancy software you heard advertised on Rush or during an episode of 24. All of the modern OSs were designed around network use and have fairly complete tools for doing everything more robustly and securely than things like "gotomypc" appear to offer.
Can you be Even More Awesome?!
www.mikogo.com . owned by Skype. I use it all the time.
I've used Echogent's EchoVNC. The Windows server is easy to use. The Linux one isn't quite as easy unfortunately. Pretty much set up a server somewhere public, and then both ends (me and the customer) can be behind most firewalls and get connected quickly. I don't know what feature differences are between their free trial and their pay version are, but if folks are really interested, they'll find out.
The client lets you encode the username, password, and server right into it. For the end user, I send them to a web page and tell them to click a link. They download it and run it. It doesn't install anything, so it's real quick to get going. For me, I have the admin client installed on my PC, so I fire it up, and watch for that client to connect. Once they're connected, I start working.
When I'm done, I close the client on their side, which of course disconnects me. It never starts again, unless they tell it to. It's nice, clean, and doesn't pollute their machine with wasted crap. They can delete the executable from their machine when they're done. No uninstall necessary.
Even as simple as it is for the client (go to this site, click the link, run it, click ok), some people still have problems. "What do I run", or "Where did it download to". Frequently they'll ask for the password, which I tell them it's already set. For most people, it's 30 seconds to get me on. For some it can take a couple minutes, especially when they don't understand me saying "Open a browser and go to ....". It all depends on your end user.
Needless to say, if the connection is bad enough, it's going to be pathetically slow. I was able to get onto a machine to traceroute from it, since the customer couldn't spell "tracert". It took a while, but I got enough information and told them what to say to their provider when they called.
The only real problem I've run into is with Vista and it UAC. When it pops up, it kicks me off. If I'm doing something that runs into that, I have to ask them to click "allow", and then I reconnect. Since I'm only on client machines to fix problems, it's not appropriate for me to disable UAC.
Serious? Seriousness is well above my pay grade.
I also use reverse VNC, which is nice. You have to open up a port on our own router, have the VNC viewer listening on the right port, and then setup the reverse VNC binary to connect to your computer (ultravnc has easy programs for this), but it's reliable and pretty simple for end-users... one download, one click, done.
I've done remote support for years through my business. I've used a custom MSI of TightVNC with the password already set, along with OpenVPN. That allows the customer to connect securely to my network, without worrying about a router and port forwarding.
Just download the software, install, and it works. OpenVPN also eliminates the security problem of having unencrypted VNC running over the Internet.
The UltraVNC SingleClick, though, I've just started looking at as a replacement. Built in encryption, easier install for the end user, and complete uninstall when it's finished.
Security is still an issue, though, even with the built in encryption, because it's a static key, rather than PKI. Anybody who can download the SingleClick installer (which is anybody with an IP address) can also get the encryption key used. So it would be easy for anybody to eavesdrop on a connection and intercept all traffic.
OpenVPN with custom certificates eliminates this (which you can generate on the fly from a PHP script, so every single customer is using their own encryption), so I'll still be using it for a lot of customers, even if I completely move over to UltraVNC SC.
"City hall" in German is "Rathaus" Kinda explains a few things......
Okay seems like everyone and their brother has a different idea and since this interests me I tried to roll up as many of the interesting looking ones as possible into one posting :-) Did I miss any?
http://www.teamviewer.com/
https://secure.logmein.com/products/free/
http://www.copilot.com/
http://skype.com/
http://www.uvnc.com/addons/singleclick.html (reverse VNC)
http://www.crossloop.com/
http://www.mikogo.com/en/
http://showmypc.com/
https://www.ntrconnect.com/
http://www.zolved.com/remote_control
http://www.wippien.com/ (VPN)
http://code.google.com/p/gitso/ (reverse VNC)
Build it, Drive it, Improve it! Hybridz.org
I had the same struggle with VNC. I tried remote desktop over hamachi, but that was just as bad. I stumbled on CrossLoop and haven't looked anywhere else. As the tech guy, you install a small local client and create a login. Those you want to help download and run a small stand-alone file, then tell you the "access code" prominently displayed in the window. You enter that code, and you've got access.
For commercial use, I use PCHelpware. http://www.uvnc.com/pchelpware/index.html
It works great in that I have clients download my custom copy from my website. It has my IP hard coded in the config. Once it is running, which usually takes 2 clicks on Windows security windows, they just hit connect and I am in.
You can edit the graphics, too. Mine has my company name, phone number, etc.
The only negative, it is somewhat of a hog (due to encryption, I think), but it works and I do not have too much trouble getting even the inept connected. Vista needs to have the UAC disabled, unless you keep the user on the line. The security windows do not show up due to MS restrictions. I have not tried other programs under Vista, so I am not sure if it is a universal problem
GoTo Assist Express offers different levels of pricing. $660 per year, $69 per month, or $9.95 per incident. If they are just friends and family and want to get their stuff fixed, I think the $9.95 per incident wouldn't be that big of a deal. Explain to them that if they want their computer fixed right then, they are going to have to give you $10 next time you see them (or mail it/Paypal it to you later). I actually signed up for it when it was in beta (it was free) and ended up getting a discounted price of something like $450 a year, which my company pays for. It is a good program. I have not had any problems with users installing it....well....users that are using Internet Explorer. Firefox has some issues with installing the applet that makes it confusing for some users.
Google for "free MSI packager".
Pick one you like, and go to it.
I use this one:
http://www.scalable.com/softwaredownload/ledownload
It's got some idiosyncracies, but I'm used to it.
Basically, you do a "before" snapshot, install the VNC server, set your password and anything else you want to configure, then do the "after" snapshot.
It pretty much just runs a diff on the filesystem and registry, and puts the diff file into an .msi.
There are a few things you'll need to take out, that are false positives, but it does a pretty good job of filtering things like clock changes and other mundane stuff by itself.
Find the contact page on the link in my sig and drop me an email if you want any more help.
"City hall" in German is "Rathaus" Kinda explains a few things......