Chapter 16. OTHER NETWORK APPLICATIONS

Most people use a network for a limited number of purposes; they share files and messages, connect to the Internet, and maybe play multiplayer games or listen to music and watch videos from a server. But once you have your home or small business network up and running, you can use the network to accomplish some things you might not have expected.

This chapter describes a handful of other useful network applications. None of these is reason enough to install a network, but if you have come this far, you're already using the network for other purposes. Consider the network programs and services in this chapter as lagniappe, a little extra that might enhance your networking experience.

Remote Desktop programs allow another user, with your permission, to take control of your computer through a network. When a remote control program is active, a network manager or service technician can distribute and install new or updated software, provide help and remote assistance, and view information on other computers. Remote Desktop programs are a standard feature in Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Macintosh.

Several open source remote desktop programs for Linux and Unix are also available, including Virtual Network Computing (VNC), FreeNX, 2X Terminal Server, and X Display Manager Control Protocol. You can find links to downloads for all of these programs at http://blog.lxpages.com/2007/03/13/remote-desktop-for-linux/. For Mac-to-Windows remote access, try Microsoft's Remote Desktop Connection Client for Mac (http://www.microsoft.com/mac/products/remote-desktop/). For Windows-to-Mac, use a Windows-based VNC client such as RealVNC or TightVNC. You will find more information about VNC later in this section.

Windows Remote Desktop transfers control of a client computer to a host. The host mirrors the screen display from the client, and the host's mouse and keyboard control the programs running on the client. When Remote Desktop is active, the client computer displays a blank screen and doesn't respond to keyboard or mouse input until the host releases control.

Remote Desktop makes the person running the host computer a sort of superuser who can take control of a client computer, so several controls are built into the system that limit this kind of access: First, the user of the client must set the computer to accept Remote Desktop access, and second, the person running Remote Desktop on the host computer must have an account (usually with a password) on the client computer. In other words, if you turn off Remote Desktop on your computer, other people can't use it without your permission.

In Windows XP, the remote access tool is called Remote Access; in Windows Vista, it's known as Remote Desktop. Computers running Windows Vista Starter, Windows Vista Home Basic, Windows Vista Home Basic N, or Windows Vista Home Premium won't accept incoming access, but you can use Remote Desktop to take control of another computer running some other version of Vista. Windows XP Home Edition won't accept access from any Windows Vista machine.

To configure a Windows XP computer to accept Remote Desktop access, follow these steps:

To configure Windows Vista for Remote Assistance, follow these steps:

To take control of another computer using Remote Desktop in Windows XP or Remote Assistance in Windows Vista, follow these steps:

You can now control the distant system with your own computer's keyboard and mouse. You can open files, run tests, and load programs though the network. However, a user looking at the distant computer's screen will see nothing but a dark screen.

When a new Remote Desktop connection opens, it fills the client computer's screen, but you can reduce the size of the Remote Desktop window and see your own computer's desktop and Start menu by clicking the sizing icon on the Remote Desktop tab at the top of the screen. This will allow you to copy text, data, or files between the two computers.

To return control to the local user, click the X on the control tab near the top of the screen.