Another possibility is to set up a VPN and run Windows’ Remote Desktop Connection through that. The excellent (albeit non-cross-platform) Windows Live Mesh is gone, but SkyDrive Fetch offers the fairly useful ability to grab files remotely from other SkyDrive-enabled PCs - although obviously it’s not a satisfactory replacement for a proper remote-access tool. Under the circumstances, it’s easy to see why LogMeIn has decided it’s in a strong enough position to start asking free users to cough up. That would actually work, but it’s hardly an elegant solution. But if I pick RemotePC or CrossLoop, I’ll only be able to connect in one direction – unless, of course, I install one server on my home PC and the other on my work system. Ethically, I can’t use the free TeamViewer or Ammyy Admin services owing to their non-commercial licences – the ability to work from home is a big part of what’s made LogMeIn Free so useful to me. It’s fair to say none of these is a perfect replacement for LogMeIn Free. PCs and Macs are supported (even though the documentation claims it’s Windows only): if you want to pay for a two-computer licence, it’s $19.50 per year, which includes Android support. This needn’t matter of course if the software does the job, but as with RemotePC the free licence only allows you to connect to one computer, and the built-in file-sharing tool won’t work in free sessions. I get the feeling CrossLoop hasn’t been updated in a while: the documentation evidently dates from the XP era, and the installer’s digital signature is dated January 2012.

If you choose to pay, though, it’s not too expensive, by the standards of these things: a lifetime two-PC licence without restrictions can be had for a flat fee of $120.

Like TeamViewer, it’s free only for non-commercial use, and the licensing terms refer ominously to “possible access limits, if software is used beyond 15 hours per month”. It’s also available only for Windows, so cross-platformers needn’t apply. Ammyy Admin is another package that looks a lot like VNC, so you can forget about sophistications such as screen scaling and remote audio.

Remote utilities viewer usoris systems