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Being able to remotely control a computer over the internet or the network is nothing new, but many people struggle trying to figure out what is the best way to do so. Do you need to have the other person see what you are doing? Do you want chat or instant messenger capabilities? Do you have Windows Home or Windows Pro? The method you will use will vary on one or more of these factors. In this article, we will be discussing Windows Remote Desktop vs. Quick Assist for PC Remote Control.
Windows Remote Desktop
Remote desktop has been one of the go to tools to connect to other computers on the network and even over the internet. But to use it over the internet, you will need to establish a VPN connection to the remote location first.
Once you have your network connection established, you can simply open the Remote Desktop Client and type in the hostname or IP address for the computer you want to connect to. One thing to keep in mind is that you cannot remote into a Windows Home edition computer, but you can make a remote desktop connection to a Windows Pro or Server edition computer from a Windows Home edition computer. There is a company that makes a program called Thinstuff that will allow you to use Remote Desktop to connect to a computer running Windows Home edition if you really need to.
The easiest way to open the Remote Desktop client is to do a search for it from the Windows taskbar search box. Then you will be able to enter the computer name (hostname) or IP address for the remote computer you wish to connect to.
If you click on Show options, you will be able to see the various options that are available to configure before connecting to the remote computer. For example, you can enter the username you are going to connect with before making the connection or you can type it in after the connection is made.
You can also set display settings for the size of the display and color quality. The Local Resources tab will allow you to do things such as have the audio from the remote computer be heard on your computer as well as sending Windows keyboard shortcuts to the remote computer as well as connecting to any printers that it has configured. The Clipboard option will allow you to copy and paste between the local and remote computer.
One thing you will also need to do on the computer accepting Remote Desktop connections is to make sure that it is enabled and that your user account is configured to be used for Remote Desktop sessions. These settings can be found in the System > Remote Desktop section of the Windows 11 settings assuming that the computer you are connecting to is running Windows 11.
Once you have everything configured, you can click on the Connect button and then enter a password for a user account on the remote computer that has been configured to be used with Remote Desktop.
You will then most likely see a certificate message and you can simply click on the Yes button and can also check the box that says Don’t ask me again for connections to this computer if you do not want to see it in the future.
You will then see the desktop of the remote computer as well as a toolbar at the top showing you the computer name, connection status and the option to minimize or close the remote session.
The desktop on the remote computer will then be locked and show the login prompt for the user that was logged in when the connection was made. If that user then logs into the remote computer, the person making the remote connection will then be logged out.
Quick Assist Remote Support
If you are looking to help someone on their computer over the network or over the internet (without needing a VPN), then you may want to try the free Windows Quick Assist app that is built into Windows. This tool will allow you to remotely connect to another computer and interact with it while the person on the other end watches and can also control their PC if needed.
Quick Assist can be used on Windows Home and Pro editions and can connect to either one without limitations. To open the app, simply do a search for Quick Assist from the Windows taskbar search box.
Once you open the app, you will have the choice to help someone (connect to their computer) or be helped by someone (they connect to your computer). If you are the one providing help, you will click on the Help someone button and it will generate a code that you will then need to provide to the other person. Then they will type in this code in the Enter code box in the Quick Assist app as seen below.
You will need to be signed into your Microsoft account to use Quick Assist and once it generates a code, the other person will have 10 minutes to enter it into their Quick Assist app and click on the Submit button.
The person on the receiving end will need to check the box saying they understand the security implications of sharing their screen and then click the Allow button.
Once the connection is made, you will see the other desktop on your screen in a window with some icons in the toolbar at the top.
To remotely control the other persons computer, you will need to click on the button that says Request control.
They will then see a popup on their screen telling them that you are requesting control of their computer, and they will need to click the Allow button.
The image below shows what the other buttons in the toolbar are used for. You will see these buttons when controlling a remote computer but they will not be shown on the computer that is being controlled.
Once the connection is made, you can use the remote computer the same way you can when using the Remote Desktop client, but the main difference is that the other person will be able to see what you are doing and also interact with their computer at the same time.
When you are ready to end the remote session, you can click on the Leave button and the other person can end the remote session as well by clicking on the Leave button on their end.
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