How to setup & use UltraVNC

[Fourth]

How to setup & use UltraVNC

Introduction:

Remote administration is a growing tool in the average user's arsenal. As the number of household computer's grow, we all need an easy way to access them from inside our own network, or from afar. Enter: UltraVNC.

UltraVNC is a free, open-source, program that allows a user to interact with a machine in a virtual desktop environment via the Internet or local area network.

This guide will show you how to set one up for use over internet or LAN connections. Note: this guide only applies to Windows. I don't make any assurances that the same processes can be taken on a Linux/Mac machine.

Requirements:

• UltraVNC Free Edition (http://www.uvnc.com/download/index.html)
• Cable internet connection or better(if outside of a LAN)
• Port-forwarding capabilities on any routers

Download:

Navigate to http://www.uvnc.com/download/index.html and select UltraVNC 1.0.2 Setup. This is the latest stable release at the time this article is written.

Installation:

Installation is basic. I suggest setting up ONLY what you need. For instance, if computer A will be connecting to computer B and the opposite will never happen, just set up the viewer on computer A and the server on computer B. This is for security purposes, and not much else. You can, of course, choose to install both applications on all computers.

This screen is important. This is where you will decide how the server gets configured during installation. If you will be spending a fair amount of the time away from the computer you seek to admin, my suggestion is to try to install it as a service. This way if the main user happens to reboot it, or it crashes, it will come back on its own. Both Vista and XP can install and register this application as a service.

Setting up Encryption:

If you plan to use encryption and installed it at the beginning, do this before anything else:

Navigate to the UltraVNC folder located in Program Files. Select the "plugins" folder. In that folder you will find "MSRC4Plugin_NoReg.dsm". Copy that file into the main UltraVNC directory. Do this on the server machine and ANY computer that will be viewing.

We will come back to encryption a bit later.

Configuring UltraVNC Server:

No matter if you plan to run VNC server as a service or not, configuration is the same. You can find the configurations at Start > All Programs > UltraVNC > UltraVNC Server. This will start the program. You can then right click it in your task bar and select "Admin Properties".

This window is the whole array of server options in one. My screenshot shows what your configuration generally should look like for an internet based server. Be SURE to set a strong password so that no one else can gain access other than yourself.

If you will be using Vista and select the "When last user disconnects: lock the workstation" you will not be able to regain access remotely. I have not tested this functionality on XP, but with Vista I have to leave this as "Do Nothing".

For encryption, select the "Config." button.

In this screen, it will tell you that it can't find your key on the first run. This is fine. Select 128 bit encryption for the strongest encryption. It should close that window. Navigate back to your UltraVNC folder and find the file "new_rc4.key". Rename it to "rc4.key". Open the admin panel back up and select "Config" in encryption again. The window should now state that it found the key file and is using that.

At this point, copy that key file onto the computer(s) you will be viewing from. Without this key a computer will not be able to access your server computer. Place it in the root UltraVNC directory.

It is worth noting that there are a number of other encryption plugins out there, but MSRC is what comes with UltraVNC so I am inclined to just use that. All computers must be using the same revision of MSRC so if you update your revision from the MSRC site on one computer, you must repeat on all computers, or else VNC will throw an error during connection that your key is not valid.

Configuring UltraVNC Viewer:

Configuring the viewer at this point is a snap. Select the connection type you feel is most appropriate, avoiding the "Auto" setting, as I don't have much faith in anything that tries to auto-detect whats best for me. My personal suggestion is to always stick with 64 colors no matter what. This keeps bandwidth to a minimum and allows you to get work done faster.

Select the "Config" button next to the DSM Plugin and verify that it found the key file we placed in there during Server configuration. If not, go back and copy the file again.

From there, just enter the IP and port(5900 unless you changed it to something else), and click "Connect". It will then attempt to connect.

Repeat this process for any other computer attempting to view.

Security:

It is strongly recommended that you use a number of security features to prevent unauthorized access to your computer. Remember, VNC is a way to remote control a PC which means that if the wrong person gains access they will have direct control.

It is recommended you use a combination of 128-bit encrytion with a strong password. A strong password is one that is non-dictionary with a mix of upper and lower case random letters, numbers, and symbols.

Good password: Bgs2$2Ikw@
Bad password: soccer

Port Forwarding & Ranges:

See this site: http://www.portforward.com/english/r...outerindex.htm

Be sure to forward these ports(following this guide):

• 5900
• 5800 (for HTTP viewer ONLY)

Be sure to allow the programs and port 5900 on the server machine on your Windows firewall.

Conclusion:

There it is. This is your basic startup guide to getting UltraVNC on its feet. Please post questions and any suggestions I could make here. I'll try to keep this up-to-date with answers to more commonly asked questions.

Last Update: 08/22/08 (clarifyed some security concerns, added a section for security suggestions, made mention of vista's ability to install this as a service)

[pheonix991]

YAY!!! I LOVE UVNC.

I vote sticky.

[Fourth]

you're welcome.

[falcobird]

are we supposed to download a plugin for the DSMplugin thingy? Mine said "no plugin detected" and i cant make any keys or whatnot. It says its corrupted. I downloaded it straight from sourceforge.

edit - same story for my laptop. The DSMplugin thingy is corrupt or something. Did you download yours separately? I can connect fine, just no encryption.

Additional Comment:

nm answered my own question.

Additional Comment:

Thats weird, I installed it using the same settings on my XP and my Vista computers, but the XP connecting to vista combo has almost zero speed, but the Vista to XP combo is near real time speed. Does vista just hate RealVNC?

[Fourth]

i think so. vista has some serious interface lag bug that should happen over lan.

[falcobird]

Originally Posted by Fourth

i think so. vista has some serious interface lag bug that should happen over lan.

should I try the video driver that is on the download page? Would that maybe help?

Another caveat, is there a way i can dynamically resize the window? I can get it to take up like 1/4th of the screen, and i can resize it smaller, but i cant resize larger unless i turn "fuzzy" mode on, which turns it to full screen but low resolution. Very odd.
I'm liking this better than realvnc but at least realvnc worked on vista!

[Fourth]

Originally Posted by falcobird

should I try the video driver that is on the download page? Would that maybe help?

not sure. poke around the uvnc forums and such and see if anyone knows how to improve it. if you come across something, let me know and ill add it to my guide.

[falcobird]

Originally Posted by Fourth

not sure. poke around the uvnc forums and such and see if anyone knows how to improve it. if you come across something, let me know and ill add it to my guide.

It would be easier to find help there if peoples posts didnt sound like they were translated badly.

One person says they installed the video driver on vista and it works fine, but he warns that "the BSOD risk is real"

Another person says that if you turn off the "poll full screen (ultra fast)" option on the server, it fixes the lag.

Also people have said that the server itself doesnt lag from UVNC, just the viewer lags. The mouse movements on the server are smooth. Weird eh?

I'm gonna try disabling the poll full screen option, and if that doesnt work i'll give the video driver a go.

Additional Comment:

Disabling poll full screen did help greatly but its nowhere near the speed i'd like it to be.

[Fourth]

Originally Posted by falcobird

Disabling poll full screen did help greatly but its nowhere near the speed i'dlike it to be.

when my laptop arrives, ill give it a go of my own and see if I can't figure something better out.

[Escape]

Wow very nice Fourth, very nice.
I felt like I was reading a windows "help" page.
It was beautiful :')

[falcobird]

also, I vote for sticky since he took the time to make a step by step picture guide

[Jason]

Thread unlocked for modifications...

[Fourth]

thanks for the sticky jason. ill make modifications later today.

[blksith0]

It wont work for me, help, I just get this error.

[average650]

so does anyone know how to fix the problem when accessing vista?

[Fourth]

Originally Posted by blksith0

It wont work for me, help, I just get this error.

a little more detail than this would be helpful. what operating systems? network lay out? configuration settings? this message alone does nothing for me.

Additional Comment:

Originally Posted by average650

so does anyone know how to fix the problem when accessing vista?

what is the problem? ive gone xp -> vista and back with no problem.

[Th3_uN1Qu3]

1.0.5 has been out since September, you might want to update the guide Fourth. I've been using 1.0.4rc1 since the first time i found out about UltraVNC, with zero issues. I found it much easier to use than 1.0.2.

If you're busy i can rewrite the guide for 1.0.5 tomorrow and PM it to you so you can post it.

[average650]

Hmm, maybe i was mistaken then assuming was vista. Just like falcobird, when i try to access vista it's extremely slow.

[jmilch]

Thanks a ton man!

[Fourth]

Originally Posted by Th3_uN1Qu3

1.0.5 has been out since September, you might want to update the guide Fourth. I've been using 1.0.4rc1 since the first time i found out about UltraVNC, with zero issues. I found it much easier to use than 1.0.2.

If you're busy i can rewrite the guide for 1.0.5 tomorrow and PM it to you so you can post it.

bah, last time i had checked, in mid-august they were still on 1.0.2. I'll update this for 1.0.5 early next week, as I have a bunch of school work this weekend.