Styma, Robert E (Robert) wrote:
You would like to be able to shut down or disable the machines
without having to go to the machine. This implies that you have
a way of knowing that the user has left without actually checking.
You would become unpopular if you remotely shut down their machine
while they were in the middle of doing something.
Shutting down the machines would work for me, there might be some
unhappiness but I could deal with that, but what I'm really
looking for
is a way to open the connection to the internet at my
discretion. I've
already blocked a number of sites via the router but I never
know what
they are connecting to or what might be streaming data when the
computers are idle, that's my prime concern.
Real VNC is easy to install on the windows boxes. vncviewer is
available on all the FC installs. If vncviewer is not in /usr/bin,
yum install vnc
should do the trick.
The windows versions of vnc can be downloaded from:
http://www.realvnc.com/
It installs and you put it in service mode. You have that
option on the install. You can take the default options and
set a password.
On you linux box, you can run:
vncviewer otherbox:0
(the :0 is optional if you took the defaults)
You will get prompted for the password, and then the remote
desktop will appear. I use this across ssh tunnels to help
out some windows friends when they get stuck. It is easier than
talking them through a problem blind.
Under the covers, vncserver (on the windows box) listens on
port 5900 (if you use the default display number of 0) vncviewer
connects on that port. Note if you use display 1, then the port
is 5901.
There is a web interface at 5800, although I don't usually use that.
This may do what you want. It also allows you to do remote maintenance
on the target machine.
Bob Styma
Phoenix, AZ
I obtained copies of VNC, put it on a CD and installed in the twin's XP
computer, took some guesses at the configuration and it appears to
work. I obtained the dhcp assigned address from the router data screen
in Firefox. Vncviewer recognizes that address and the password I
assigned, brings up an XP screen, and it looks like I can control the
remote computer.
As I said I am pretty much Windows illiterate. It appears that I can
turn the computer off from here, that's a step in the right direction.
But it would be better if I could break the internet connection as I can
with system-control-network or service network stop. I don't know the
Windows equivalent?
I would also like to be able to see activity on its eth0 to the Ethernet
bridge and the internet although that's not essential. Most helpful
would be how to deactivate the connection to eth0.
If that can't be done then I will simply shut down the computer when it
is left running and idle during the day. That will be an improvement
though not ideal.
Bob Goodwin
