You don’t have to be sat in front of your PC
to use it. We show how to access it from anywhere and any device
Hundreds of millions of desktop PCs running
Windows are sold each year and for many people they are the primary computing
device. The main reason for this is that they have such a wide range of uses.
They can run any type of software, you can hook up any hardware device to them,
they can be networked with wires or wirelessly, and so on.
Hundreds
of millions of desktop PCs running Windows are sold each year and for many
people they are the primary computing device.
Although it’s hard to imagine how it would
be possible to cope without a desktop computer, they are being used far less
than they used to be. Instead, laptops, tablets and smartphones are
increasingly being used for lightweight tasks like email, social networking,
and even web browsing and blogging on portable devices is on the rise.
Desktop computers are still essential, but
they’re often used in different ways to how they used to be. They can be a
media centre supplying video and audio to other computers and devices, and they
can be accessed remotely, not only as file storage, but also to run software.
A big, powerful desktop computer can run
software that a lightweight laptop or netbook would struggle to cope with or
may not run at all. Using remote access software, it’s possible to connect to your
main computer and run software as if you were sat in front of it. The screen on
the computer you are sat at mirrors the desktop of the remote computer and
apart from a slightly slower screen refresh rate, it’s just like being there.
You can run any software that is on the remote computer, even major
applications like Photoshop and Office, and games too. If a game won’t run on
your laptop, it may be possible to run it on your main computer remotely.
A big, powerful desktop computer can run
software that a lightweight laptop or netbook would struggle to cope with
A remote computer can be accessed from
other devices like Android and iOS tablets and smartphones and not just other
computers. This means that you could play a Windows game on your Android or iOS
tablet using remote access software and screen mirroring. The game runs on your
desktop PC elsewhere in the house while you sit on the sofa with a tablet. It’s
not just for games, though: Windows 8 is designed for tablets. With remote
access software, the new Start screen with its app tiles turn an Android or iOS
tablet into a Windows tablet. Well, almost. It won’t quite be as good as
running Windows 8 natively on the tablet, but it won’t be far off.
A
remote computer can be accessed from other devices like Android and iOS tablets
and smartphones and not just other computers
It is possible to install remote access
software on Apple Macs and Linux PCs too. This enables you to run Mac or Linux
software on a Windows PC, remotely that is, or to run Windows on a Mac or Linux
PC. If you’ve set up a Windows PC or even a Linux PC as a media server, for
example, it would be possible to connect to it and run applications, make
changes, and perform other tasks without actually having to plug in a keyboard
or monitor. You just connect remotely and access it from your local PC or
device. You could even access a webcam on the remote computer and see into the
room or wherever the webcam is pointing.
The remote computer can be at home or at
work, and you can access the remote computer from either location over the
internet. If you forget to print out a report at work, it’s possible to log
into your PC from home, load the report and print it. Any device that is
connected to the remote computer can be accessed as if you were there, such as
printers, webcams and so on.
Remote access software works over the
internet, so you could be in a coffee shop, hotel or other location with free
Wi-Fi and access your home or work PC. When accessing a remote PC, the screen
display is sent to the computer or device you’re using, so bandwidth
limitations can make the screen updates a little slow, but it’s certainly
possible. Accessing a PC over a local network, such as Wi-Fi throughout your
home, is much faster and smoother.
Remote access software is mostly free,
which is great for anyone who wants to try it. With nothing more than Google
Chrome running on two computers, for example, it’s possible to remotely access
one from the other. This is useful for technical support, and you could use it
to take control of a friend’s or relative’s computer to fix it by running virus
scans, tweaking the start-up configuration, removing unwanted software and so
on.
Don’t Go To Sleep
Remote access software is mostly free, which
is great for anyone who wants to try it
One thing that you have to watch out for
with remote access software is sleep mode. It’s common for laptop computers to
automatically go into sleep mode after a certain period of inactivity, which is
to save the battery. It’s less common in desktop computers, but they can be set
to sleep too. When the computer is in sleep mode, it cannot accept incoming
connections, because everything is suspended and nothing is running. A remote
computer must be configured not to sleep. However, you can still use some power
saving options. For example, it is okay to power down the disk drive when it’s
not being used, and there’s no need for the monitor to be switched on.
Remote access software is mostly free, which is
great for anyone who wants to try it
To set the power saving and sleep
functions, click Start in Windows 7 or Vista and enter ‘power’. Click Power
Options in the menu and then either select the Balanced or High Performance
plan. Whichever one you choose, click ‘Change plan settings’. There’s an option
to put the computer to sleep, which should be set to Never. The display can be
set to turn off after ten minutes. Go to ‘Advanced power settings’. Expand
‘Hard disk’ and it can be set to turn off after 15 or 20 minutes. Make sure the
Wi-Fi does not go to sleep if you’re using a wireless network. With the monitor
off, the disk off, and the CPU doing no work, the computer won’t be using much
power or generating a lot of heat, so leave it on when you go out.
