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Are there any other desktop remote control applications for Windows other than PCAnywhere that can connect to and control the PC directly over serial or USB connections?
Clarification: I am looking for software that can be installed on Windows machines that I administer that will allow me to establish a remote desktop session over a null modem serial cable connected between the two machines.
PleX
Posted 2012-06-12T13:36:38.307
Reputation: 41
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From the VNC FAQ:
"At present we just use TCP/IP, because it's convenient, ubiquitous, and easy to route. This means that you can use VNC over anything which supports TCP/IP, so using it over a modem is just the same as any other network, once you have Dial-Up Networking set up. If you need to communicate directly between two machines without going via the internet/intranet, then set up a remote access server on one and dial in from the other."
In other words, set up your null modem cables and run as if you were dialing up; any TCP/IP based solution should then work. As I understand it, this is essentially how PCA does it's serial connections it just hides the setup.
Another alternative would be to use a KVM-over-Cat5 solution, the kind that has a transceiver at each end & use cheap CAT-5 for cabling instead of proprietary KVM cables (allows for far longer runs as well).
ScrappyLaptop
Posted 2012-06-12T13:36:38.307
Reputation: 11
+1 for understanding that you can set up TCPIP over serial. – Julian Knight – 2012-06-27T08:53:19.233
1PCanywhere allows serial and USB control? What kind of usb cable would this be? – Journeyman Geek – 2012-06-12T13:45:13.167
Just to be clear... do you mean software that must first be installed while you have normal access to the machine you want to control remotely? Or are you asking about software that will allow you to somehow gain control of a random computer, just by connecting a serial or USB cable and running the program? – Bon Gart – 2012-06-12T13:46:01.963
1It is for a machine that I administer. I'm trying to avoid PCAnywhere. Yes, PCAnywhere allows serial connections, not quite sure about usb. Edit: Apparently you can use it with TCP over USB. – PleX – 2012-06-12T13:47:40.400
@PleX: It's understandable that you want to avoid that product. But please don't assume people know it. If you're looking for a specific feature, explain that feature. – Der Hochstapler – 2012-06-12T13:51:48.033
@Oliver, I thought I did in the original question? – PleX – 2012-06-12T13:53:43.887
@PleX: It wasn't clear to me. Maybe I just didn't understand it. Either way, thanks for clarifying your question :) BTW, maybe one of these would solve your problems. There are endless options once you have network connection.
– Der Hochstapler – 2012-06-12T13:56:41.880Is networking allowed? I am thinking of an USB network dongle which more or less could be considered USB. – Hennes – 2012-06-12T14:00:07.073
Yeah I looked into those as I could just used VNC or RDP but our corporate requirements mean that I can not use a USB ethernet interface as one of the machines that would be in this connection are on our corporate network while the other one is not allowed on our network and even if I blocked the two connections from talking to one another, the higher-ups still consider it on network at that point :( Thanks though! – PleX – 2012-06-12T14:00:28.807