RDM+ for iPhone: Remote access service from SHAPE Services

[SHAPE]

Dear iPhone users!


SHAPE Services is glad to offer you a BETA version of new Web-service for your iPhone - RDM+.
You can use RDM+ absolutely free while it is in beta.

RDM+: Remote Desktop for Mobiles gives you complete access to your remote PC from anywhere.

RDM+ is a fast and secure remote access solution that offers you:
Remote Desktop, File Manager and System Control
Friendly, easy-to-use interface
Direct access through NAT and firewall
Secure connection, strong data encryption

Point your Safari browser on iPhone to:
www.iPhone.rdmplus.com

Your comments and wishes are always welcome.
You can send us your feedback to betardm.iPhone@shapeservices.com

Most active beta-testers will be awarded by free licences when beta finishes.

Support Team
SHAPE Services

 

[Tinman]

I am trying it now. I tried VNC a few weeks ago and it seems about the same speed.

Is this supposed to be faster than VNC? Any way to use the keyboard?



Thanks,
Mike

 

[Tinman]

OK I just tried Nate True's VNC:
http://cre.ations.net/creation/webvnc---remote-desktop--vnc-on-your-iphone

Unless I am missing something the VNC (from the link above) is actually a lot more usable.

Features in VNC that I can't seem to find in RDM+, or that seemed better via VNC:

1.) Speed: VNC is faster--especially due to window selection (see #3, below). And for the record I tested both via WiFi and EDGE.

2.) Keyboard: VNC allows text input, RDM+ does not (at least not that I could find).

3.) Choose window function: VNC lets me choose which window I want to work with, RDM+ does not. This is a VERY useful feature to have.

4.) Logging in: RDM+ requires me to enter a system-generated 8-digit "Computer number," my login name, and my password. That is a lot to remember for a device such as the iphone--a device that doesn't have cut-and-paste. VNC only needs a password. (Yes, RDM+ is more secure, no question about that--but it's a pain to have to remember computer number.)

5.) Full Screen: VNC wins here too. I run my Windows desktop at 1680x1050. With VNC I can see the whole desktop. With RDM+ I can only see a portion of it (not the bottom) with no apparent way to scroll.


To me RDM+ would have to offer better speed and features than VNC in order to be worth it. Hopefully it will get better as time goes by. Definitely easier to work with via EDGE, as no port forwarding is needed.


--
Mike

 

[hoits2000]

Ill be trying this out when I get home. So to access my computer, I have to go to rdmplus.com, click the download link on top, and click the try beta version for desktop only? Then I can go to the website you gave on my iPhone to utilize it? Since its beta, will the desktop version expire before the iPhone beta? Or is the Desktop part just "free" anyway?

Thanks

Eric

 

[Hawk]

I need to test one of these out myself

 

[pkells1]

i tried this on my computer at work, it was pretty cool because i hadn't ever seen anything like this in person (such an easy way to access a computer from another location). but the only really problems i had with it were 1) very slow. and 2) it didn't display the entire screen (no start button, which was obviously a pain).
if these things were fixed it would be awesome.

 

[Denis Perevalov]

Ill be trying this out when I get home. So to access my computer, I have to go to rdmplus.com, click the download link on top, and click the try beta version for desktop only? Then I can go to the website you gave on my iPhone to utilize it? Since its beta, will the desktop version expire before the iPhone beta? Or is the Desktop part just "free" anyway?

Thanks

Eric

Yes, you should download and install beta version for desktop. Desktop version will not expire - it is free.

 

[Denis Perevalov]

...
To me RDM+ would have to offer better speed and features than VNC in order to be worth it. Hopefully it will get better as time goes by. Definitely easier to work with via EDGE, as no port forwarding is needed.

--
Mike

Mike, thank you very much. We'll try to fix the problems with full screen and keyboard at first.

Can you explain what is "Choose window function" in some more details?

 

[Tinman]

Mike, thank you very much. We'll try to fix the problems with full screen and keyboard at first.

Can you explain what is "Choose window function" in some more details?

Instead of going straight to full-screen there is an option to choose either full screen or any of the windows currently open on the remote PC. This saves time and bandwidth by letting me zoom right into the app I want to work on. I've been using VNC like this for a few hours now, to control iTunes playback, and it's pretty cool.


Here's where you choose either full-screen or any open window:



Here I have chosen the iTunes' window to control:



Zoomed in. Note the compression artifacts. This is a side-effect of the compression performed by VNC to save bandwidth (quite acceptable, IMO):



Getting ready to click "stop" (note the options, including Text input):



Getting ready to return to window choices:



Full-screen VNC view:




--
Mike

 

[Polina]

Ill be trying this out when I get home. So to access my computer, I have to go to rdmplus.com, click the download link on top, and click the try beta version for desktop only? Then I can go to the website you gave on my iPhone to utilize it? Since its beta, will the desktop version expire before the iPhone beta? Or is the Desktop part just "free" anyway?

Thanks

Eric

You're right the Desktop part is free. To get it you may go to rdmplus.com, click the download link on top, and then download and install the desktop for web-based access on your computer. Then go to iPhone.rdmplus.com through your iPhone's Safari and connect to the computer.

Polina
SHAPE Services

 

[SHAPE]

4.) Logging in: RDM+ requires me to enter a system-generated 8-digit "Computer number," my login name, and my password. That is a lot to remember for a device such as the iphone--a device that doesn't have cut-and-paste. VNC only needs a password. (Yes, RDM+ is more secure, no question about that--but it's a pain to have to remember computer number.)

--
Mike

We will add opportunity to enter computer number, username and password once and save them, so you will not have to re-enter them in future.
But please note that this is insecure.

Victoria
SHAPE Support Team
www.shapeservices.com

 

[Hawk]

I have tried the WinVNC (tightvnc) and it works pretty well inside my home network, but cannot connect at all from an external network. I have everything set up correctly, as I have used another version of VNC (ultra) for remote access, and setup the firewall to accept access through those ports.
Last night I tried RDM+ and it worked much better- especially externally- than the VNC version did for me.
The Only thing I was unable to do was type in anything. Whether it was on the run line or Address bar, or in Word....
But for just click access, it worked fine.

 

[Tinman]

I have tried the WinVNC (tightvnc) and it works pretty well inside my home network, but cannot connect at all from an external network. I have everything set up correctly, as I have used another version of VNC (ultra) for remote access, and setup the firewall to accept access through those ports.

Assuming you have a NAT router, you need to forward those ports too. Also the modified version of VNC that I am using works fine via EDGE, or as fine as possible via a connection of that speed (in my, albeit brief, tests VNC was faster than RDM+--I assume because of VNC's compression). And the ability to only load a specific window makes it seem even faster (by a wide margin--loading a full desktop over EDGE is agonizing). Again, I use this (modified) version of VNC:
http://cre.ations.net/creation/webvnc---remote-desktop--vnc-on-your-iphone

I'm not trying to attack RDM+ here. It's just that it appears to be a commercial application; it's only free during the beta, perhaps with a free license if a lot of feedback is sent ("Most active beta-testers will be awarded by free licences when beta finishes."). I'm trying to let SHAPE Services know what they need to do to at least bring their app up to the level of what is currently available for free.


--
Mike

 

[SHAPE]

The Only thing I was unable to do was type in anything. Whether it was on the run line or Address bar, or in Word....

There is a problem with keyboard usage.
We will fix it in the nearest future.

Victoria
SHAPE Support Team
www.shapeservices.com

 

[Hawk]

Tinman,
What exactly is a NAT router. I work with PC's and have never heard the expression before. I have a Dlink wireless, and it's setup properly otherwise my regular VNC access wouldn't work.
When trying to connect from outside it simply hang and then says the remote server is no longer responding.

 

[Tinman]

Tinman,
What exactly is a NAT router. I work with PC's and have never heard the expression before.

Network Address Translation:
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/nat.htm

I have a Dlink wireless, and it's setup properly otherwise my regular VNC access wouldn't work.

Not necessarily. You could be using port 5900 for regular VNC, which is the usual non-Java/HTML port. Since the iPhone can only use HTML to connect it needs access via port 5800. Since my PCs are behind a NAT router I have the router set to forward port 80 to the PC running VNC.

I have setup 3 iPhones with VNC and all worked with EDGE (after properly forwarding port 80).

When trying to connect from outside it simply hang and then says the remote server is no longer responding.

I can replicate that error by not forwarding the port, or specifying the wrong port. It sounds like you are hitting the right (public) IP address (else you would see a "can't find the server" message very quickly).

Moreover, the first response from VNC is only the simple login page, so at the very least you should get to that.

I should note that since I don't have a static IP I am using dynadns to connect. Even with the dynadns lookup I get to the VNC login page--when using EDGE--in less than 3-5 seconds (and we don't have the fastest EDGE speeds around here).



--
Mike

 

[aks53]

What do I have to download on VNC to make it work?

Hi,

I have downloaded TightVNC on my desktop? Now, how o I connect from my iPhone? Any help will be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

[Hawk]

Network Address Translation:
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/nat.htm


Not necessarily. You could be using port 5900 for regular VNC, which is the usual non-Java/HTML port. Since the iPhone can only use HTML to connect it needs access via port 5800. Since my PCs are behind a NAT router I have the router set to forward port 80 to the PC running VNC.

I have setup 3 iPhones with VNC and all worked with EDGE (after properly forwarding port 80).


I can replicate that error by not forwarding the port, or specifying the wrong port. It sounds like you are hitting the right (public) IP address (else you would see a "can't find the server" message very quickly).

Moreover, the first response from VNC is only the simple login page, so at the very least you should get to that.

I should note that since I don't have a static IP I am using dynadns to connect. Even with the dynadns lookup I get to the VNC login page--when using EDGE--in less than 3-5 seconds (and we don't have the fastest EDGE speeds around here).



--
Mike

Yes, I have a NAT router ( now I know what it is). I cloned the Modem's IP address to my PC in the router's software, so that part is fine.
You brought up a very good point about port 5800... I need to double check that again. I was under the impression that it was already open, but I'll look again tonight when I get home.

 

[Hawk]

OK not really familiar with routers, more of a PC hardware kind of person
This is what I setup. Is this correct?

I'm reaching a "page under construction" page now instead of a server timed out message

 

[Tinman]

This is what I setup. Is this correct?

Not quite. You need port 5800 for both settings. The way you have it set now caused port 5800 traffic to get routed to port 80 on the .100 local PC. So even if .100 is the PC running VNC it won't work. The error you are getting is normal as you likely do not have a proper Web server listening on port 80 on the .100 PC (VNC is listening on 5800).



--
Mike