Remote computing: software solutions.

• Author: Johnston, Randolph P.

This is the third in a series of four articles on remote computing.

Two distinctly different software approaches exist for remote computing. In the first approach, the applications software and the data files run on the user's remote computer and the remote computing software simply accommodates connecting the remote computer to the office network. This is most frequently accomplished using virtual private networking (VPN) software.

The second approach uses remote control software, in which the applications and the data remain on the host computer (meaning, a computer in the office) and the remote computer (meaning, the one in the user's hands) only acts as a dumb terminal that sees screens but does no processing and does not have the applications or data loaded on it. The user remotely controls the host computer, which is doing all of the processing.

This article discusses both approaches.

VPN Software

VPN software allows users to connect remotely to the office network and function as if they were in the office physically connected to the network with a traditional Ethernet cable connection. With VPN software, the user's remote PC becomes part of the office local area network (LAN) and, for the most part, has the same LAN capabilities as computers in the office do. For example, computers connected remotely using VPN software can print on office printers and can open and save files to network file servers just as they would if they were in the office.

VPN software works very well if the remote user has both a powerful PC with all the needed applications loaded and has a extremely high-speed wide area connection to the office network. This high-speed connection is necessary because all of the data have to move back and forth between the office and the remote computer every time the user opens or saves a file. If the files being used are 100 KB or more, this solution works poorly with a dial-up connection. Even with a DSL or cable connection, the performance is poor if the sizes are 1 MB or larger. Microsoft makes VPN software, but does not dominate this area the way it dominates others. Furthermore, some VPN solutions are hardware-based, meaning that you purchase a box that sits on your network and manages the VPN traffic rather than just running VPN software on a server. Notable VPN solutions that are worthy of consideration and the cost for each include 3Com Remote Access System 1500 ($7,770), Lucent/Ascend MAX 800 ($2,400), Intel LanRover...