Question

Remote Computer Access -- What's best to use?

Asked by: noob23

I need to set up Remote Access on one of our servers. Several of our telecommuting employees will be accessing the server (in NJ) from their remote locations (ie, Maine, Florida, etc.). What is the best program to use for this? I am considering Real VNC, LogMeIn.com, or PC Anywhere. Not sure what the best solutions is since this is the first time we're going to implement something other than the Windows Remote Desktop Connection.

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Asked On
2007-06-18 at 07:32:10ID22640630
Tags

remote

,

vnc

,

access

,

best

Topics

VNC Remote Access Software

,

Remote Access Software

,

PC Anywhere Remote Access Software

Participating Experts
5
Points
50
Comments
9

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Answers

 

by: rindiPosted on 2007-06-18 at 07:40:59ID: 19307457

My current favorite is logmein, or the builtin remote desktop (Terminal services). Logmein has the advantage that you don't need to change any settings on your routers or firewall.

 

by: Mr-MadcowzPosted on 2007-06-18 at 07:45:36ID: 19307487

Several different options.

You can either go the VPN route and set up secure tunnels into your server or just run VNC in.

We atarted off with Ultra VNC, which is way way better than Real VNC in that it has FTP built in and we found was generally more stable.
We have now moved over to VPN as we want our clients to have access to network shares and exchange so they now login to the domain via VPN.

Depends on what you want to get out of it. VNC is easy but slower. VPN is more secure but can be tricky to configure.

As stated above, Logmein is damn good.

 

by: cypherbadPosted on 2007-06-27 at 04:31:12ID: 19371255

Hy,
I suggest you to use Pc Anywhere but it is quite expencive but it`s powerfull:
http://www.symantec.com/home_homeoffice/products/overview.jsp?pcid=pf&pvid=pca121
It can:
Windows Vista host support enables management of Windows Vista computers from any pcAnywhere remote system.
Mac OS X Universal support provides remote control capability across both PowerPC and Intel-based Mac systems.
Key Features
Host Invitation feature allows end users to establish a reverse (outbound) connection to the helpdesk without knowing IP addresses.
Gateway functionality makes it easier for remote users to access the pcAnywhere hosts they need.
Single Session Manager combines pcAnywhere Manager and all active sessions into one tabbed window view.
Allows Microsoft Windows®, Linux®, Mac OS X Universal, and Microsoft® Pocket PC remote systems to connect to Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X Universal hosts.
Connection wizard guides new users through their initial client-host connection.
Powerful file-transfer capabilities allow users to upload and download files across different platforms.
Mandatory password protection and login encryption help ensure that only authorized users can access a pcAnywhere host.
Uses FIPS 140-2validated encryption up to AES 256-bit.
Bandwidth Auto-Detect automatically maximizes pcAnywhere performance for each type of connection.
Remote Management tools provide direct access to vital operating system utilities (such as Command Prompt, Task Manager, and Services) on the host system.
It needs:
System Requirements
pcAnywhere" Windows® Host, Remote & Gateway
Windows Vista" (Home Basic, Home Premium, Business, Enterprise, Ultimate)
Windows XP Home & Pro, Windows XP Tablet & Media Center Edition
Windows XP Embedded and Windows Embedded for POS
Windows 2000 Pro/Server/Adv Server
Windows 2003 Server (Standard & Enterprise)
pcAnywhere Host & Gateway are supported on Windows x64 (AMD64 or EM64T processors only) where applicable

Required for all Windows installations
35 MB of available hard disk space
233MHz or faster processor
128 MB of RAM
CD or DVD drive
Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 SP1 or later
 
ADDITIONAL PLATFORM SUPPORT

pcAnywhere" CrossPlatform

pcAnywhere" CrossPlatform Remote
Java" Runtime Environment 1.4.2 or later
Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES & WS 3.0/4.0, SuSE Enterprise Desktop 9 & 10, OpenSuSE 10.0/10.1
Mac OS X 10.4 or later (PowerPC G4/G5 or Intel processors)
Windows 2000 or later
pcAnywhere Linux® Host
Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES & WS 3.0/4.0, SuSE Enterprise Desktop 9 & 10, OpenSuSE 10.0/10.1, SuSE Enterprise Server 9/10
KDE or GNOME
pcAnywhere Mac OS® X Host
Mac OS X 10.4 or later (PowerPC G4/G5 or Intel processors)
pcAnywhere Web Remote"
Java" Runtime Environment 1.4.2 or later
MS IE, Mozilla Firefox, or Safari
pcAnywhere Mobile"
Windows Mobile" 2003 SE for Pocket PC/Pocket PC Phone Edition or later
1 MB of available RAM for installation
Symantec Packager
Windows Vista (Business, Enterprise, Ultimate)
Windows XP Pro
Windows 2000 Pro/Server/Advanced Server
Windows Server 2003 (Standard and Enterprise)
And a download costs 199$!!
Or you could use radmin:
http://www.famatech.com/it/
it`s only 50$ but it`s not as good as pc anywhere.
Hope that it helps.
Cheers

 

by: simsjrgPosted on 2007-06-29 at 17:35:50ID: 19394440

>> I need to set up Remote Access on one of our servers. Several of our telecommuting employees will be accessing the server (in NJ) from their remote locations (ie, Maine, Florida, etc.).

Sounds to me like you are going to have multiple connections. Looks like Terminal Server (in application mode) and/or Citrix may be your only option.

You can use Terminal Server (Administration Mode) but it will only allow 2 remote connections and 1 console connection at the same time.

 

by: noob23Posted on 2007-07-12 at 12:59:38ID: 19475597

Will Ultra VNC or Logmein allow me to have more than 2 connection at a time? I will need to be able to allow at least 2 or 3 people to connect to the server at the same time from remote locations. If either of these will do that job, I will probably use one of them. If not, please suggest something I can use. Thanks.

 

by: cypherbadPosted on 2007-07-12 at 13:45:47ID: 19476045

You sould try the trial of pc anywhere too!

 

by: karanprabhamPosted on 2008-06-27 at 06:02:47ID: 21883172

The best solution is to setup a vpn server, where telecommuters can connect to vpn and get in to the network and access any machine via VNC.

20120131-EE-VQP-002

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