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Using win VNC to connect to home pc

I would like to be able to connect to my home pc from work and am curious if i use win vnc, if that opens up my computer to viruses or stuff if they are on my work pc. Guess i am a bit anal about the home pc and dont want to open it up to getting viruses or making it easier for someone to hack into it.

Other recommendations as opposed to win vnc? pcanywhere? gotomypc.com? The built in XP remote desktop ok enough so i dont need these others?

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blandyuk

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Dushan Silva

I can recommend Windows Remote Desktop.

BR Dushan

ahoffmann

if just malware is you care about, then vnc is less attackable than something like pc anywhere
in vnc ther host and the client can not infect the other one

TheRookie32

ASKER

@blandyuk - how does a person specify ips to allow through?

@ahoffman - using vnc, if one has a virus and the other doesnt, they cant get to eachother? is that what you are saying?

blandyuk

What firewall are U using? All you need to do it setup a rule. Most modern software firewalls pickup incoming / outgoing connections and popup a rule config for the particular application the did the request.

I use Agnitum Outpost Firewall, very configurable and I've never had a problem. The other bonus with Outpost is you can visually see all the incoming / outgoing connections that your computer is doing, can be handy.

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ahoffmann

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r-k

All the above is good advice. Pick a long password (greater than 10 chars) to avoid password guessing attacks.

TheRookie32

ASKER

I dont have a third party firewall system... :$

r-k

If this is XP you can use the built-in XP firewall. For this purpose it will serve the same purpose, i.e. you can specify who is allowed to connect to the VNC port.

nls73m

create a tunnel with ssh then tunnel through it with vnc. you'll need a firewall with ssh on it. you'll use ssh to create the tunnel. i use a linux firewall at home. when i want to connect to my home system from work, i ssh into my home linux firewall, then from my work desktop, open vnc and you're good to go. the security of ssh is unbeatable. don't vnc without some kind of security. vnc is not safe over an unsecure network. if you can't do this, the at least purchase the vnc with encryption. i tend to stay away from rdp unless its secured through a tunnel, again with ssh, or a vpn.

regards

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CoccoBill

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liamkellycabra

This is the man for you

VPN
Secure
Free

http://www.hamachi.cc/download

think of it as a VLAN

You can then use VNC over it and it's secure.

Liam

ahoffmann

dooh, posting a proprietary protocol (hamachi) in a security TA,
> You can then use VNC over it and it's secure.
how could you proovethat there is no MITM? I guess you cannot.

liamkellycabra

Em O yeh... Dooh
Man in the middle.
my bad.

TheRookie32

ASKER

@blandy, do you use Agnitum Outpost Firewall instead of windows firewall?...

blandyuk

Seems to be getting complicated here. SSH tunnel is a good idea ;) To be honest, RealVNC, www.realvnc.com, now uses Secure Communication with 128-bit AES. For what your using it for, it's more than adequate going thru a firewall restricting to your IP only.

TheRookie32

ASKER

So either way, real vnc or windows RDC will be just fine...