What is Remote Access? Remote Access is a service which is built into Windows XP. It allows you to invite another person to take control of your computer remotely.You are able to see everything that's happening on your computer monitor including the mouse pointer being moved around! How secure is it? Microsoft have built in several security measures to remote assistance. Firstly, the invitation is emailed to the expert who can then connect to your computer but not control it. You will then be presented with a button to allow the expert to take control. Also, at any time, you can press the escape key to stop the expert controlling your computer. Additional security features include password protection and invitation expiry. Password protection allows you to add a password to the invitation which you can communicate to the expert. Invitation expiry allows you to set a period of validity on the invitation. For example, you could set it to 2 hours, which would only give the expert access to your computer for that period of time. What do I need to use Remote Access? You need a computer running Windows XP, a fully set-up email program (like Outlook Express) and preferably a broadband internet connection. How do I invite you to take control of my computer? It is very simple to invite an expert to take control of your computer. Simply click the 'Start' button on Windows XP then select 'Help and Support'. You are then presented with an option to 'Invite a friend to connect to your computer with Remote Assistance' then 'Invite someone to help you'. After this you can enter the virtual surgery email address (help@virtual-surgery.co.uk), enter a message including a password if you wish to set one, and the expiry details. The invitation will be emailed from your email program. |
