Remote Desktop
Posted on October 18, 2004
Filed Under Networking, Windows |
Microsoft Windows servers have offered a remote desktop option for years but it was only with the release of Windows XP Professional that this technology has reached the workstation.
Using Remote Desktop you can connect to your home or work computer from anywhere there is an Internet connection and work as though you are sitting in front of it. Unlike traditional networking where the remote computers resources are accessed by a mapped drive letter or shared printer, Remote Desktop allows you to actually see the remote computer screen.
Similar technology has often been referred to as “terminal services” and has spawned the rise of “thin client” computing. In the early days of computers, a powerful mainframe computer was often used to provide service to “dumb terminals”. These terminals needed little computing power of their own as the mainframe did all of the real work.
As computer networks advanced and the cost of personal computers came down, more powerful desktop computers became the norm on many networks. These computers had the capacity to handle much of the work themselves and servers became responsible for sharing resources and providing particular and specialized network services. Servers still needed to be powerful but were no longer required to do all of the bull work themselves.
Computers are notorious for short lifetimes however. Older computers are decommissioned all the time even though they still run and are not apparently broken. New software requires a certain level of hardware and a minimum version of the operating system to run on.
With more powerful desktops on the network, making the leap to new hardware to support software can mean replacing or upgrading some or all of the network computers. This can of course be a costly and time consuming venture.
Enter the terminal server. Like their mainframe cousins, terminal servers do most of the work while the desktop computer merely displays a picture of the terminal server’s screen. Many users can connect to a single terminal server and each can seem to have their own settings and connection. Older computers or “thin clients” can connect to a terminal server and use the server’s resources rather than their own.
And now with Windows XP Professional, your desktop computer can be used as a limited terminal server to allow you to connect to it from a remote location. Only one connection is allowed at a time but it can be extremely advantageous to actually control your computer from wherever you are.
Using this technology, working from home can be much easier than ever before. The remote connection can also be used to allow computer service providers to troubleshoot and repair a computer without even having to visit the site. There is even software that will let you control your computer using a handheld device like a Palm Pilot, Pocket PC, or Smart Phone.
This is an especially useful new tool that can improve productivity. To learn more about Remote Desktop, point your Internet browser to http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/mobility/default.mspx
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