remote desktop XP to iMac

[dxl007]

I have searched for this topic and found 2 things both of witch do not help me;

1. There are a lot of threads on operating windows from a Mac.
2. The only thread I could find about operating a Mac remotely advises you to use remote desktop here www.apple.com/remotedesktop, but this is for operating a Mac remotely from a Mac and cost $ and is way more than I need.

All I want to do is access my iMac from XP from work. Is there an easy way to do this?

 

[swiftaw]

I have searched for this topic and found 2 things both of witch do not help me;

1. There are a lot of threads on operating windows from a Mac.
2. The only thread I could find about operating a Mac remotely advises you to use remote desktop here www.apple.com/remotedesktop, but this is for operating a Mac remotely from a Mac and cost $ and is way more than I need.

All I want to do is access my iMac from XP from work. Is there an easy way to do this?

Depends what kind of access you want.

Do you just want to have access to the files? Or do you want to be able to see the iMac's screen?

If you just want the files, you can set up file sharing. If you want to see the screen then if you can run a VNC client on the windows machine you can use that.

 

[Anonymous Freak]

OS X has a built in VNC server. Go into System Preferences, then Sharing, then click on the 'Apple Remote Desktop' listing, and click 'Access Privileges...' That will open up a sheet that lets you turn on VNC and specify a password. (Please note that even if VNC is on, you still have to turn on the main Remote Desktop checkbox.)

Then you need a VNC client. I use Chicken of the VNC on Mac OS machines, and either RealVNC or TightVNC on Windows.

Then you have to know your home machine's IP address, and if you have a router, make sure that your router is forwarding ports 3283 and 5900 to your internal machine. (Which means setting that machine on a static internal IP.)

If your internet connection gives you a dynamic IP address (which most home-level ones do,) then either you'll need to look up your 'external IP' address before leaving home every time you want to do this, or use a service that maps a domain name to your changing IP address, like dyndns.org (They are who I use for this very purpose.)

edit: Ah, as swiftaw mentions, you may really just want to access files, not the whole screen... If so, then ignore the whole VNC thing. You'll still want to use something like dyndns so you don't have to remember your IP address, if you have a static one. But instead of turning on Remote Desktop and forwarding the ports mentioned above, you will have to turn on Windows Sharing, and forward ports 137, 138, and 139. Then, to connect remotely, from your Windows machine, go to the Start menu, then choose 'Run' and type \\your.external.ip.address or \\your.dyndns.org.name (So, for example, if your external IP address was 4.2.2.4, you would type \\4.2.2.4 if your dyndns.org name was dxl007, you would type \\dxl007.dyndns.org )

 

[dxl007]

Wow, thanks for the great replys!

Yes I want the whole screen so I will try the VNC thing when I get home.

Cheers

 

[scanlanlee]

As another option - try Logmein I have been using this to support multiple friends/relatives on PC's and always found it very good.
Now they have a version for and it works very well, and it does save you having to know your ip or changing any settings on your firewall as the app connects to the central server an lets it know where it is.
All you need is a web browser (and to be honest IE is best from a Windows machine) and you have your own desktop

 

[GimmeSlack12]

There are 3 ways to access your Mac remotely, all are free, all are built into OS X.

SSH - Turn this on through Sharing Prefs and access your Static IP through a terminal via port 22.
FTP - A common access protocol, again turned on in Sharing Prefs and accessed through port 21.
VNC - As stated above you can turn this on and use TightVNC for Windows to dial in your IP and don't have to worry about the port (though it is 5900 for reference).

I use all of these methods to connect to my Macs from anywhere in the world with virtually no problems.

 

[Sdashiki]

Another vote for Logmein.com

Works like a freakin charm.

Though its still "Preview" for OSX, it works just fine from a windows machine to my mac at home.

Kind of curious what kind of bandwith usage it is working with. Is it merely streaming some commands and video?

 

[slu]

I am going to try logmein. VNC performance is always crap for me over the internet, but perhaps that is the client I use on Windows. I use UltraVNC and it stinks. I never even use it anymore.

 

[Sdashiki]

Ive only used it a few minutes, but from my experience, through FF on XP, it was laggy in terms of redrawing, but the person who was watching me on the other end said my movements were smooth as butter.

So, you aint gonna be playing games on the machine, but you can certainly use it like you were right there.