Chapter 5. Remote Desktop
Access
In the enterprise environment, system administrators often need
to deal with a large number of basic problems on users' machines.
Remotely taking control of a user's desktop to fix the problem,
while at the same time training the user how to resolve the problem
for themselves, is an effective and simple way to handle these
types of support scenarios. This chapter describes how to use
vncviewer and Terminal Server Client to gain remote access to a
user's desktop to aid in the administration of the remote
system.
Both vncviewer and Terminal Server Client allow the administrator to
connect to a user's desktop session in a way that allows both the
user and the administrator to simultaneously view the same desktop
screen, including all currently active applications and actions
(such as mouse movements, etc.)
While vncviewer is primarily for
connecting to a Linux desktop, Terminal
Server Client can be used to access both Windows and Linux
desktops.
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Note |
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These tools only allow you to connect to
a user's existing session. If the user is not logged in, the
connection will fail.
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Important |
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All remote desktop connections described in this chapter use
unencrypted connections, thereby sending
authentication information over the network without encryption.
Their use is therefore recommended only inside a trusted, secure
network.
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Before you can gain access to a remote user's desktop, the
user's environment must be configured to allow remote access. There
are different levels of access that a desktop user may grant to
another, ranging from simple viewing of the user's desktop, to
gaining complete control of the desktop.
These different levels of access are configurable through
(the main menu on the panel)
=> => menu item.
The default configuration for remote desktop access is shown in
Figure
5-1.
As can be seen in the above image, the access can be granted in
a number of ways:
-
Allow other users to view your desktop
-
Allow other users to control your desktop
-
When a user tries to view or control your desktop:
For remote administration it is recommended that the
administrator check all the boxes in the Remote Desktop dialog and
set a required password for the administrator to gain access. This
recommended configuration is shown in Figure
5-2.
With the above access permissions, the administrator should be
able to gain complete access to the user's desktop. This method has
the further benefit that the user can observe the administrator
control the user's desktop in real time. This technique can be
particularly effective when combined with another simultaneous,
synchronous form of communication (such as a telephone
conversation), thereby providing a means for the user to learn to
address the problem by on their own in the future. In some remote
administration cases, however, it would not be appropriate for the
user to take part in the administration.
