Recommended remote access for single person to access his office computer occasionally?

[Velvis]

Is there a reasonably priced solution for a single user and access to a single PC?

 

[JoelM]

Splashtop for $60/year

 

[GTP]

Windows Remote Desktop...free with Windows

 

[frase]

Or Anydesk, free - all one needs to do is allocate it to start-up directory so is open when Windows starts.
Then have the user logs in with credentials like the user logs into the system.

 

[urcomputech]

chrome remote desktop is a great solution. fast and free.

 

[backwoodsman]

I'd use https://www.dwservice.net . Free, open source, haven't used it a whole lot yet but so far it's worked very well.

 

[Diggs]

Anydesk? Splashtop? For one PC? Come on guys.......

As mentioned above. If he has Windows Pro he can use the built-in RPD client in Windows or Chrome RDP works on any machine. Both free and already on the machine.

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

Splashtop Business.
Performs well, easy to setup remote printing, fantastic multi monitor support, wicked EASY to use, and importantly....secure...has Multi Factor Auth..

Free is fun for do-it-yourselfers or hobbiests.....but as a professional, I'd rather recommend a professional service, stability and security being of prime importance.

Built in remote desktop....assuming they're wanting to remote into the office from the outside world...now you have either port forwarding to deal with (which is stupid risky due to hacks) and/or getting static IPs on the office internet connection (don't do mickey mouse pizza tech dynamic DNS approaches), or VPNs to deal with (complexity for the end user, probably additional expense for the end user, more phone calls for the tech to help confused client, again..static IP desired). And VPNs, by default, introduce risk to the host network...as it's a full tunnel that the remote client is now connected with. (think...network aware malware that can spread itself across LANs).

I have Chrome remote desktop setup as well, tried it when it came out, it's just....well, slo-mo and archaid compared to the variety of professional grade remote desktop services out there.

 

[carmen617]

Splashtop Business.
Performs well, easy to setup remote printing, fantastic multi monitor support, wicked EASY to use, and importantly....secure...has Multi Factor Auth..

Free is fun for do-it-yourselfers or hobbiests.....but as a professional, I'd rather recommend a professional service, stability and security being of prime importance.

Built in remote desktop....assuming they're wanting to remote into the office from the outside world...now you have either port forwarding to deal with (which is stupid risky due to hacks) and/or getting static IPs on the office internet connection (don't do mickey mouse pizza tech dynamic DNS approaches), or VPNs to deal with (complexity for the end user, probably additional expense for the end user, more phone calls for the tech to help confused client, again..static IP desired). And VPNs, by default, introduce risk to the host network...as it's a full tunnel that the remote client is now connected with. (think...network aware malware that can spread itself across LANs).

I have Chrome remote desktop setup as well, tried it when it came out, it's just....well, slo-mo and archaid compared to the variety of professional grade remote desktop services out there.

Couldn't agree more - Splashtop is secure, professional, and very inexpensive. Businesses should pay for business solutions - free always comes with a cost as well.

 

[VISA MC]

If this is a common need for you, look into something you can make money on. We use SimpleHelp for our remote access tool that allows something they call RemoteWork which is exactly what you want. Currently it is free to help with Covid but they said they expect it to be $2-3 a month at the most once they do price it out. We charge $79 a year for the service and it’s tied right into our remote tools.

 

[Diggs]

Built in remote desktop....assuming they're wanting to remote into the office from the outside world...now you have either port forwarding to deal with (which is stupid risky due to hacks) and/or getting static IPs on the office internet connection (don't do mickey mouse pizza tech dynamic DNS approaches), or VPNs to deal with (complexity for the end user, probably additional expense for the end user, more phone calls for the tech to help confused client, again..static IP desired). And VPNs, by default, introduce risk to the host network...as it's a full tunnel that the remote client is now connected with. (think...network aware malware that can spread itself across LANs).

Now you are sowing FUD. There is none of that involved unless your on a domained network. (You've been working corporate too long - heh.) Most SOHOs require none of this for Windows and Chrome RDP.

I have Chrome remote desktop setup as well, tried it when it came out, it's just....well, slo-mo and archaid compared to the variety of professional grade remote desktop services out there.

10 years ago? I think you should try it again. It works well for simple access.

I'm really surprised at the overboard answers for an occasional one PC access. (I suppose if all you have is a hammer, everything is a nail.)

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

Now you are sowing FUD. There is none of that involved unless your on a domained network. (You've been working corporate too long - heh.) Most SOHOs require none of this for Windows and Chrome RDP.

Single computer
Workgroup network
Large domain....

I ask..."How is none of that involved"?

...does not change how remote desktop works from outside the network. You have port 3389...need to expose it to the internet. Sure, you can try to go get fancy and obscure..and alter the ports forwarded on the router. But truth be told, todays (and yesterdays, and yesteryears) hacking tools will sniff any/all ports on an IP, and ID the listen host by fingerprint. And leaving a Windows computer exposed to the internet through a remote desktop listen port....sure fire way for problems to happen. Lots of exploits that can just drill right in.

The slightly safer method is to have the remote user VPN into the network..and then access the RDP host via LAN IP. But...that can be cumbersome for some users, and can introduce security issues for the host network unless the guy setting up the VPN has a router capable of true firewall duties that can manage that and wall off the VPN network except for explicit ports. So that removes this option for most small setups.

Chrome desktop is just a quasi beta service that runs on WebRTC. I still have it on my desktop at the office...just tested it again from my laptop. Nope, hasn't gotten any better. It works....but I won't call it smooth/quick. Happened to just open up Googles home page for that. Hasn't been updated since 2019. Longevity of that service is....questionable. Yeah, I'll still call it a "quasi beta product" and, veer away from recommending that and other fly by night open source/free products.

60 bucks a year for solid, frequently updated, MFA backed...remote desktop access that is quick, easy, secure, supported...easy peasy. About 1/3 the price of hiring a computer guy for 1x hour to setup home made duct tape and bubble gum services.

 

[Sky-Knight]

@YeOldeStonecat Windows 10 RDP, is not the RDP you're thinking about.

Have you ever opened the Windows 10 RDP client by accident?

I've never used it, but remote desktop in Windows 10 on a machine that's using a Microsoft Login can if configured to do so... use Microsoft as the proxy to locate and access the RDP service.

It's splashtop, but RDP instead... using MS as the match maker... for free.

There are security issues up the wah and down the zoo with it, so I don't use it. But it does exist, and requires the Windows 10 app version of the RDP client to use.

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

@YeOldeStonecat Windows 10 RDP, is not the RDP you're thinking about.

Have you ever opened the Windows 10 RDP client by accident?

The remote desktop app (different from RDP mentioned above). Heh, I've played with that even back in the XP days when it was part of the "SkyDrive" program..that the remote got stripped from and then turned into OneDrive. I've found it's unreliable at best.

QuickAssist is similar, and cool, but "demand driven"....no permanent listen host.

 

[britechguy]

I'm really surprised at the overboard answers for an occasional one PC access. (I suppose if all you have is a hammer, everything is a nail.)

Seems to happen all the time here. There is no consideration of "the big picture" and a constant belief that the big, bad wolf is lurking, literally, at every corner waiting to target you.

Tool to task. Plain and simple. And that means looking at what the user needs and wants, and what the *real* risks are, rather than the remotely possible but highly improbable ones, when making a choice.

 

[pctechforhire]

I'd use https://www.dwservice.net . Free, open source, haven't used it a whole lot yet but so far it's worked very well.

dwservice is my primary one.

But I've dabbled with another free one, https://remotely.one/. The cool thing about it is, you can run your own server. Works just as well as dwservice, and is able to get through firewalls just fine. I'm still evaluating it, though.

 

[cyabro]

The free connectwise control is excellent for that.

 

[frase]

Seems to happen all the time here. There is no consideration of "the big picture" and a constant belief that the big, bad wolf is lurking, literally, at every corner waiting to target you.

Tool to task. Plain and simple. And that means looking at what the user needs and wants, and what the *real* risks are, rather than the remotely possible but highly improbable ones, when making a choice.

We get asked for our advice, opinions vary. That is why Technibble is a great environment to discuss and relay ideas.
Professionally I use Splashtop as a Business. I did suggest the Anydesk route, simple though effective.

Same can be done with other alternatives, all up to the individual in the end.

 

[Markverhyden]

I agree, Anydesk is a great solution for a one off. But they can't skimp on security. Which means enabling 2fa. Unfortunately that only works with Android from what I've seen.

 

[britechguy]

We get asked for our advice, opinions vary.

Never claimed otherwise. But opinions have varying validity, and one of the things that determines that from the outset is consideration of context.

The same recommendations are not necessarily valid for a one-person business that wants very occasional access to their work computer remotely as is valid for a multinational company with thousands of workers that is, in reality, a very juicy target for nefarious actors while the little guy is not.

That's where my issue lies, and pretty consistently. That, and the tendency for some to treat edge cases, really distant edge cases, as though they should be central considerations. They're not. They're very rare exceptions that, for most situations for "the little guy," really don't deserve any substantive consideration. Knowing your territory, and its pitfalls, matters.