RemoteVNC – opensource VNC across the Internet

[watersco]

Paglo RemoteVNC allows you to remotely control a Windows computer across the Internet, even through firewalls or NAT without making any configuration changes. Just like LogMeIn or GotoMyPC but always free.

RemoteVNC uses peer to peer connections (like skype) to bypass firewalls and NAT routers without needing to relay traffic through an Internet server. This gives much better performance when doing VNC over the Internet.

RemoteVNC uses a simple installer and familiar TightVNC UI so it should be easy to use for anyone who has used TightVNC or UltraVNC before.

This is the first release of RemoteVNC and I am very interested in feedback and success (or failure) stories so that I can improve the code.

You can download RemoteVNC here: http://remotevnc.org

Regards,

Chris Waters
chris@paglo.com
www.paglo.com

[mod=494,1294745805]removed Annuncement from title[/mod]

[twagner]

Hallo Chris,
at first i must say: "Great Programm and Softwaresolution!!" - really
Simple, smart and with no overhad. Great!!!!

But here are some ideas for your improvements for remotevnc in the future:

- the gmail accountname and PASSWORD are saved in the registry in cleartext. That`s not so good for the security, i think.
- there is no encryption between the two pc`s. The RFB-protocol could be sniffed by third parties. Especially about the internet connectivity. In UltraVNC you have the option to integrate an DSM-Plugin for encryption. Or is there an VPN in the backround? i`vn`t seen.
- Witch kind of security mechanism are be used (encryption???)?
- You use TightVNC - what kind of ?? 1.3.9 or 1.3.10??
- the user can finsh the RemoteVNC Service in the taskbar and can cancel the connectivity of the VNCSession. (Can you implement a password-question for this?? - Or is there an Option to remove the RemoteVNC-Icon in the taskbar???
- the remotevnc server do not correct finished on ending. (WinXP Prof. Sp3)
- the remotevnc server starts new only by a newstart of the pc. (NO Serviceinstallation??? Of course i`v seen RemoteVNC in my serviceproperties.)
- is there an option to translate RemoteVNC into annother language?? (I`ve translated UltraVNC into german, you will find on http://www.vnc-world.com If you need one for this i would do.
- Is it possible to get the RemoteVNC source in one ZIP-archiv?
- Do you plan to greate a linux solution in the future, too?
- How can i save a established RemoteVNC session, of course in a *.vnc config file?
- If you are using the registry for server and viewer you can not use your Software portable and/or the user or one of them need admin rights on the pc who will be used. Is there an opportunity to get an *.ini-file for using server and viewer? (Like ultravnc.ini by UltraVNC.)

have a nice day

twagner

[watersco]

Thanks for all of the great feedback. This is only the first version so I wanted to get some feedback before getting too carried away with lots of additional features.

• You are correct that security is less that perfect in this version. I would recommend creating a new gmail account for RemoteVNC, rather than using an existing email account. Connection negotiation is SSL encrypted, but the actual screen data is not encrypted right now.
• The code is based on TightVNC 1.3.10. I started with this code because it is less feature rich than UVNC and so easier for a new person to come up to speed with. I would like to integrate some of the UVNC features over time.
• My main goal with RemoteVNC is ease of use - think Apple design mentality rather than Microsoft. So the first features that I am going to add will be ones that make RemoteVNC easier to use with less user interaction, e.g. auto-detecting the link speed. The target use for RemoteVNC is for remote, unattended, PC control by authorized technicians, and so the features will tend in this direction.
• The service should have been installed and started if you chose the option in the installer. I will double check this is correct.
• The server may take a few minutes to detect that a viewer has gone away. This is a consequence of the P2P transport. If the viewer stops communicating it thinks that maybe the firewall configuration has changed to keeps trying to connect to the client for a few minutes before giving up.

Thanks again for the feedback. Everything is welcome, positive and negative.

Chris.

[DougTC]

Greetings,

I have tried your product and find it nicely designed and implemented, and easy to install.

A couple of suggestions
I installed it on a remote server that locks itself automatically after a specified number of minutes. After the lock, I don't seem to be able to get be able to get back into the server. Maybe it is something with my setup as well. I am running the viewer on Vista Ultimate and server on Windows Server 2003.

The remote computer names that display on the viewer seem to be the computer names associated with the system settings on the unit. It would be nice if we had the ability to change that either on the viewer or at the server so we can keep track of which customer we are connecting into.
I have some customers that use Dell computers and they seem to have computer names that match the product serial number, so it would be difficult to determine which is which over time.

Thanks again for your nice work. A very elegant product.

[redge]

watersco,

tested successfully Paglo RemoteVNC Open Source (that great)
between XP as server and Win7 as viewer

speed
use the core of UltraVNC (speed) and still use the GUI of TightVNC
so you have booth advantage.
if this possible, then, I can remove all my port forward NAT and UltraVNC

quick support and PortableApps
made the portable of Paglo RemoteVNC (pwinvnc)
made the portable of Paglo(Remote LocalVNC (pvncviewer)
based on same idea of you,
but is too complicate even for experienced user. (loose too much time before success (not user friendly)
[topic=15097][/topic]


misc
vote for language support
vote for alias name of remote computer by viewer side


security
you can integrate the same idea of you, simplicity and friendly
SecureVNCPlugin.dsm of user adzm, coder of the securevnc

[ZystemsK]

I like the idea of this and was looking for an open-source program similar to TeamViewer. The only draw back I see is that it requires GMail to connect to each other. Ideally, it would be nice if we could host our own server for this type of verification. So all the client would need to do is run the .exe file and give the operator their ID.

I haven't looked at the source yet but I'll see about implementing something like that if I can figure out how

Thanks.

Edit: Just looked at the source and now I understand what Jingle is. It utilizes Google Talk to create the p2p session. I don't think it'd be possible to do what I want without hosting one's own Google Talk server.

As another idea, I guess we could generate the viewer with a hard coded email/password and go that route, but that'd be open for people to go in and change it. I'll have to continue to think of other ideas for this.

[twagner]

hi chris,

any new version in planned??
do you`ve a roadmap??
Of cource no versionhistory of remotevnc on your website is seen

twagner

[ElTopo]

I'd like that you skip VNC part and concentrate on Remote part, i.e., simply use any vnc server/viewer, provided that vnc server allows loopback connections, and vnc viewer can be launched with proper commandline options.

My wish list:
1. portable application (for client) and service (for server); for portable application user can launch it with commandline options (gmail account, password, etc.) from KeePass;
2. gtalk connections between same gmail account (on different systems) and its friend accounts;
3. encrypted tunnel for vnc connections;
4. flexibility: user can configure ports/applications so RemoteVNC works with other protocols, like FreeSSHd / winscp connection on ssh port.

[neokolyan]

Hi.
I’m not good programmer but I’ve got some ideas…=))
Your VNC with google-p2p is next step of evolution. But I’d like to have some more universal tool:

Google-p2p technology can help to establish openVPN connection between sites. After this both sites can communicate with each other on any port, protocol, etc. So we can add to this platform any VNC, any powerfull filemanager, any tool for remote software installation, any tool that use direct lan connection (psexec by sysinternals for example). We can build powerfull platform not only for remote visual-control but full control of computer. It can be symmetric peer - peer solution or (in case openvpn with server-multiclient based on sertificates) PortableServer – Clients solution. Like MegaLogMeIn but opensource=))

[neokolyan]

Like this one: http://www.gbridge.com/ but "platform - modules" implementation.

[watersco]

... Ideally, it would be nice if we could host our own server for this type of verification. So all the client would need to do is run the .exe file and give the operator their ID.

...

Edit: Just looked at the source and now I understand what Jingle is. It utilizes Google Talk to create the p2p session. I don't think it'd be possible to do what I want without hosting one's own Google Talk server.

Actually the nice thing is that the Google server is simply a standard XMPP server, so running a server would not require a significant software development challenge. Ultimately I would like to run a server, but using the Google Talk was a quick way to get started.

[watersco]

Thanks for trying out RemoteVNC and the feedback.

My wish list:
1. portable application (for client) and service (for server); for portable application user can launch it with commandline options (gmail account, password, etc.) from KeePass;

This would be nice, but is not a top priority for my use-case which is unattended support where the VNC server is permanently installed.

2. gtalk connections between same gmail account (on different systems) and its friend accounts;

The original implementation worked this way; basically you could see the shared screens of any of your friends, so that a different Gmail account could be used on each machine. The problem is the risk of inadvertently giving screen access to someone you didn't mean to give access to. There is too much risk that you might make someone your friend on Google Talk without realizing that you were also giving them screen sharing access. That is why the same account must be used on all machines.

3. encrypted tunnel for vnc connections;

I agree this is essential. It is coming.

4. flexibility: user can configure ports/applications so RemoteVNC works with other protocols, like FreeSSHd / winscp connection on ssh port.

I am focused on making RemoteVNC great for screen sharing, so it is unlikely that general VPN-like features will be added for some time.

[watersco]

any new version in planned??
do you`ve a roadmap??
Of cource no versionhistory of remotevnc on your website is seen

There has only been one release which is why there is no version history. The roadmap is a bit undecided right now. The use-case that I am interested in is providing unattended support for IT consultants and so features and improvements will be focused on making that use-case work better.

The next release will probably be about fixing some of the bugs that have been seen - especially one where the server doesn't seem to work after the machine has been woken from sleep.

I'd love to hear about any other bugs that people have found.

[regissk]

I had searched full days friday, saturday and sunday for informations about VNC, remote and windows.
I can get almost everything done.
The only problem now is just the tray icon. I could edit it with "ResHacker.exe", and make trayicon invisible.
But, see how it looks like when mouse is over the remotevnc invisible icon:



I had seen that when just the remotevnc service is running (not with servicehelper or RVNCSERVER.exe file), the tray icon disappear. However the transfer files will not be actived, when started only the service by itself.

This means that i must run servicehelper, or RVNCSERVER.exe (but both has tray icons)

Please help me, Chris, I dont know how to edit the source code or c++ language. I had googled it a lot, is impossible to hide the tray icon by batch, vbs script files, or VNC command line. Some vnc servers has the option "-notrayicon" or in the registry "HKLM\SOFTWARE\ORL\WinVNC3\DisableTrayIcon" (but its worthless with RemoteVNC).
I think the only way to hide tray icon is editing the source code.
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[pol098]

[quote="watersco"]
You can download RemoteVNC here: [url]http://remotevnc.org[/url]
[/quote]

That link is dead. Now apparently
http://sourceforge.net/projects/remotevnc/