Remote Access

[#1]

Done a quick search but did not find my answer, does plusnet offer logmein type of service where i could set up software on my home computers and access it through my plusnet login using a browser. I realise logmein does this for free but just wondered if plusnet have looked at this as another string to their bow as it where.

[#2]

Most operating systems already contain software to allow you to log in remotely (if we are talking about Windows machines).
Logmein is just a way of making your network less secure (you open a tunnel permanently to their servers which act as middlemen in the connection)
Its not really a sensible option - RDC (Remote Desktop Connection) is pretty good (built into MS OS's) - you just need to configure firewall rules, and sort out the security options on your machine.

[#3]

I found the Windows RDC software prone to increasing lag, making remote control impossible.  This may (or may not) have been a result of throttling (are they seen as P2P?)  I gave up on it.
Logmein is far superior, and I've never had a problem with it. 

[#4]

Quote from: James_G

Logmein is just a way of making your network less secure (you open a tunnel permanently to their servers which act as middlemen in the connection) Its not really a sensible option - RDC (Remote Desktop Connection) is pretty good (built into MS OS's) - you just need to configure firewall rules, and sort out the security options on your machine.

Hmmm, not sure which is potentially less secure TBH - trusting Logmein (who put quite a bit of effort into protecting their market and reputation), or having people fiddling with firewall/NAT rules, security s/w and other bits on their PCs and routers to make RDP work properly  

[#5]

Potential is interesting.
You give a third party full access to your machine.
Or, you read up on what you are doing and make sure you protect yourself.

[#6]

Quote from: jwhite

I found the Windows RDC software prone to increasing lag, making remote control impossible.  This may (or may not) have been a result of throttling (are they seen as P2P?)  I gave up on it.

It's seen as VPN traffic and goes into the 'Gold' traffic queues. On some entry level packages (like Value) it's rate limited to 512kbps though. I use I use Windows RDP almost daily and find it perfectly suitable for my needs. I have got 832kbps upload on the machine I use it to connect to though.

[#7]

Quote from: jwhite

I found the Windows RDC software prone to increasing lag, making remote control impossible.  This may (or may not) have been a result of throttling (are they seen as P2P?)  I gave up on it.

it wasn't a problem with a jerky mouse was it? I had that and 'cured' it completely by using a non-active (eg 'default' for XP; 'none' for Vista) mouse scheme and turning off mouse shadows (on the host PC not the client obviously ).

[#8]

Realistically you only need around 30Kbps to run a responsive RDP session (its certainly acceptable via a 56Kbps modem)
However, for reasonable performance at those levels you do need to cut down the desktop size and color depth.
Run with anything over 300Kbps bandwidth and you should be fine for most situations (remember its never really going to be suitable for graphics rich sessions, as it relies on only repainting the changing sections of the screen to deliver decent performance, if there is a lot going on, you increase control signal latency as well as apparent lag in graphics repainting.)
If you run something like LogMeIn, you also have to take into account latency to/from their servers, plus the overhead for processing your app via their servers.
versus doing it yourself.
Nothing wrong with using LogMeIn - but I just don't see the point... (although I am a fan of their products, and do use LogMeIn rescue to help clients out remotely, and to manage/support smartphones remotely)