Terminal Client

[Sgt_Zeke]

Is Termnial Client supported on Win XP Pro? I know it is on Win2k Server but I had heard it was also on XP Pro. Thanks.

[Dave22]

On XP Pro it's called "Remote Desktop Connection"...

Start/Programs/Accessories/Communications

[Sgt_Zeke]

Is this the same as Terminal Client or something similar to PC Anywhere. Terminal Client is far more secure. Thanks.

[Dave22]

Terminal Services Client and Remote Desktop Connection both use the RDP protocol to enable remote access to a Windows machine. So, yes they're the same as far as functionality. The interface is just different.

As for being "more secure", both pcAnywhere and Terminal Services are capable of 128 bit encryption so "security" becomes relative to how good of a password you use.

[Sgt_Zeke]

I do not have experience with XP Remote client but my understanding of the difference between Terminal Client and PC Anywhere is that with Terminal client you are only passing keystroke and video info as opposed to actual data in PC Anywhere. Not to mention the reduced needs of Terminal Client to be run on. I have heard the the client part will run on a 386.

[Dave22]

You're talkiing two different mechanisms for remote control. There's also a distinction between remote controlling a workstation running Windows XP and logging into a Terminal Server but I digress...

Terminal Serivices is a core Windows service which uses the RDP protocol to communicate. It's not as feature-rich as pcAnywhere but the major advantages of Terminal Services is that it's "free" and it's not mucking with the inner workings of Windows like pcAnywhere (and other 3rd party remote clients). I say "free" because it's not really without cost but my point is that you don't have to go out and buy new software.

pcAnywhere also sends "screen shots" just as an RDP session does. When you talk about transferring data, pcAnywhere allows you to do this quite easily. There are ways to transfer files in an RDP session but I'll skip that whole discussion. Terminal Services can pass audio and perform printer redirection too.

Yes, the Terminal Services client can be run on much less hearty hardware than pcAnywhere but I'm not sure about 386s. I can't say since I've never had to load it on one and I don't have the requirements handy. There are folks out there who utilize this thin-client type architecture to prolong the need to buy new client hardware. It's kinda cool to use an old PII w/ 32 MB RAM and run Office XP.

[Sgt_Zeke]

Thanks for the enlightenment. Yes I agree it boggles the mind that you can run a full version of XP or Win2K Server on a Palm!