There a lot of different types of remote access programs around that can not only be used to do different things but also come with their own specific requirements to setup the connection. I’ll do a general summary of some of the differences:
VPN vs “Firewall Friendly”
One of the big technological differences is between VPN remote access software that requires you to open ports on your firewall/router to enable the remote connection and other remote access programs that use a server to broker the connection so that you don’t have to make any changes to your security settings. The latter is not only generally more secure but also a lot easier to setup since you generally just have to install the program and you are ready to go.
Client and Host Software
Another big distinction is between programs that require you install software on only the host computer (the computer you will access) compared with other programs that require software on both the host and client computers. In order words, you would need to have software installed on both the machine you will access as well as the machine you are doing the accessing from. This is nowhere near as convenient since it limits the number of computers you can access your host computer from. If you know you are only going to be accessing your host computer from a specific computer, than it is not as much of an issue.
Remote Access vs Remote Control
These two terms have sort of become interchangeable but they do mean different things. Remote Access refers to being able to access a remote computer to gain access to files, emails, etc. Remote Control refers to being able to actually control the desktop of the computer you are accessing so you can use it just as if you were sitting at it.
Remote Access vs Remote Support
Remote support programs are intended for troubleshooting purposes and not so much for general remote access functions. They tend to be used to take control of a person’s computer to diagnose and fix problems. While they often the same types of technologies as remote access software, they often come with some additional functionality such as incident tracking and remote chat.
