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Green Leaf · Feb 27, 2005, 08:19 PM

I have to connect my home Apple Computer to my Work PC.

What is the best program to do so?
I need to access files from the work computers.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Green Leaf · Feb 27, 2005, 08:32 PM

I've read some interesting articles on Timbuktu Pro and Remote Desktop Connection. Has anyone used either of these? Is it hard to set up on the PC?

PubGuy · Feb 28, 2005, 12:41 AM

Your question is that you want to be able to access you Work PC from your home Mac.

OK....several ways to do that.

I've setup PC's using UltraVNC -- it is faster than most flavors of VNC, especially if you install their special video drivers. You setup the PC as a VNC servier. Than I use Chicken of the VNC on the Mac side. You then initiate a session from the Mac to the PC and the Windows desktop will appear on you Mac in a window.

If your work PC doesn't have a unique IP address for you to access it from, you can go to No-IP.com and signup with them (FREE) and download their free software. You keep this running in the background of the PC and can then access it by whatever you called it when you signed up with No-IP.com.

For example, if you signed up for a name like MyWorkPC.Zapto.org than that is what you type in when you want to access your PC from the Chicken of the VNC. It's really a nice setup.

Another way is that if you have Windows XP PRo on your desktop machine, you can activate Windows remote desktop and use the free Mac version to access your PC. You may still have to use No-IP.com if you don't know the IP address of your PC or if it is a dynamic IP address.

philm · Feb 28, 2005, 07:04 AM

Originally posted by PubGuy:
Another way is that if you have Windows XP PRo on your desktop machine, you can activate Windows remote desktop and use the free Mac version to access your PC. You may still have to use No-IP.com if you don't know the IP address of your PC or if it is a dynamic IP address.

Does this need the 'Pro' version of XP? What is the situation for the regular XP version. Would I need to buy Microsoft Remote Access?

bbales · Feb 28, 2005, 10:16 AM

Originally posted by philm:
Does this need the 'Pro' version of XP? What is the situation for the regular XP version. Would I need to buy Microsoft Remote Access?

It requires the Pro version. Home edition doesn't work, which is unfortunate for me...

PubGuy · Feb 28, 2005, 06:31 PM

UltraVNC and Chicken of the VNC are FREE
UltraVNC is at http://ultravnc.sourceforge.net/
Chicken of the VNC is at http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/9517

So, I'd personally give the freebies a try. They are top-notch!

bbales · Mar 1, 2005, 07:09 PM

Originally posted by PubGuy:
UltraVNC and Chicken of the VNC are FREE
UltraVNC is at http://ultravnc.sourceforge.net/
Chicken of the VNC is at http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/9517

So, I'd personally give the freebies a try. They are top-notch!

Do these programs function as Virtual PC does? They look like programs to control another computer remotely. You don't have to be clients or servers or whatevers?
I'm a little unclear... (my fault, I assure you!)

PubGuy · Mar 1, 2005, 09:56 PM

You would install the UltraVNC on the PC side and set it up as a VNC Server. It will run in the background as a Window's service.

You then install the Chicken of the VNC on your Mac.

When you want to access your work PC from home, use Chicken of the VNC to connect to your work PC. When it connects, you will have a window on the screen (like VPC) and have your full Window's desktop there and thus full remote access just as if you were sitting in front of your work PC, but you'd be doing it from home on your Mac.