Remote Access

BigJohn

BigJohn

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I'm in need of a good but simple remote access program ( Windows remote access just wouldn't help with what I need .) I have looked at Teamviewer and also logmein . I just wondered if anyone has experiance with these programs and also how secure are they ? Or do you have any other sugestions . I need access so that I can assist my mum on her pc from time to time as she doesn't really have a clue sometimes .
 
Not really any good in this instance I my mum only just knows how to turn the pc on lol Let alone start inviting help .
 
fair dos but theres going to be a certain amount of stuff that your mum has to do to invite a remote connection whichever way you go..

unless you put some sort of VNC program on her computer, open up a port on their router and use some sort of dynamic DNS subscription. but then youre stuffed if the internet breaks lol
 
Teamviewer is a good programme, I've used it to access PC from away and I know several IT Assist type firms that use it. It has an access by invitation, limited by access code facility so reliable IMO.
 
VNC the most difficult to set up, but probably worth it in the long run and is also free. You could get a free DynDNS account and install the app for updating in the event her IP address changes and once it's up and running it's pretty bullet-proof - depends how savvy you are about doing it yourself I suppose.... not simplicity itself to set up, but certainly simple once configured.
 
I've used a few. PCAnywhere, VNC, RDP, MSN Messenger Remote Desktop and Logmein.


Personally....I'd recommend Logmein for that type of support. It does take a little bit longer for the user setup....software download and config, but once done I found it the best for that situation (famliy support) and its free and can be accessed from anywhere where you can download the client.

As it uses a web client, you shouldnt need to worry about firewall issues (port 80). Also....if you dare, it can also get through company firewalls for that reason, unless the website has been specifically blocked! ;-)

Andy
 
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I've successfully used Teamviewer a few times when I've become tech support for my mother or other family members.
 
Another vote for Teamviewer here. The other person doesn't even need to install it, they can just run the client for you to connect.
 
Thanks for the advice guys I think that i'm going to have a look at running team viewer . All my mum has to do then is access their website for a pass key .
 
The only issue I have with these programs is that the service goes through their servers - how much do you know about their security, where they're hosted, who has access etc. I'd always go for a direct client to client connection myself.
 
Islander said:
The only issue I have with these programs is that the service goes through their servers - how much do you know about their security, where they're hosted, who has access etc. I'd always go for a direct client to client connection myself.
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Thats a good point and one that has been worrying me , but I have no idea how to set up a VPN . I read reviews on cnet for both of these programs and both come across as been very good .
 
I'm sure they're fine, John - their commercial success depends on them taking security seriously. I'm just a paranoid b****r - I deal with information security for a living :)
 
Another vote for Logmein, I use it for a PC & Lappy in Spain. Supporting my father who lives there from emigrated from rip off U.K (XP & Vista), plus support my wifes friends family run business 4 PCs in their office (Win 7). Works a treat and is free. Seems fairly secure to me.

If you are on a fairly high broadband connection speed is quite good.
 
beamyourscreen.com is another to have a bash at!
 
BigJohn said:
I'm in need of a good but simple remote access program ( Windows remote access just wouldn't help with what I need .) I have looked at Teamviewer and also logmein . I just wondered if anyone has experiance with these programs and also how secure are they ? Or do you have any other sugestions . I need access so that I can assist my mum on her pc from time to time as she doesn't really have a clue sometimes .
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Install teamviewer in host mode on her computer, take a note of the ID and password you set, install the client on your computer, and bob's your uncle. yes, the data goes through their servers, but anything you do on the net goes through ISP servers too, so it's much of a muchness, that argument. The data is encrypted, quite strongly as far as I know. I have heard horror stories of VNC being notoriously easy to hack, and given how slow it is even on a LAN I'd not even think about setting it up over the Internet.
 
trencheel303 said:
I have heard horror stories of VNC being notoriously easy to hack, and given how slow it is even on a LAN I'd not even think about setting it up over the Internet.
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default port is 9100 (off the top of my head) which no router will have open.. cant comment on packet hacking mind but then if the port isnt open..

over a LAN its fine, over a LES100 thats getting hammered its fine, over a supposed 8mb ADSL2 VPN its reasonable but fine for support.
 
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Another vote for teamviewer. Im the family IT technician (unpaid :bang:), its on all the laptops and pc's and its never let me down.
 
trencheel303 said:
Install teamviewer in host mode on her computer, take a note of the ID and password you set, install the client on your computer, and bob's your uncle. yes, the data goes through their servers, but anything you do on the net goes through ISP servers too, so it's much of a muchness, that argument. The data is encrypted, quite strongly as far as I know. I have heard horror stories of VNC being notoriously easy to hack, and given how slow it is even on a LAN I'd not even think about setting it up over the Internet.
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There's a big difference between data passing through an ISP and a third party server. The data passing through the ISP's service is SSL encrypted and unreadable - the ISP effectively cannot touch it. The data passing through the third party server is relying on the third party's certificate and could easily be subject to a MITM snoop. Which is the reason that, as InfoSec, I've ordered access to all of these services blocked at work.

However, as already pointed out to the OP, the risk to his system is low and he probably doesn't need to worry about it.
 
neil_g said:
default port is 9100 (off the top of my head) which no router will have open.. cant comment on packet hacking mind but then if the port isnt open..

over a LAN its fine, over a LES100 thats getting hammered its fine, over a supposed 8mb ADSL2 VPN its reasonable but fine for support.
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VNC out of the box isn't secure. However RealVNC allows strong encryption to be used. It can be a bit sluggish over contended ADSL though :p
 
China "hijacked" 15 per cent of the world's Internet traffic earlier this year, according to a report to the U.S. Congress, in what could be a new form of cyber terrorism.
A state-run telecoms firm is accused of diverting traffic including data from U.S. military and government websites, and some in Britain, via Chinese servers.
Experts fear that the authorities could have carried out "severe malicious activities" as a result of the 18-minute operation, even harvesting sensitive data from emails or implanting viruses in computers worldwide.
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Read more:

Source
:whistling:
 
Depends on what was routed via their servers, Gramps. Anything truly sensitive in this country doesn't go anywhere near the Internet - the Government runs it's own private networks.

The Chinese have been known to operate dodgy stuff though. There's a free VPN service that's supposedly run by dissidents for dissidents - a forensic analysis showed the client attempting to connect to a number of banking and government sites. Classic attack landscape mapping technique, plus access to supposedly encrypted data streams used by dissidents. Draw your own conclusions...
 
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