How to Remotely Manage a Windows Vista Computer

Windows Vista offers robust remote management capabilities that work best when connecting to another Vista computer. Remote management can be done both on local networks and over the Internet allowing computer professionals and home users to fix problems and access files and applications as if working locally on a computer.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

• Windows Vista Business, Ultimate or Enterprise

1. Enable remote management. On the computer that needs to be remotely accessed, select "Start," then "Control Panel," then select "System." Click on "Remote Settings" and accept the User Account Control prompt. If you are not sure which operating systems will connect to the computer, then select "Allow connections from computers running any version of Remote Access (less secure)" under "Remote Desktop." If you know that only Windows Vista computers will connect, then select "Allow connections only from computers running Remote Desktop with Network Level Authentication (more secure)." If you want to limit who can connect to the computer, click "Select Users" and add as required. Click "Ok."
2. Start Remote Desktop Connection. On the computer that will be controlling the remote system, select "Start" then type "Remote" in the search field. Select the link "Remote Desktop Connection" at the top of the search field.
3. Configure Remote Desktop Connection. Select "Options" to open a dialog allowing for configuration of the connection. Specify the Display resolution and color depth for the connection in the "Display" tab. Make sure that the selected resolution will fit comfortably within the screen size of the controlling computer. Decide how local resources will be utilized in the "Local Resources" tab, such as whether sound from the remote computer will be played on the local computer, how the keyboard will be used and whether certain local resources will be available to the remote computer. The other tabs provide for more complex configuration that are used by professional administrators. Select "Save" if you want to retain these settings, and select a file name and location.
4. Connect to the remote computer. Type the name of the remote computer into the "Computer" field in the "General" tab, then click "Connect." Enter a valid username and password for the remote computer and click "OK."
5. Use the remote computer. You now have access to the remote computer within the Remote Desktop window as if you were locally connected. You can also copy and paste files from the remote computer to the local computer and vice versa.
6. End your remote session. To stop using the remote computer, click "Start" and then "Log Off" on the remote computer. This will close the Remote Connection session and return control to the local computer.

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