TightVNC Review

good
key review info
application features
  • Free, GPL-licensed, with full source code available;
  • (3 more, see all...)

VNC stands for Virtual Network Computing and it's a desktop sharing system which uses a few complex and complicated protocols to provide control over a remote computer. So, basically, what it does is to transmit the keyboard presses and mouse clicks to a computer in a different location. Through a VNC, you can control your home computer from work or from another location just like you were right in front of it. All you need is a correctly setup VNC, a computer and Internet access. VNC has two parts: a client and a server. The server is the program on the machine that shares its screen, and the client (or viewer) is the program that watches and interacts with the server.

TightVNC is one of the many VNC software packages available but it's one of the best choices you can make. Why? Because TightVNC gathered all the useful features from other VNC packages and was made available for all major platforms, while keeping it free, stable, easy to use and compatible with other VNC software. Moreover, TightVNC is actively developed so new versions with new added features and bug fixes are released frequently, making it even better.

So how does it work? First of all, you must install the server on the computer you want to remotely control. This is a pretty straightforward process, so you won't get a hard time with it. Next, and the most important part, is to set a password because you wouldn't want a couple of bored strangers to control your sweet little computer. The server config panel offers some more options which are recommended to leave as default unless you really know what you're doing.

Once the server is configured and started, it's time to install the client, also known as VNC viewer. In the client config panel are some more options you should consider. Think about the connection bandwidth both computers have available. Is it a high or a low bandwidth connection? Based on this, you should setup the client. For a low connection, you should set a lower level of compression. This means that the images you are going to get from the server computer will have a lower quality, but will arrive faster. The whole idea is to feel that you're right in front of the remote computer, not using a 20 year old one. Of course, if you set the compression to a very low level, you won't feel like using a 20 year old computer, but you will surely see some very low quality images. Although, I'm sure this in not the case considering how far the Internet and Internet Service Providers have advanced.

After the configured has been completed, it's time to connect to the remote server. Fire-up the viewer, enter the remote IP and the password and you're good to go. Once you press the OK button, everything should work as a charm. A window will open; it will be a completely workable, slightly slower rendering, of the remote computer's desktop. There isn't need for special key combinations or anything else, just use your mouse and keyboard just like you were right in front of it.

What about security? Are you worried that someone may takeover the control or see what you're doing? No problem! TightVNC offers (until now) two security measures. First, passwords are encrypted before being sent over the Internet. This is done automatically and does not require any dependencies. However, the traffic itself is sent as it is, unencrypted. If your work is of a national security importance or if you are a security addict, you can install OpenSSH on both computers, this way, creating a SSH tunnel for all VNC connections. Securing traffic is, however, on the TO DO list, the TightVNC team is currently developing a built-in encryption in a future version.

What else is there? TightVNC enables file transfers between the two computers. You can upload files from your local machine to the TightVNC server, and you can download files from the server to the current computer. Note: this feature is missing from the standard VNC.

If, for some reason, you can't install a VNC viewer on the local computer, you can use the greatly improved Java viewer applet which can be accessed via a built-in HTTP server. With it, you can control your computer through a browser. How neat is that!

Besides the efficient compression algorithms which optimize the encoding for slow and medium-speed connections, TightVNC offers an optional JPEG compression. This additional feature will compress the color depth of desktop images you receive. This is only required when your connection is very low and you don't really care about perfect image quality as much as you care about speed and performance.

Moreover, you can set two passwords for TightVNC server. One which enables full control over the remote pc and the other which enables a read-only view, disallowing the keyboard and mouse events to the remote computer. You can use this feature if you're showing someone how to do a certain computer task or if you are fixing someone's computer and you want him to 'watch and learn' but without interfering.

There are also some advanced options and properties you can use, such as using custom ports for TCP connections, allowing or disallowing loopback connections or disabling the HTTP server. And more to come, as TightVNC is constantly improving, featuring a number of other performance optimizations and bugfixes with every new released version.

The Good

TightVNC is an enhanced version of VNC which includes a lot of new features, improvements and optimizations over the original version of VNC. Although it's very easy to use, stable and under an active development, it still maintains the quality of being a free software package, available for both Linux and Windows.

The Bad

Although TightVNC encrypts the passwords sent over the net, the rest of the traffic is sent as it is, unencrypted, so for the moment, using TightVNC over the Internet could be a security risk. Until a version with a built-in encryption will be released, it's recommended to use SSH tunneling for all connections.

The Truth

Many users, including myself, agree that TightVNC is the most advanced free remote desktop software. It has all the features needed to make remote controlling an enjoyable and easy experience. Unfortunately, it lacks an important, security-related, feature: traffic between the two computers is sent unencrypted, endangering your privacy.

Check out some screenshots below:

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user interface 3
features 4
ease of use 4
pricing / value 5


final rating 3
Editor's review
good
 
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