The ability to take a computer by it's OS and lead it around from half way across the world (or upstairs) is just cool.  Remote control is simply the ability to control a computer from another location using nothing but a network link.  (That includes dial-up.  Technically things like serial ports, USB, firewire, etc. could be used.  But that's lame for our purposes.)  You can do anything from open a Remote UI (user interface) session to a remote telnet console (text prompt) to ftp etc...  This can all come in very handy for a wide range of uses.  So let's rock!  HONESTLY, I COULDN'T 'ROCK' IF MY LIFE DEPENDED ON IT !!  OUR LITTLE SECRET, OK?  OK !!

There are several types of remote control.  There are also a few methods.  I'm going to be covering the most basic types that work over TCP/IP in this edition.  (If I miss something, let me know.)  I'll start high level (UI) and work my way down.

Before we begin, let's get a little terminology strait.  (If you know all this already, move on.)  The machine you control is the Server.  The machine you are using to control it is the Client.  That may seem backwards but here's how it works.  A Server is a computer/program that sits and waits for a request from a Client.  The Client tells the Server what to do and the Server executes commands and returns data accordingly.  (Assuming the Client has rights.)  There is only ever 1 server in a specific example (for this topic) but there may be many Clients.

GUI Control:IF YOU COMPUTER IS GUI, YOU GOT A PROBLEM...
GUI = Graphical User Interface.  Windows is a GUI.  (Because it's not text based.)  When remote controlling via GUI you are pulling images of the screen from the controlled machine (server) to the client and sending keyboard and mouse input remotely.  There are a lot of programs out that will let you do this.

Windows NT/2000 Terminal Server edition is built specifically for this purpose.  They will have some monster machines running this in the server room, and 10's or 100's of clients opening up Terminals.  (This is slightly different because a terminal isn't quite the same as remote control.  However, a terminal can be set up to remote control the server.  Or it can be set up to look like an average every day local machine.  Neat stuff)

There are programs out there like Lap Link, and others, that will let you take control of the UI (User Interface.)  In this case, the UI can usually only be controlled by one person at a time.  I won't go into details on all of these programs.  I'll focus on the one that I use.  And it's Free.

VNC is my UI remote control program of choice.  It's easy to use, small, and it's free.  (It also runs on a lot of Operating Systems.)  Install it on your server computer and all your client computers.  (Installing it on a client is optional, but you will get better performance.)  If you install it on NT or 2000, you may want to run it as a service.  (There's an option to install the service in the start menu.  Then open the service manager and set it to run automatically.)  If you install it on Windows 9x, either put it in the startup, or follow the service installation instructions bellow.  (There's also documentation on VNC's web page for installing as a service.)  The first time you run the server, (VNC Server) it will ask you to configure some basic settings.  It will also ask you for a password.  All you really need to do is enter the password.  You can leave the rest at default.

Once it's running, try connecting to it from a client.  Run the VNC Viewer and connect to the server.  (Type in the server's IP address or, if you're on the same network, the machine name will work.  You can also open up any web browser and go to http://machinename:5800 and it will open a Java Viewer.  Slower, but still effective.  And as usual, you can use an IP Address or a Machine Name.)  The initial screen will load.  It may take a few seconds on high bandwidth connections or a few minutes on dialup.  Slower machines will refresh screens slower.  But you should now have a remote console of the server machine.  Now that's mulit-tasking!

You can use this for a lot of things.  I've connected to my grandma's machine in another state for tech support.  I've had Video driver problems so I tinkered with the settings from a computer in another room using VNC.  I can create a share, change a setting, tinker with another machine without having to get up and walk over to it.  In my house, most of my computers are in the basement and one is on the main floor.  It's nice to never have to run up and down stairs.

To Install VNC as a service on Windows 9x do this:  Open Regedit (Start | Run | Regedit).  Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServices.  Make a new string vallue.  Name it VNC or something.  Double click it and type the path and file name of the vnc server executable.  This will run VNC before the login.  If you have to log in, you will be able to do it remotely.

VNC is not as fast as some other programs out there, but it is free and that is what attracts me to it the most.  It is also well documented.  Please check out their web page for a heap of information on setting up your VNC server/viewer.  In addition to all this, it has been ported to most of the common OS's out there, and it's open source.

Console Control: 
Some of us still remember the good old DOS days (and still use command consoles today.)  A remote console is much less bandwidth intensive and in some cases, more useful than a remote GUI console.  There are a lot of these out there, many for free.  You can look for them on pages like TuCows and FileMine.  You could also use Fictional Daemon.  Fictional Daemon is my Telnet Server of choice.  (Note:  Telnet is not secure.  SSH is.  I don't have any SSH servers listed yet.  I'll get some later.)  Some haven't have the pleasure of telneting so I'll hit on that really quick: THE TRUTH IS THAT I JUST LIKE DAEMONS !!

Telnet is an old way of opening a text based terminal over a TCP/IP connection.  Every Windows machine has a telnet client.  (Go ahead, try it.  Go to Start | Run | type 'telnet' press enter.)  Everything done through telnet is text based.  Usually, you use a command prompt of sorts.  Sometimes you have a mock-GUI (like the old school DOS menus.)  It's a good idea to become familiar with Telnet.  There really isn't much to it.

To connect to a machine with a telnet server running on it, there are several methods.  The easiest is usually to just go Start | Run | Telnet machine name or IP Address.  (After the word 'Telnet' type either the machine name of the server, or the server's IP address.  If it's over the internet, unless you've got a DNS server, you'll need to use the IP address.)

Fictional Daemon is a Telnet/FTP server.  (Though the FTP side of it can be a bit buggy at times.)  It can set itself up to run as a service on any 9x or NT (2000) computer.  You can configure it to whatever specifications you want.  You have to set up users (as many or as few as you would like) and each user has rights.  (I often just set up a user for myself, make him all powerful, and call it good.)  Once you've set up the Telnet side of this program, (please refer to the program's documentation for more details) you're ready to try it out.  You can try it from a different computer, or just use the on you're on now.  Telnet to the machine Fictional Daemon is running on.  (Start | Run | Telnet machine name or IP Address)  It'll give you a login prompt.  Log in as your user.  Enter your password.  Type help.  Help will probably scroll off the screen so you'll need to scroll up and down to see it.  (On most telnet programs, you can set the buffer in one of the menus.  Set your buffer to more than 80 lines and type help again.  Now you should be able to scroll up and see all the commands.)

With Fictional Daemon you can launch applications, kill applications, run a remote DOS console, chat with the person on the machine, chat with other users, check the machine's up time, move files around, shut down, reboot, manage users, control FTP, schedule commands, take a screen shot, check the server's time and date, send a system message, and perform basic management duties.  Once you're familiar with it, you can do a lot with your remote text console.  If you need help with it, just email me.  (As always.)

As I said before, there are other telnet servers out there.  Please, if you're interested, go try them out.  There are some really good ones out there.  (I just happen to like Fictional Daemon.  NOTE:  If you use Fictional Daemon, please follow the instructions on the fictional.net web page and install the latest Visual Basic Runtime Files.)

File Control:
It is often helpful to be able to download and upload file to and from a remote machine.  The standard method is using a protocol called File Transfer Protocol.  (You've probably used it and may not even know it.)  FTP is a TCP/IP method of moving files from one computer to another.  (Note:  Windows file sharing works great, but FTP is suited for Internet transfers much better.  And if file sharing isn't working, this can pick up some slack.)  Like telnet servers, there are a million and one FTP servers out there for free.  All you have to do is look for them.  Fictional Daemon has one built in, but I've had bad luck with it in the past.  (Sometimes it works, sometimes it only half works.  Installing the latest VB runtime files can fix it.)

The FTP server I use most commonly is called ArgoSoft FTP Server.  I got it off of FileMine.  It's very small, quick, and easy.  It isn't anywhere near as fancy as Fictional Daemon is, but it gets files from point A to point B so it works well enough for me.

Once again I'd like to mention that Telnet and FTP are not secure.  (No encryption.)  If you are worried about security, please look into using SSH.  I don't have any corporate secrets on my home machines so I don't care much about encryption.  When I get around to working with SSH servers on windows machines, I'll put a bit about them up here.

Trojans:  PLEASE VERIFY THAT YOU ARE 21 YEARS OF AGE BEFORE READING !!
Yes...  This is a virus.  You may have heard of hackers taking control of people's computers.  This is usually how they go about it.  There are programs out that will function as some or all of the remote control servers I've listed.  Often these are used as viruses to take control of computers that do not belong to the client.  (I've used programs like this before.  It's pretty slick technology.  Lots of fun to.)  I'm not suggesting you start putting viruses on all your friends computers (though it can be very entertaining) but some of these programs make excellent remote administration programs.  The only 2 I've used are the 2 versions of Back Orifice.  (A parody on words from Microsoft Back Office.)  It's been a very long time since I've used these, but they are put out by the Cult of the Dead Cow.  (Do a search, you should be able to find them.)  They make great 'all in one' tools.  They are often picked up by virus scanners, but I usually just put them on the exclude list.

A lot of people are hesitant to put a virus on their computer.  What is a virus - It is a program run (usually without the person's knowledge) that allows it's author or distributor to take control of 1 or more function on your computer.  The function(s) could be anything from doing damage, to remote control.  If you are the distributor and use a Trojan for Admin purposes, it is no longer a virus.  (It's no longer a Trojan, technically.)  It is there with full knowledge of its existence.  It is not being used maliciously.  Back Orifice is actually talked up to be a remote administration utility, it just happens to be used by a lot of Hacker/Cracker types as a Trojan.  (I've used VNC to bug some people before.  It can be used as a virus of sorts to.  The same goes for Telnet Servers.)

I'm to out of practice to write a good bit on how to use these.  It works along the same lines as the other methods discussed.  You install the server program on a computer and take control from a client via a network connection.  With Back Orifice 2000, you could pull off most (if not all) the functions listed above.  You could also do some things not listed.  (Like key logging.)  If you've got time and are really interested in remote control, I highly recommend looking into it.

Conclusion:
That's it.  You should know everything you need to know to take control of your computers from just about anywhere.  Remote control is a blast.  I've got it running on almost every computer I use.  I don't use it very often, but when I need it, it's awesome.

This is not a complete lists of methods.  It's not even close (there's to many options out there to list.)  But this is common, simple ways to accomplish strong remote control.  If you have any questions, problems, or comments, please email me.  (My address is in the 'Me' section and on the 'Main' page.)  Hopefully you've got a better idea of what's involved with remote control and have a basic plan in mind that will suite your needs.  Good luck with it.  Have fun.