 Thousands of people use Symantec’s pcAnywhere 11.5 ($199.95; www.symantec.com) to use one computer to remotely access another when they’re on the road. The software’s interface grants access to every aspect of the remotely-accessed PC (called the host), letting you see the screen and use the keyboard and mouse as if you were sitting in front of a computer that is physically located miles away.
pcAnywhere is a powerful application, but like all software, it doesn’t always work the way you’d like it to. We tested the program extensively and also consulted with Mike Baldwin, senior product manager at Symantec, to find out ways to fix the most common issues users face when using pcAnywhere 11.5.  CONNECTION ISSUES
In our experience setting up the software on multiple PCs and getting them to talk to one another is no problem at all in a controlled environment, but improperly configured Internet and networking hardware often causes problems that bewilder beginners.
Most home and small-business networks use routers to direct network traffic through a range of different ports. Two of these ports, 5631 and 5632, are essential for pcAnywhere’s operation. If these ports are closed, the software won’t be able to establish a connection with another computer. Fortunately, most routers have a Web-based configuration interface that lets users open or close various ports, although the procedure varies. “If you go to the support pages of most of the major router vendors, they’ll actually have a page specifying pcAnywhere by name on how to set up the router to allow correct performance,” says Baldwin. Find out how your router’s interface works and open ports 5631 and 5632.
Firewall software and hardware, which sits between the Internet connection and the PC to examine and potentially block incoming and outgoing data, also has the potential to cause problems. The good news is that firewalls have exception lists where users can add the name of a program or the number of a port that is specifically allowed to carry traffic, lifting any restrictions the firewall may impose. For example, if you use Windows XP’s integrated firewall software, open the Start menu, click Control Panel, click Switch To Classic View (if necessary), and double-click Windows Firewall. Select the Exceptions tab and click the Add Port button. Type pcAnywhere in the Name field, type 5631 in the Port Number field, make sure the TCP radio button is selected, and click OK. Click Add Port again, type pcAnywhere 2 in the Name field, type 5632 in the Port Number field, select the TCP radio button, and click OK. You may need to reboot your computer after changing firewall settings before they are effective.
pcAnywhere relies on knowing the IP addresses of both computers before establishing a connection. The IP address is a unique number assigned to each device on a network, including the Internet, but while they are all different, they don’t necessarily remain static. “This is another area of frustration sometimes because even a public IP from the ISP can certainly be changed,” says Baldwin. “They typically don’t change that often, but they certainly can change without notice, and your private IPs behind the router may change all the time.”
As far as the private IP address is concerned, you can have the router permanently assign one to any computer you plan to use pcAnywhere with, and it will stick as long as the computer remains on that network. The bigger problem when you’re on the road is the public IP your ISP uses to identify your account. This can change without warning, and if it happens when you are not at the host computer to adjust the address, you won’t be able to establish a remote connection.
The best way around this problem is to subscribe to a dynamic DNS (domain name server) service, which assigns your account a permanent name, such as youraccount.dnsservice.com, and then automatically retrieves your current IP address from the ISP to associate with that name. With that established all you need to tell pcAnywhere is that the IP address you are connecting to is youraccount.dnsservice.com, and the public DNS service does the rest of the work; you never need to adjust any IP address settings manually again.
All boxed versions of pcAnywhere 11.5 come with a voucher good for a 90-day subscription to DynIP ($24.95 per year and up; www.dynip.com). There are also free dynamic DNS services available from companies such as No-IP.com (www.no-ip.com), which also offers more advanced fee-based services.
PERFORMANCE ISSUES
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Lower the resolution of the host PC to dramatically improve pcAnywhere’s performance.
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pcAnywhere doesn’t do you any good if it works so slowly as to be unusable. Using the software over a network or broadband Internet connection usually doesn’t cause any problems, but when you’re on the road there’s always a chance that you need to remotely access a home or work PC through a dial-up connection. The software should still work on this extremely slow type of connection, but it won’t work well unless it is completely optimized.
The main thing to worry about in this case is the host computer, which sends all of the data to another computer when you access it remotely. pcAnywhere works by constantly downloading a picture of the host computer’s Windows Desktop directly to another computer. The larger and more detailed this picture is, the more data there is to download and the more slowly the pcAnywhere interface screen displays updates.
“The first thing I would do is to reduce the Desktop resolution because that changes your starting point,” says Baldwin. The resolution setting establishes the amount of data you can display on your monitor at once, and a resolution of 1,600 x 1,200 requires four times as much bandwidth to transmit than a screen that runs at 800 x 600 resolution. Before going on a trip where you know you’ll need to remotely access a computer through a dial-up connection, use Windows to reduce the resolution from high settings such as 1,600 x 1,200 to more bandwidth-friendly settings such as 1,024 x 768 or 800 x 600. Avoid 640 x 480 resolution because although far less data needs translated, so little data is displayed at that setting that the computer becomes almost unusable.
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Switching to a solid-colored Desktop reduces the amount of data the software must transmit. |
To reduce the resolution, right-click an empty area of your Desktop, click Properties, and select the Settings tab. Use the Resolution slider bar to select a reduced setting, click Apply, and reboot your computer.
Reducing resolution is the single most important step in accommodating a pcAnywhere dial-up session, but reducing the complexity of what’s on the screen also is important. “Many people like to use photos as their wallpaper rather than a static, solid color,” says Baldwin, “and that dramatically increases the amount of information that is passed.” To switch to a solid-colored background, right-click the Desktop, click Properties, click Desktop, and choose None in the Background field. Then use the Color menu to select a solid color.
DON’T FORGET THE CALLBACK
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Have someone use the host to initiate a connection to the remote PC when the host is within a restrictive network.
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Baldwin left us with one final tip that can help people behind restrictive firewalls and other network hardware really get out of a jam: Use the software’s Call Remote feature. This lets the host computer that you want to control make the connection when the other computer can’t get in. (Firewalls are generally much less restrictive about outgoing connections than they are about incoming connections.) This comes in handy when you need an expert to troubleshoot your computer remotely, but he can’t connect because you don’t have the authority to open the proper ports. It’s also great when you need to access a work PC and have someone at the office who can initiate the connection for you. Just make sure the other computer is ready, click Hosts, right-click the type of connection you want to establish, and click Call Remote. The only downside is that now you have no excuse to ever be away from your computer.
by Tracy Baker
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