Microsoft provides a native remote desktop client for the macOS, which you can download from the App Store. The interface is basic but easy to use. To begin, click the New menu to set up a new.

Xpra is an open-source multi-platform persistent remote display server and client for forwarding applications and desktop screens. It gives you remote access to individual applications or full desktops. On X11, it is also known as screen for X11: it allows you to run programs, usually on a remote host, direct their display to your local machine. RDP works in a client/server model, where the remote computer must have RDP server software installed and running, and a user employs RDP client software to connect to it, to manage the remote desktop computer. In this article, we will share a list software for accessing a remote Linux desktop: the list starts off with VNC applications.

Remote Desktop clients/software lets you remotely view and control a computer from another. Distance is not a factor here. You can remotely control a computer in Seoul or Ankara from Kampala or anywhere else in the world and vice versa as if it were right in front of you. But for this wizardry can go down, you first need to install some software on both the Host (a computer you are remotely controlling) and the Client (you).

Most operating systems have a native Remote Desktop client already installed. Among these you will find Windows Remote Desktop on Windows machines, Remmina on Linux distros, and Mac’s Screen Sharing feature which is essentially just another Remote Desktop client.

Of these, only Windows Remote Desktop can claim to be multi-platform. It works just as well on Macs and is free to download from the iTunes store. It’s also one way to remotely connect a Mac to a Windows machine. Be sure to check these clients out before venturing further.

There is literally hundreds of Remote Desktop software out there, many free and just as many paid clients. The criteria we used to zero down these 5 Remote Desktop software boils down to which ones support all three operating systems at the same time. That’s like looking for a needle in a haystack. But we do love a challenge. This is what we have come up with:

Remote Desktop software for Windows, Mac & Linux

TeamViewer

Teamviewer is hands down the most popular Remote Desktop client for remote support and remote management. No expert computer knowledge is required which makes it the perfect tool for most users. Setting up is as easy as ABC. All you need to do is download the app both ends, after which you log in using your partner’s ID and password. Teamviewer supports most platforms, including Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS, Blackberry, name it.

They have a full version with a ton of features for power users such as file transfer, collaboration, online meetings, video and voice calls, chat, Wake-on-LAN and more. From our observations through the free home version is adequate for your old-fashioned Remote Desktop needs.

NoMachine

NoMachine is another free Remote Desktop client which is a truly multi-platform built around NX technology, a proprietary compression protocol for remote computer access. Supported platforms include Windows, Linux, Mac, Android, iOS, Raspberry Pi, and even ARM. NoMachine has perhaps has the most beautiful user interface of all the Remote Desktop clients we have seen. Feature-wise, it goes head-to-head with Teamviewer that we are torn choosing which one we like more. NoMachine

NoMachine lets you securely troubleshoot problems, collaborate with others on projects, share files, and even record what you are doing. You can remotely access your software and also peripheral devices such as printers, scanners, flash drives and others and even print documents or do it on a local device.

Enterprise clients can make use of NoMachine’s Cloud and Terminal Servers to fast track productivity. Corporations, scientific and research organisations privately and securely store their sensitive data on the cloud with centralised remote access management.

AnyDesk

AnyDesk follows the same script as NoMachine and Teamviewer down to the multi-platform-ness. The remote desktop client works on Linux, Windows, Mac OS, FreeBSD, Android and iOS. one, you can comfortably run a desktop app or even a portable version on a flash drive. You get the usual Banking-standard TLS 1.2 encryption technology, real-time collaboration, built-in file transfer, recording sessions and what not.

Desktop

AnyDesk’s claim to fame is how lightweight it is and its data-saving features. The setup file is only 2MB, believe it or not. AnyDesk also uses its own proprietary software, DeskRT, that compresses images to reduce latency while transferring up to 60fps on any network. Moreover, AnyDesk claims excellent bandwidth efficiency. It would still work at about a bandwidth as low as 100 kbps.

Chrome Remote Desktop

Remote Desktop clients don’t get any easier than Chrome Remote Desktop. Google made it an extension you download from the Chrome Webstore that lets you remotely access any other computer running Google Chrome. It runs entirely within the browser and it’s fully multi-platform in case you were wondering. It just works.

On the downside, Chrome Remote Desktop doesn’t yet support file sharing or chatting like the other clients. The best you can do is remote support and management. If that’s what you wanted to do anyway, let’s no reason why you can’t use it. It beats having to install yet another software on your system.

VNC Connect

Last on our list is Real VNC’s VNC Connect (Client-side). As with the other Remote Desktops, a companion VNC Viewer (Host-side) has to be installed. Unlike the other Remote Desktop clients, Real VNC chose to split their software two ways. It can be a bit confusing. VNC Connect/Viewer supports Windows, Mac, Linux, Raspberry Pi, Solaris, HP-UX and AIX.

The home use version is limited to 5 remote computers and 3 users. VNC Connect doesn’t offer as many features as other Remote Desktop clients. The real magic starts happening when you go Pro and Enterprise. You get Team management capabilities and a dedicated support channel, Multi-factor and system authentication, printing, file transfer, chat and even more features once you go Enterprise.

Featured image: crackedable.com

Related

; Date: Sat Nov 30 2019

Tags: Ubuntu

Need to use a distant Ubuntu computer from your Mac laptop or desktop? I have an Intel NUC in my office providing some lightweight services - a Gogs-based Git server, and a Jenkins instance - and, while I hardly ever use its desktop environment it is useful to occasionally do so. Using Apple's Screen Sharing feature is excellent, when used between Mac's. But with Ubuntu two issues crop up, one being the relative difficulty getting it set up on Ubuntu and the other being the inscrutable error message macOS gives when you attempt to access the Ubuntu desktop.

Apple promises that remote desktop access is this easy. That the existence of a computer with desktop sharing turned on is advertised using the Bonjour service, such computers then automatically show up in Finder, and you simply click on this button and voila the remote desktop appears on your screen.

Getting to this goal requires two major tasks:

  1. Enabling remote desktop support on Ubuntu
  2. Configuring things such that the Mac is able to display a remote Ubuntu desktop

Let's get started.

The Ubuntu project has integrated the Vino VNC server, and made it easy to configure Vino from the system Settings screens.

VNC - which stands for Virtual Network Computing - is a communications protocol letting you access desktop environments on remote computers. For a computer to share its desktop environment it must have VNC Server software. For a computer to access a remote desktop using VNC it must have VNC Client software.

VNC is not the only system of this sort. But it is the system we'll use for this task, if only because VNC's software licensing (it is open source) is friendly to Linux systems like Ubuntu.

In any case this means the remote Ubuntu machine must have a VNC server. That's what Vino is, a VNC server which the Ubuntu project is putting to use.

In Ubuntu you access the system settings a.k.a. control panel via this menu. The icon to click on is in the lower left and looks like a wrench and screwdriver.

This is the main settings window. Click on the Sharing choice - because we'll be enabling Screen Sharing. If we were doing the same for macOS, we'd go to System Preferences and also click on the Sharing section then enable Screen Sharing. The Ubuntu Team must have had this in mind when designing this for Ubuntu.

In this pane you see three sorts of sharing - File Sharing, Screen Sharing and Remote Login. Each does what is implied, for example File Sharing sets up a SAMBA server and allows folks to access directories on the machine over the network.

In this case we're interested in Screen Sharing and you can see I have already enabled this. The default is for this to be Off, so let's see what's involved with enabling the feature. Click on Screen Sharing.

Obviously for folks to access the screen the Allow connections choice must be selected. There's also a button in the top of this dialog window, shown here as On that must be selected. That button controls whether this feature is on or off.

Down at the bottom is a choice labeled Networks. This Intel NUC has its WiFi turned off, and it is instead hardwired to an ethernet switch that includes the WiFi router. Obviously for remote access to the Ubuntu desktop at least one network connection must be enabled.

In the middle is something requiring a couple choices. It's good form to limit access - since this is the desktop of a logged-in user on one of your computers. What if someone nefarious had access to your local network? You want to have some degree of control, don't you?

The New connections must ask for access requires that someone using the shared computer must click approval on a dialog that pops up on the desktop. In this case I have not selected that choice because I simply want to connect to the Ubuntu desktop without requiring any input on that desktop.

The Require a password means that the VNC Client will ask for a password, and that a password is required to access the VNC server.

Once you've done this, close the dialog.

Enabling auto-login on Ubuntu

A related task is the option of having the Ubuntu system automatically log-in as a given user. In my case I want to not have to directly use the Ubuntu machine ever. Think of the Ubuntu machine being stuffed in a closet where there's no display or keyboard. If the Ubuntu machine were rebooted you don't want to go to the closet and log-in, you just want the machine to be logged in.

First - click on Details

Then click on Users

On this screen first click on the Unlock button in the title bar. You'll be asked for your password. Then click on Automatic Login. This choice means that when the Ubuntu machine reboots it will automatically log in to this user ID.

Remote Desktop Client For Mac To Linux Download

At this point you should reboot the computer to make sure Automatic Login works.

So far we've set up a VNC server on the Ubuntu machine. Recall that we now need a VNC Client to access any VNC server.

Take a look in the macOS Application Store and you'll find several VNC client applications. Ignore all those.

Rdp Client For Mac

Or if you want - take a look at Using VNC to access remote desktop on Raspberry Pi or other computer behind a NAT firewall

Instead look in Finder and you should find something like this:

Simply click on the Share Screen button.

If everything is correctly configured you'll get this, and upon entering the correct password you'll get a screen showing the remote desktop.

In my case there was a problem - an inscrutable error message.

Hurm. I even got some of the macOS VNC clients in the App Store to see if they would work when Screen Sharing did not. The message doesn't make much sense - it's talking about incompatibility, but surely Apple would make things compatible? Surely one of the other VNC clients would make things compatible?

After some searching I found this command has to be run on the Ubuntu computer:

This setting has to do with whether the VNC transmission is encrypted. Getting back to security issues - what if your remote desktop session went over a network connection where others could watch what you were doing? In theory all your data could be exposed if someone else could snoop on your VNC remote desktop session. Therefore it is best to have VNC connections encrypted.

But the macOS Screen Sharing thing does not support encrypted VNC sessions. So... run the above command, and then you'll be prompted for a password, and the remote desktop will pop up.

Remote Desktop Client For Mac To Linux

Remote desktop client for mac to linux free

Windows does not have such a feature built in. Instead you use a 3rd party VNC client of which there are many. A commonly recommended client is Real VNC.

In the respective app stores for Android and iOS (or iPadOS) there are VNC client programs. Get one. I don't have any recommendations to share.

In both the case of Windows and mobile VNC clients, the applications have a paradigm of managing a set of known VNC Connections. So you would add a New Connection for the Ubuntu machine, configure the settings for this connection, and then click the Connect button.

Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus.