My Feature Requests / Bug Reports

[supercoe]

Itctech,

Wow, thanks for all the helpful tweaks. I'll do some testing and possibly change this to the default.

[DownSouth]

Wonderful wrapper except for lack of SC support.
Not all of us have an extra PC to use as a repeater.
Is there any way to run the viewer AND the repeater on 1 OS in the same physical machine?
Any plans to make an SC version?

The most important thing to me is some way to detect which OS is running and to auto install the mirror driver to increase the speed.
Without the MV2 driver screen updates take up to 15 seconds on a 128K line, and it's not uncommon to have 128k on the upstream side of a ADSL connection.

I can get ChunkVNC to work by running the repeater on my main OS (Linux Mint 8 x64 or Win 7 x64) with the viewer under an XP guest, but there has to be a better way.

Yes, SC Prompt seems to work OK, but I really prefer this wrapper because of the ease of scripting.

I use Teamviewer for family members since it just works. Every time, and it must be installing the mirror driver or something else because the screen update are almost in real time with a 128k connection.
But the costs are just too high for a commercial version if you are just starting out as I am in remote support.

[supercoe]

Is there any way to run the viewer AND the repeater on 1 OS in the same physical machine?

Yes, the viewer and repeater can be run on the same machine.


Any plans to make an SC version?

The belated next release will support the ability to see when someone starts InstantSupport so no ID passing will be necessary.


The most important thing to me is some way to detect which OS is running and to auto install the mirror driver to increase the speed.
Without the MV2 driver screen updates take up to 15 seconds on a 128K line, and it's not uncommon to have 128k on the upstream side of a ADSL connection.

Edit Viewer\Bin\chunkviewer.ini and change quality= from 3 to 4

http://support1.uvnc.com:8080/index.php?section=15
1 = AUTO (auto select best settings, this never use ultra experimental maybe "forever")
2 = LAN (> 1Mbit/s) Max Colors
3 = MEDIUM (> 128Kbit/s )- 256 Colors
4 = MODEM (19K - 128Kbit/s) - 64 Colors
5 = SLOW (< 19Kbit/s) 8 Colors
6 = (custom ?) N/A (not available and fail)
7 = ULTRA (> 2Mbit/s) - Experimental (still experimental after 2 years)


I use Teamwork for family members since it just works. Every time, and it must be installing the mirror driver or something else because the screen update are almost in real time with a 128k connection.

Teamviewer is a wonderful thing, someday I hope we can get UltraVNC to that level but that is the reason it costs so much.

[DownSouth]

Thanks for the quick response.

My main concern is getting the mirror driver to run automatically.
I can download and install the correct driver to the server manually, but there has to be a way to read the OS at the server side and install the proper version of the driver.
Actually I know there is, I'm just not a good enough programmer to
do it.
I've been playing with Windows Powershell to write a WMI script, and even trying to use a DOS batch file using the "ver" command but it's been a LONG time since I have used more than simple DOS batch commands. Anyone around who is good with DOS batch files?

I already use the settings you recommend -quickoption 4 or 5, but the response is not quick enough when the server is on an old PC with a larger display. EX: AMD Athlon 1000, 1680X1050.

Good compression levels take too much CPU % on a weak processor with little left for transmitting the video.
The mirror driver allows excellent compression at much reduced CPU levels leaving CPU cycles available to transmit the video across the link.

Running the SC version is so much easier FOR ME since I work on multiple PC's during the day with DynDNS handling the dynamic IP.
The server connects to whichever PC I am at, and UPnP or Port triggering at my locations handles opening the firewall automatically.

No need for a repeater, and the DynDNS updater and the viewer are on a USB stick. 30 seconds to load and unload.

I do realize a repeater is more flexible for getting through NAT's and firewalls and I use ChunkVNC when working from a few locations that I can't open the firewall ports needed with the repeater running at home.

I guess I'll wait for your SC version, but that still doesn't solve my main problem of quick response across a slow link.
Getting that mirror driver to autoinstall/deinstall is the key for me.

Thanks for all your efforts and all the help you have giving not just me but the many others here.
It is appreciated.

[supercoe]

DownSouth,

I'll look into including the mirror driver with InstantSupport so when it's installed as a service more performance can be had.

I understand the problem of having an older PC without the mirror driver can be painful at high resolutions.

Some extra delay will occur when the repeater is used instead of a direct viewer-server connection, the problem is ChunkVNC relies on the repeater for ease of use and most likely always will.

[DownSouth]

Thank you, and as I said in my previous post, I don't consider the repeater feature a problem. I use it when I am at some sites where I can't open the ports needed and the repeater is the solution.

I know how to port forward, trigger or check if UPnP has opened the ports needed and how to fix it if needed.

Lot's of people either don't know how, or don't want to go to the trouble to do so, and for them the repeater is a great solution.

Most of my remote work is done from home and here I have a router with Tomato firmware which does everything I want automatically so the repeater
is just another unneeded complexity.

It's nice to have choices and nicer still to have people such as yourself give us those choices.

[B]

Yeah, and many routers have had their UpNP support turned off for security reasons, so it's not something you can count on being available. (Nor would I want to be changing someone's router if they didn't understand why or how to do it.)

supercoe, the last time I checked, installing the mirror driver (I'm thinking of TightVNC's; I only recently noticed that UltraVNC seems to use a different one) required a reboot. Does that still pose a problem? I too would very much like to see a good video driver included for performance, regardless of the CPU involved.

[supercoe]

B,

AFAIK the mirror driver requires a reboot before it can be used, this is why I mentioned that it could be possible with installing as service.

I think the biggest issue would be that the mirror driver brings in a heap of different issues, especially with windows 7. There is plenty of testing to be done as the additional performance would be great but at this point in time I'm not sure if the mirror driver will be a good idea.

[B]

I know your overall goal is simplicity, but personally I would vote to at least have the mirror driver available as an option.

An alternative is to have a FAQ or Recipe list for "off-label" use of ChunkVNC, for things such as the Mirror Driver, SSH, SecureVNC / DSM plugins, passwords, and some of the great tips and tweaks you've suggested in the past, such as customizing the dialogs by modifying the AutoIT source. (By the way, the customization available for SCPrompt is pretty good.)

[supercoe]

I know your overall goal is simplicity, but personally I would vote to at least have the mirror driver available as an option.

An alternative is to have a FAQ or Recipe list for "off-label" use of ChunkVNC, for things such as the Mirror Driver, SSH, SecureVNC / DSM plugins, passwords, and some of the great tips and tweaks you've suggested in the past, such as customizing the dialogs by modifying the AutoIT source. (By the way, the customization available for SCPrompt is pretty good.)

I understand your point but the beauty is in simplicity. They way I see it, if someone wanted something that different from the main release they would just modify the source themselves.

I've chosen each part of ChunkVNC very carefully to work with the maximum amount of computers while maintaining stability. Take the SecureVNC plugin for example, redge and I have confirmed a bug while using the repeater that if the viewer doesn't connect first it will crash on exit. Things like this are why I choose not to have a more open compiler like SCPrompt. I just think there are to many compatibility differences with all of the options available at the moment to include them all.

I will continue to use whatever comes out that is newer and better but unless it can be elegantly implemented I doubt I'll support it.
Options are great but in my field I've found that most people (even experienced ones) just want stuff to work.

[krash_control]

I understand your point but the beauty is in simplicity.

...

Options are great but in my field I've found that most people (even experienced ones) just want stuff to work.

AMEN!!

[DownSouth]

I started with UltraVNC SC I but no unattended reboots allowed.

I currently use SCPrompt from home because I can run the server as a service which allows remote booting and auto reconnect.

Yep, I just want it to work and I won't change a clients firewall without changing it back when I leave.

In most cases I use ChunkVNC with the repeater instead.
If, IF the server ran fast enough that the slight performance hit caused by the repeater could be ignored then then it would make sense to always use the repeater ie; ChunkVNC.

I'd love to have 1 program I could use for all my remote PC control needs.

The UltraVNC mirror driver is now 5 separate drivers.
Win2k, XP, XP x64, Vista-7, Vista-7 x64.

A LOT of people have no idea what OS they are running.
They just know it's Windows, if you're lucky.
That's why I want a way to detect the Windows version and automatically install the correct driver.

The driver installs and runs perfectly on Windows 7 Home Premium x64 without a reboot. I'll be checking XP today or tomorrow.

The uninstall seems to require a reboot as Device Manager says it requires a restart after running the uninstall program and removing the driver in Device Manager.
The instructions are at http://www.uvnc.com/features/driver.html
Quoted below.

Manual Uninstall

1. net stop vnccom (stop communication manager service) Driver mv2 doesn't use the vnccom , only needed with the old drivers

2. Under XP: Control Panel ⇒ System ⇒ Hardware ⇒ Device Manager ⇒ Display Adapters ⇒ Uninstall mirror driver.
Under W2000: W2000 does not allow video drivers to be removed while running.
Trick: Remove vncdrv.sys (that is in system32/drivers), and reboot. You now can remove the driver the same way as with XP, via the device manager.

[supercoe]

Thanks for the reply, I'm especially interested in installing the driver without rebooting. Detecting the OS version and installing the correct driver will be easy with AutoIt.

If you have time I'd be interested in your perception of speed difference when using the repeater with a mirror driver. I'll be doing testing on this later.

[B]

I started with UltraVNC SC I but no unattended reboots allowed.

I currently use SCPrompt from home because I can run the server as a service which allows remote booting and auto reconnect.

Yep, I just want it to work and I won't change a clients firewall without changing it back when I leave.

In most cases I use ChunkVNC with the repeater instead.
If, IF the server ran fast enough that the slight performance hit caused by the repeater could be ignored then then it would make sense to always use the repeater ie; ChunkVNC.

Since SCPrompt can also work with repeaters, and since ChunkVNC can also install as a service and (I think) survive reboots, what leads you to pick one over the other in the cases you mention?

[supercoe]

B,

ChunkVNC survives reboots just fine when the "Install as Service" tray option is selected.

The InstantSupport tray icon gives you the "Install Service" option which will permanently install the server onto the customers computer. This also gives you the ability to control UAC in Vista/7 and reboot the customers computer.

Many people don't seem to know that the service option exists, I should really make a "how to use" vid...

[B]

I would even venture to say you should make it the default, particularly considering how many Vista and Win7 stations people have to deal with. You could always try degrading gracefully to application mode if the service won't start up (due to rights issue or other conflict).

[supercoe]

I prefer not to modify someones machine if I don't have to. This is why I've added the "ReRun as Admin" command so you can control UAC without installing the service.

[B]

Hmm. That sounds like a good idea too.

Philosophically, though, starting a "service" and then <b>uninstalling</b> that service when you're done is not different from installing a "program" to a directory (even if it's in %tmp%) and then uninstalling it and deleting it when you're done. And you're already doing the latter with ChunkVNC (since unfortunately VNC always likes lots of files). Both approaches are certainly "modifying" the person's machine, temporarily.

(I could see the issue if a reboot were required to uninstall.)

The "cleanup" you do at the end of the InstantSupport session would be almost the same either way.

Just my opinion of course.

[supercoe]

I see your point but the temp directory exists for that very reason.
If the computer is abruptly turned off while InstantSupport is running the temp files can be easily cleaned up with the Windows disk cleanup tool.

The temp directory also has full read/write permissions in Vista/7 this isn't always the case when it comes to some domains and the registry for installing a service.

And for the final kicker Having the program try to install itself as a service will prompt UAC on Vista/7, if the user doesn't have permission we could recover from that but the last thing I want is another prompt that the user has to interact with just to run InstantSupport.

[DownSouth]

To try to answer the questions.

I prefer ChunkVNC because of the flexibility of Autoit.
The mirror video driver is much more easily implemented with Autoit and the driver is critical because of where I live.
Features are about the same between the wrappers.

I discovered SCPrompt before ChunkVNC, and yes I know both survive an unattended reboot but SCPrompt runs without a repeater which is much easier for a one man shop such as myself with VERY limited
bandwidth and only 2 PCs, one of which is my notebook.
Person calls, we talk, clicks on the executable on my website, which then runs and gives them 2 choices: Technician 1 or 2. 1 is my desktop, 2 is my notebook which is also my US phone when away from home.
Connection is made in less than 5 seconds, (longer with Windows 7) and I'm working on their PC.

I'm located in a small town in Mexico and only have 128kbs (103 usable on a good day, and Telmex bandwidth limits to less during peak periods) upstream of which 32(G729a)-80(G711u) is used for VoIP at times, like when speaking with a customer).
Approximately 8-13% of upstream bandwidth is needed for ACK's of downstream data so upstream use limits downstream bandwidth.
My 880kbs (usable part of 1024) becomes 128kbs or less down rather rapidly.

The documentation and diagrams on ChunkVNC imply the repeater and viewer are on different PC's.
The FAQ's or documentation need to be improved, unfortunately supercoe is busy enough with the improvements he's making, and no one else is qualified to write the docs.

Now that supercoe told me they can be run on the same machine ChunkVNC seems the logical choice even though I prefer to run just a viewer rather than a viewer and a repeater in Mode II.
I'll try to run some speed tests from my mothers PC in the US once the mirror driver is in ChunkVNC to compare with and without the repeater.
She's the one with an old AMD Athlon 1000 and a 22" monitor running 1680X1050.

Since I handle all tech calls the repeater is useless to me.
In a shop with multiple techs the repeater makes sense.

[supercoe]

DownSouth,

I'll make it more clear in the docs that the repeater can be run on the viewer machine.

Please report back on your repeater/mirror driver testing.

Don't forget to enable the mirror driver in the ultravnc.ini EnableDriver=1


Edit: oops wrong key!

[DownSouth]

Actually it's EnableDriver=1 for the mirror driver.
EnableHook=1 enables the basic system hook for video capture.

I hope to be checking performance this weekend when I hope to have some time.

Rich

[supercoe]

DownSouth,

Thanks for catching that! My bad.

[supercoe]

DownSouth,

I did some testing running the server on Vista 64bit with the mirror driver installed while using a repeater.

First impressions are really good, screen updates are perfect, cpu use is down.

I noticed that winvnc.exe needs to be run as administrator or else it can't communicate with the driver.


EDIT: Tested Vista32 driver with Windows 7 32bit, works fine after reboot. (Vista64 didn't require a reboot for me).

[DownSouth]

Sorry for not getting back here earlier, but had some problems.

The mirror driver works wonderfully on XP x86 and Vista x86 and Win 7 x64.

I am typing this from my PC through a VNC connection to a friend's Vista PC across a measured 102kbps (not 102 kBytes, kbits) and the lag is barely noticeable)

As soon as the mirror driver was installed response time was similar to Teamviewer which I had run 2 minutes previously.

I made sure both TV and ChunkVNC were set to 256 colors, no scaling.
No way to check what the compression levels and encoding were in TV, but VNC was using ZRLE.

I will try to see if things are better with Tight encoding and play with the ZIP and Jpeg comression levels, but time is tight at present.

The mirror driver is definitely the solution to MY problems.

Please incorporate it as soon as you can.



Rich

[supercoe]

DownSouth,

I'll look into adding the driver as I've had similar luck with performance.