Easy and Secure Ways to Remotely Control Computers via LAN or Internet

Having multiple computers in different places means controlling them from a distance. Whether you want to access your work PC from home to launch an application or transfer files, or help out a friend or relative who's not that familiarized with computers, you can resort to remote control utilities.



In the following guide, we're exploring TeamViewer, AeroAdmin, and Ammyy Admin to show you how to effortlessly and securely set up a connection between two computers in order to control one using the other, whether they are in the same local network or different parts of the world.
It's important to know that, at least for the first run, you or someone else must operate the remote machine (the one you want to remotely control) in order to allow access and manage permissions. Safety can be ensured with the aid of passwords, and if you're interested in setting up the remote PC for unattended access (to directly access it for remote control without any confirmations from the other end of the line), we're going to show you how to do that too.


TeamViewer

TeamViewer must be installed not only on your computer but also on the one you want to control remotely. Once both of them are launched, you need to get hold of the remote PC's ID and password for authentication (the Your ID and Password fields displayed in the Allow Remote Control panel on the left).

Enter the ID in the Partner ID box shown on your Control Remote Computer panel on the right, tick the Remote Control box unless it's already selected, and click the blue button that says Connect to partner.
In the popup window, enter the Password retrieved from the remote PC and click Log On. The desktop of the remote machine should be now visible in a large window, and you can control it just like your own computer.
To set up unattended access on the remote computer, open its Connection menu and click Set up unattended access to use a wizard. Click Next in the first step, edit the Computer name in the second, set a Password necessary for authentication, Confirm password, and click Next.
Check the Create a free TeamViewer account box and enter Your name, E-mail / username, Password and Confirm Password, and click Next to proceed. It's necessary to access your email account to confirm TeamViewer registration. The remote PC is now added to your Computers & Contacts list. Log in with this account on any machine running TeamViewer to access your remote devices without any configuration from the other side.


AeroAdmin

AeroAdmin doesn't require setup, so you can directly launch it by double-clicking the downloaded .exe. It has to be present on both computers. To remotely access the PC, you have to obtain its ID (which appears in the Your ID box of the Allow remote control panel on the left) and enter it in your Client ID/IP box (in the Connect to remote PC panel on the right).

Set Connection mode to Remote control and click Connect. After a few seconds, the remote computer will receive an Incoming connection request window, where it's possible to Set access rights for this Admin: View screen, Mouse and keyboard control, Clipboard synchronization and Access to files on this PC. All their boxes are ticked by default, but the other user can clear any of them to deny a command.
The remote user can tick Allow to access my computer as well as Save my choice for this admin if they want to permit auto-login to their machine from your account. You can also check Save my choice for this admin if you want to setup unattended access on one of your workstations to remotely control. Click Accept to apply settings.
Next, AeroAdmin shows the desktop of the remote machine on your own computer. The remote PC can request a password for authentication. To do this, open the Connection menu and select Access rights. Pick the administrator's entry from the list and click the pencil button on the toolbar. In the popup window, enter a Password, verify it without pasting (Confirm password), and click Ok to apply the setting.


Ammyy Admin

Ammyy Admin doesn't have to be installed, but it must be present on both computers to establish the remote control connection. At startup, it shows Your ID and Your IP in the Client section on the right (corresponding to each PC).

You have to obtain one of these credentials from the remote machine to enter it in the Client ID/IP box of the Operator area on the right. The IP address is local, so it works only if the two PCs share the same network. The ID works for both local PCs and those who aren't linked via LAN. Click Connect to get the Waiting for authorization from remote PC window.
A panel will pop up on the remote machine's window, where the user can select the actions to permit: View Screen, Remote Control, File Manager, Voice Chat, and RDP connection. All these options are ticked by default, but you can exclude any of them by clearing their box.
If you want to setup unattended access, check the Remember my answer for this operator so that no more prompts will be shown the next time you want to gain remote access.
Similar to AeroAdmin, it's possible for the remote computer to request a password for login. To do this, make sure you're disconnected from the remote PC (otherwise you will get an error). On the remote machine, click the Ammyy menu, select Settings and click Access Permissions in the configuration panel. Select the computer from the list and click the pencil button on the bottom to edit settings by specifying a Password and confirming it. Click Ok to apply changes.
Check out our video guide below to find out how to access remote computers using these three tools, as well as how to setup and secure unattended access with a password. You can also download TeamViewer, AeroAdmin, and Ammyy Admin.