Remote Desktop Questions

I want to start using "remote desktop" on my PC at home, from the Mac I use at work.

I'm concerned about privacy issues. Do documents that I open on my PC at home, from work, through remote desktop, get copied onto the work computer? I have artwork, etc., that is connected to personal business projects outside of my normal job. I don't want copies of paintings, etc., to become stored on the work computer in some file that might be opened, copied, etc., by someone at work.

Are there other security concerns that I should be aware of when using remote desktop. Thanks in advance.

reply to post by ipsedixit


You don't have to worry about files getting copied over to your work PC system unless you do so on purpose.

It also depends on how you're connecting to your home PC.
File sharing, print sharing and other services can be enabled depending on how you go about the connectivity, but, you can typically set it up to where the Remote Desktop session is just a window with very little actual bandwidth usage occurring between the 2 end points other than keystrokes, mouse input, and a tidbit of video.

Citrix use to have, and may still have a single license free version of a secure remote desktop solution called GoToMyPC. GoToMyPC by Citrix

Cisco also had some pretty good PPP software based secure VPN solutions that could be used to initiate a secure session where Remote Desktop Services are then employed.

Checkpoint also has/had some serious VPN solutions back when I was in and out of office buildings all over. They were mostly hardware based, but, they may have purely software based solutions available by now.

Further, there's some remote PC support solutions that also have single license free use software. Bomgar was one of these I've used in the past, though I'm not sue if they're still around or still named that.

Solarwinds may have some Remote software solutions out now too, but it's been awhile since I've checked on their suites, but I recall them having some far decent networking tools.

The Gotomypc by Citrix should be more than fine for you, but, for extra security, if you're paranoid, look into some of the Cisco software based VPN solutions.

reply to post by nineix


Thanks for the response. I'm not overly concerned about security, just mainly that files I open on the desktop at work don't somehow stay on the work computer when I sign off my home PC.

reply to post by ipsedixit


You won't have to worry about that since any file you open will be opened on the remote system where you're only looking at what's going on locally through the remote connection window.

Whatever system on the planet you're using to look at your PC physically located at home, becomes a dumb terminal to some extent.

I'm not sure if it's been done yet, but, if you have a smart phone, there might be apps available where you can console to your home PC using Remote desktop on your phone.
It'd be worth checking out and give you added value to mobility.
Toss in FTP, or VPN with file sharing over the connection and if you want anything on your home PC, you could indeed transfer it to the remote terminal (phone, mac, whatever).

reply to post by nineix

Thanks. I need this mainly to get to my home PC via the Mac at work. From what you say, I should be OK. I appreciate the info. Thanks again.

Nice avatar. I followed your link, so I know it is your own artwork. Nice. My avatar is from an idea Gahan Wilson used in some of his cartoons. I wanted to use one of the cartoons, maybe modified, but I couldn't find what I wanted online, so I did my own "collage".

reply to post by ipsedixit


Glad to be of help, and thanks. Before my current incarnation as artist/photographer, my career was in corporate information technology consulting, wearing lots of different hats in the field, travelling around, and tailor customizing WAN solutions as well as remote connectivity options over a variety of infrastructure and bandwidth restrictions/selections.
Cases where remote connectivity was basically a cell phone, or dial-up, way before even 2G phones, using a remote desktop solution where remote clients connected to a terminal server worked well.
There was quite a bit of that when I flew in post Katrina NOLA to provide connectivity solution consulting to all the suits and contractors stuck without hard lines.

reply to post by ipsedixit

Are there other security concerns that I should be aware of when using remote desktop. Thanks in advance.

If you really _have_ to use windows... make sure everything is patched and up to date.

There was recently a 0day exploit for windows remote desktop service that had been published and was in use in the wild:
www.techworld.com.au...

MS released a patch, but i still wouldn't personally trust it.

You might be better off using something like a VNC application if you do care about security, many open source ones available that are designed to run on any platform (win, mac, linux) and so there isn't much hassle getting a mac to view a windows desktop for example.

A good one is: www.tightvnc.com...
Just a suggestion.

Originally posted by InsideYourMind
reply to post by ipsedixit

 

Are there other security concerns that I should be aware of when using remote desktop. Thanks in advance.

If you really _have_ to use windows... make sure everything is patched and up to date.

There was recently a 0day exploit for windows remote desktop service that had been published and was in use in the wild:
www.techworld.com.au...

MS released a patch, but i still wouldn't personally trust it.

You might be better off using something like a VNC application if you do care about security, many open source ones available that are designed to run on any platform (win, mac, linux) and so there isn't much hassle getting a mac to view a windows desktop for example.

A good one is: www.tightvnc.com...
Just a suggestion.

Also UtraVNC I find it a little faster than tightvnc.

Thanks for the info, all.

I will look into these things. I kind of assume I'm being surveilled anyway, mainly because of some of my "political" posts on ATS. The thing that I do not want to happen is for any of my files to wind up on the "work" computer by accident.

I'll have to try remote desktop and see what happens for myself. The computer at work is running OS 10.7.x, and it has been a long time since I had Macs of my own that I knew fairly well "under the hood", so I don't really feel confident of being able to do a quick sweep up of the Mac, if I feel it is necessary for any reason.

reply to post by ipsedixit


It's a bit complicated, but, from a concern regarding controversy, if you funds for an extremely cheap, old, or pawn-shop laptop and have a confidence level with other people such that you could leave the cheap laptop in one location without worry, you could set that laptop up as a VPN/Remote desktop proxy.

Instead of going remote desktop directly to your home PC, you remote desktop the cheap laptop setup somewhere else, and from that remote desktop session open up a second remote desktop session inside the first pointing to your home PC.

The same could be done for surfing and posting controversial subject matter where you may have a concern about being watched, but in reverse. From home, you RDP/VNC, control this middle man laptop, surf the web using TOR, and nothing really points back at you.

This can be complicated many numbers of degrees further by setting up VPN proxy hops in multiple locations like coming to a rental agreement with privately owned coffee shop owners in allowing you to install a cheap netbook laptop in the back room where they keep their Public Wifi equipment, so you can piggyback and tap in remotely for a different physical gateway.

Such gives you several layers of insulation against your own paranoia, as well as against legitimate malicious or inquiry activity in your direction.

You, however, just want a direct remote session to your home pc, but, be assured if you ever feel need to hulk out with security, there's tons of different options.

reply to post by nineix

Why thankyou!

You are speaking directly to my inner Captain Queeg. (Caine Mutiny reference for old Bogart fans.) I'm on my way to work soon, so I probably won't have time to get things going this evening, but I wound up downloading TightVCN Server and also WinSSHD server (which I'm told is free for personal use).

I think GotomyPC is now some sort of subscription service.

Anyway, food for thought. Thanks.