Remote desktop

[Kurt Granroth]

Yes, but not in this case :-)

While the NX client works on Windows, the NX server is strictly Unix- 
based.  Since the original question asked about "remote desktop", the  
assumption is that he was asking about clients for Windows RDP or  
Terminal Services ... and that means that he wants to connect to a  
Windows desktop.

Now VNC *will* do that and for those people who must access a Windows  
box that isn't RDP capable (not Windows Server or XP Professional),  
it does a fine job.  I use it often in that role.  If you *do* have  
access to RDP, though, it's silly (IMO) to use VNC.  RDP is  
incomparably better in every way that I can think of.  Well, it's  
from Microsoft and non-free so there's that ... but from a usability  
point of view, it's nearly unbeatable.

Since I waded this far into the pool, I might as well go farther :-)

Kurt Granroth's Totally Opinionated Guide to Remote Desktop Access:
1. Connecting to a Linux desktop (KDE/Gnome/etc)

    NX is the clear winner if you have a graphics rich desktop or  
will be using the desktop for hours at a time.  FreeNX does take a  
bit of effort to get going, though, and while Nomachine's version is  
much simpler, it isn't free.  It's worth the time or the money if you  
access a Linux desktop remotely regularly.  Each NX release is  
noticeably better than the last so always get the latest.  There are  
clients for Linux, Windows, and OS X.

   VNC isn't a bad choice if you don't want to spend any time at all  
setting it up AND you will only be accessing the desktop for short  
spells.  VNC also allows desktop sharing and other niceties so it's a  
common tool in any remote administrator's toolbox.  There are clients  
for nearly everything that runs on a computer chip.

2. Connecting to a Windows desktop

    Terminal Services or Remote Desktop (RDP) will blow you away the  
first time you use it.  It's incredibly responsive, trivial to set up  
and use, and makes it feel like you are using the desktop locally ...  
even over a normal cable modem connection.  It also allows multiple  
people to be logged in at one time (possibly.. it doesn't use the  
visible desktop in any event).  Unfortunately, you need XP Pro (NOT  
XP Home) or Server to use it.  If you *are* using XP Pro, then there  
is no contest as to what you should use.  Windows and OS X have  
official clients.  Linux has rdesktop (and some apps that 'wrap'  
rdesktop).  On Linux, make sure you have the latest and greatest  
rdesktop ... the newest version has MUCH better support for graphic  
rich desktops than previous versions.

   VNC works very well if you are connecting to the millions of  
Windows systems that aren't running XP Pro.  It's trivial to setup  
and use.  It also is good for remote admin due to it's sharing  
capabilities.  That's a bit of a downside as well since you access  
the primary visible desktop with VNC so only one user can be logged  
in at a time.  I tend to install a VNC server on every single Windows  
system I have access to, just as a reflex.  I don't tend to use it on  
the XP Pro systems, but it's still nice to have, just in case.  One  
note: Get TightVNC or UltraVNC with the special drivers.  If you  
haven't used VNC in a few years or are still loyal to the original  
WinVNC (or RealVNC), you're missing out.  The new TightVNC and  
UltraVNC are many times more responsive and better and updating  
windows than the older VNC servers were.  Still not anywhere near  
close to RDP ... but very good nonetheless!

3. Connecting to a OS X desktop

    VNC.  All other solutions cost an obscene amount of money.  VNC  
is pretty much the only reasonable way to remotely access a Mac  
desktop.  It has so-so responsiveness.  It's good enough to do simple  
admin tasks remotely but I wouldn't want to do anything that takes a  
while or has active graphics.

On Aug 25, 2005, at 4:06 PM, Donn wrote:

> Also, quoting Kurt Granroth from another thread:
>
> "An alternative to a GUI admin tool would be NX (www.nomachine.com or
> http://freenx.berlios.de/).  NX uses SSH by default so no need for
> workarounds.  NX is MUCH better than VNC for graphical environments  
> over
> non-LAN connections.  Really, once you've run something like KDE or  
> Gnome
> over NX, you'll never want to go back to VNC again."
>
> On 8/25/05, Donn <dlshumway at gmail.com> wrote: Don't forget the ever  
> popular vnc. It will install and run well on any distribution I  
> have tried it on.
>
>
> On 8/25/05, Lyndon Tiu < ltiu at alumni.sfu.ca> wrote:There is also a  
> KDE client called krdc.
>
> On Thu, 25 Aug 2005 13:46:03 -0700 plug- 
> discuss at lists.plug.phoenix.az.us wrote:
> > On Thu, 25 Aug 2005 13:39:40 -0700, Robert Rosenwald writes:
> > >Is there a remote desktop client for Linux?
> > >
> >
> > http://rdesktop.sourceforge.net/
> >
> > and a gui:
> > http://www.nongnu.org/grdesktop/
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>
> -- 
> Donn
> "Sarcasm is the safe alternative to expressing anger."
> --Richard North Patterson
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