Remote Control Methods
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Wayne Hixson
Wondering how others are doing remote access of their systems? I was able to remotely operate mount, Focuser, and camera from my iPad using GoToMyPC, which mirrors the remote computer screen. Slow response, but it was workable. Are there better/more efficient methods? Thanks! |
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Wayne, I use Teamviewer and really like it. It is free.
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Stuart On Wednesday, March 11, 2015, wayneh9026@... [ap-gto] <ap-gto@...> wrote:
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Gregg Ruppel <ruppelgl@...>
Hi Stuart I have been using RealVNC for several years with good results. Response is usually very fast but of course depends on your internet connection. Clear skies, Gregg On Mar 11, 2015, at 7:48 AM, Stuart Heggie stuart.j.heggie@... [ap-gto] <ap-gto@...> wrote:
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Gregg, that is good to know. Is RealVNC freeware?
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I used to use UltraVNC locally over my private network but someone told me that Teamviewer uses the local network vs Internet if it can. Seems to work but it is light on details. Useful though for when I'm at my observatory location which is at our farm. With almost three feet of snow and 200 yards to cross in the dark, nice to not need to strap on snowshoes and traipse out there in the cold and instead use a fast local wireless connection vs my slower Internet signal. Stuart On Wednesday, March 11, 2015, Gregg Ruppel ruppelgl@... [ap-gto] <ap-gto@...> wrote:
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Wayne Hixson
Just reading up on RealVNC. Looks good, I probably will download a trial of the $30 personal version. On Mar 11, 2015, at 8:22 AM, Stuart Heggie stuart.j.heggie@... [ap-gto] <ap-gto@...> wrote:
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Ross Salinger <rgsalinger@...>
TeamViewer works as well as anything and it’s free. It works fine over a LAN (very fast), you just need to enter the ip address of the partner, not the Teamviewer identifier. To make the LAN configuration work you do need (duh) either a wireless router or to set up an ad hoc network which is not very hard if both computers have wifi built into them.
From: ap-gto@... [mailto:ap-gto@...]
Sent: Wednesday, March 11, 2015 8:36 AM To: ap-gto@... Subject: Re: [ap-gto] Remote Control Methods
Just reading up on RealVNC. Looks good, I probably will download a trial of the $30 personal version.
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I'm sure it is good but remember that Teamviewer is free and also excellent.
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Stuart On Wednesday, March 11, 2015, Wayne wayneh9026@... [ap-gto] <ap-gto@...> wrote:
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Wayne Hixson
Will definitely take a look at TV but will have to wait until I get home - for some reason my company firewall blocks their website. On Mar 11, 2015, at 8:43 AM, Ross Salinger rgsalinger@... [ap-gto] <ap-gto@...> wrote:
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Joe Zeglinski
Hi,
I have been using the free TeamViewer for the past few
years, and it works great with a laptop-to-laptop wireless connection to the
backyard. Originally, when I didn’t know about the option to set up a local
wireless LAN connection, I did use the “internet” method (entering the TV
identifier). This caused all kinds of problems, as my ISP connection blinked, or
dropped out in the middle of sessions.
The only downside of operating wireless versus a LAN
cable and say ICRON Ranger, is the speed. My Linksys Router wireless
transmission is only 150 Mbps between laptops, but a wired CAT5 connection would
be 6x faster, at 1 Gbps,
Still, the wireless TV operation works quite well, and now rarely drops out
– plus no cable across the yard to trip over in the dark.
Joe
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Jim Jones
I use Team Viewer over a local network. Works very well. Very fast. Screen update appears instantaneous to the eye.
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I especially like it's file handling capabilities. I typically have some gigabyte files to down load to the house computer at the end of a viewing session. It does this with no fuss. Out of the box, you have to enter a multiple digit random number that is displayed at the observatory computer. But there is a method for using a fixed password instead. Much more practical for a remote observatory. I have also used RealVNC and Windows Remote Desktop but prefer TV. Jim Jones On 3/11/2015 8:22 AM, Stuart Heggie stuart.j.heggie@... [ap-gto] wrote:
Gregg, that is good to know. Is RealVNC freeware? |
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Steve Reilly
I still have a running subscription to LogMeIn and it does cost but I have to say I’ve never had an issue with it. Setup a password and it just runs fine. If you have a second monitor you can switch between them easily but I think the strongest feature is the file transfer. When used you get the remote window side and the local window side similar to having both open using Windows Explorer. Decide what to transfer and where to transfer it. That said I have and use mostly RealVNC on both my home office computer and the observatory, also at home and on the same wired/wireless network. Connections are seamless and fast depending on method of connection. Locally you can connect via the network or over the internet connection. I have DSL rated at 10MBs which tests out to between 7-8 MBs. This has vastly improved my abilities over satellite internet which was the only alternative to phone modem up to about two years ago. I transfer my files locally using Beyond Compare and if I’m remote I can use my old IPSwitch ftp software quit easily. In ACP you have a choice of zipping the data and uploading them to a cloud server and downloading from there. ACP must have been set up for this. And this is also another way to control your system if using ACP using ACP’s web interface. Both ACP and RealVNC work on my smartphone as I suspect any web based remote would including LogMeIn. I can’t say I’ve used TeamViewer before although I did look at it. Seems I didn’t see how to use it to remote in without someone at the other end to allow me to. Sounds like you’ll need to look a variety of solutions and choose which works best for you. ACP has this feature built in but needs to be set up if you are using ACP, LogMeIn has a free trial I believe as does RealVNC, and TeamViewer sounds like it is free. It’s good to have choices.
-Steve
From: ap-gto@... [mailto:ap-gto@...]
Sent: Wednesday, March 11, 2015 11:47 AM To: ap-gto@... Subject: Re: [ap-gto] Remote Control Methods
Will definitely take a look at TV but will have to wait until I get home - for some reason my company firewall blocks their website.
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Gregg Ruppel <ruppelgl@...>
Hi RealVNC is not free. The server is $30, the iPad viewer is $10, but the PC viewer is free. My observatory is in my backyard and I use RealVNC on my home network to control everything from the comfort of my house. I have a PC in the observatory that runs the server software. It also works well via the Internet as long as the bandwidth is sufficient, so in theory I can control the observatory from just about anywhere. Clear skies, Gregg On Mar 11, 2015, at 11:02 AM, 'Joseph Zeglinski' J.Zeglinski@... [ap-gto] <ap-gto@...> wrote:
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Joe Zeglinski
The TeamViewer website used to say – and maybe still
does – that their “File Transfer” was not included in the free version. Then I
discovered that wasn’t true, and that file transfer works just fine, although
you have to Browse to click location & destination names, rather than a
mouse drag & drop between the two local and remote screen windows. So, if it
is still saying this, ignore it – file transfer is included in the free version
& works.
As for TV speed, I once tried to give it a “load test”,
and logged into two other (hosting) computers in the house, while the
observatory (third) laptop was in use operating the telescope. My screen showed
all three active sessions, which I could instantly switch between at
will. I was surprised that there wasn’t any noticeable degradation, with all
three remote computer screens working, as well as my own active background
screen – and I was just running under Win-7 Home Premium. I could transfer
files between any pairs, if I wanted to. I was impressed with this program. Mind
you, I do have 16 GB on this home (ASUS G75VW Gamers Intel i-7) laptop, so,
maybe more memory helps improve the speed, or to handle the higher loads I was
testing.
Finally, you don’t have to be “at the remote” to allow
TV access. I just use the same login name on both computers, so Win-7 makes the
connection for the account owner registered on both ends. In fact, if you run TV
once, it gets added somehow to the host computer STARTUP, so the next time you
power up the remote, the TV task is on the task bar, and will respond to an
incoming TV client (you in the house) – even while the host laptop at the scope
is still sitting at its initial power-up Windows Login main screen – a
user doesn’t have to be already logged in, unlike MS Remote Desktop (which also
logs out the user at that end, when he switches between host & client
computer screens. But, this is normal for TV or x-VNC, since how else would you
run an observatory located in some remote location, or country?
I would recommend to anyone, first try the free
unlimited TeamViewer (for home users only) for a while to see if it suits – you
can always buy VNC if you find any missing features. Local wireless works great
- Internet web based ISP remote connections suffer the same problems in either
case.
Joe
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Jim Jones
Steve
To set up unattended access to the observatory (server) from a remote computer, open Team Viewer in the observatory computer click: Connection>Setup unattended access and follow the setup wizard. It's been a while since I did it but that's how I remember it. Jim Jones On 3/11/2015 9:47 AM, 'Steven Reilly' sreilly24590@... [ap-gto] wrote: I still have a running subscription to LogMeIn and it does cost but I have to say I’ve never had an issue with it. Setup a password and it just runs fine. If you have a second monitor you can switch between them easily but I think the strongest feature is the file transfer. When used you get the remote window side and the local window side similar to having both open using Windows Explorer. Decide what to transfer and where to transfer it. |
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Jim Jones
Joe
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I don't know what version you are using but for versions 8 and 9 you click on file transfer at the top of the screen and it drops down remote and local screens. Then you drag and drop. Jim Jones On 3/11/2015 10:36 AM, 'Joseph Zeglinski' J.Zeglinski@... [ap-gto] wrote:
The TeamViewer website used to say – and maybe still does – that their “File Transfer” was not included in the free version. Then I discovered that wasn’t true, and that file transfer works just fine, although you have to Browse to click location & destination names, rather than a mouse drag & drop between the two local and remote screen windows. So, if it is still saying this, ignore it – file transfer is included in the free version & works. |
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Greg Salyer <salyer@...>
Can someone elaborate on how to enter in IP address rather than the TeamViewer ID? Where do you enter it?
Greg
From: ap-gto@... [mailto:ap-gto@...]
Sent: Wednesday, March 11, 2015 11:43 AM To: ap-gto@... Subject: RE: [ap-gto] Remote Control Methods
TeamViewer works as well as anything and it’s free. It works fine over a LAN (very fast), you just need to enter the ip address of the partner, not the Teamviewer identifier. To make the LAN configuration work you do need (duh) either a wireless router or to set up an ad hoc network which is not very hard if both computers have wifi built into them.
From: ap-gto@... [mailto:ap-gto@...]
Just reading up on RealVNC. Looks good, I probably will download a trial of the $30 personal version.
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Lloyd Smith
I concur with Joe regarding Teamviewer. I’ve been using it for about 2 years through versions 8, 9 and 10. It’s quite robust. If a connection is lost it will try and usually succeeds in reconnecting. By creating an account all computers you’ve set up will be accessible in separate tabs / windows. You can copy and paste between these windows which is pretty convenient.
To this point about file transfers, TV works just fine, but I would recommend using a cloud service for large file transfers. Not only is it faster than the TV capability, you get all the added features of cloud storage like backup, accessibility from other devices, etc. All image files saved on my observatory computer are saved to a sync folder which immediately transfers to a cloud service and then syncs to my processing computer. The cloud service can be any one of the usual suspects—each has its own pros and cons. You also have the option of creating your own “local cloud” on your home network. Various router manufactures allow you to connect an external USB drive and set it up as cloud storage. Alternatively, more purpose-built Network Attached Storage (NAS) devices work very well in this capacity.
Lloyd L. Smith 678.427.6341 www.astrobin.com/users/sixburg
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Joe Zeglinski
Greg,
Once you find out your IP address on the host computer,
just type it into the same box instead of the usual TeamViewer provided
“identifier”. Neither one of those ID’s changes after setup (just the
password is randomized on a daily basis, I think), and either identifier could
be used. However, using the IP address as identifier, makes the link
local-direct, instead of its going out on the internet – you still have to
provide a password for the host PC system. If you predefine a “fixed” password,
(at the host machine TV setup), you don’t need to be at the remote to get the
daily randomized one. You can do this likewise, for every PC and laptop you
might use, even reusing the same setup password (less to remember).
Works quite smoothly, once you have those two
“fixed items” written down for each host PC connection and use in a
session login. Remember to that once all computers TV’s are setup this way, you
could reverse their host/client roles, and login from the the observatory to
operate your in-house PC as the host, if you suddenly discover that you need to
change something on it – saves a walk back to the house. Although rare, it could
be useful as well.
Joe
From: mailto:ap-gto@...
Sent: Wednesday, March 11, 2015 3:40 PM
To: ap-gto@...
Subject: RE: [ap-gto] Remote Control Methods Can
someone elaborate on how to enter in IP address rather than the TeamViewer ID?
Where do you enter it?
Greg
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Mike Chasin
I'll second the votes for Team Viewer as well as Logmein. If you use Google Chrome, they recently added an extension for remote desktop access. It works well and is free.
Whatever you do, I'd highly recommend having a backup system, unless your observatory is just a short stroll away. Mike |
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Greg Salyer <salyer@...>
Thanks, Joe.
Gre
From: ap-gto@... [mailto:ap-gto@...]
Sent: Wednesday, March 11, 2015 4:07 PM To: ap-gto@... Subject: Re: [ap-gto] Remote Control Methods
Greg,
Once you find out your IP address on the host computer, just type it into the same box instead of the usual TeamViewer provided “identifier”. Neither one of those ID’s changes after setup (just the password is randomized on a daily basis, I think), and either identifier could be used. However, using the IP address as identifier, makes the link local-direct, instead of its going out on the internet – you still have to provide a password for the host PC system. If you predefine a “fixed” password, (at the host machine TV setup), you don’t need to be at the remote to get the daily randomized one. You can do this likewise, for every PC and laptop you might use, even reusing the same setup password (less to remember).
Works quite smoothly, once you have those two “fixed items” written down for each host PC connection and use in a session login. Remember to that once all computers TV’s are setup this way, you could reverse their host/client roles, and login from the the observatory to operate your in-house PC as the host, if you suddenly discover that you need to change something on it – saves a walk back to the house. Although rare, it could be useful as well.
Joe
From: mailto:ap-gto@... Sent: Wednesday, March 11, 2015 3:40 PM To: ap-gto@... Subject: RE: [ap-gto] Remote Control Methods Can someone elaborate on how to enter in IP address rather than the TeamViewer ID? Where do you enter it? Greg
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