Remote access for "tech support" on my dad's MacBook Pro
October 6, 2015 5:46 PM Subscribe
I just bought a new MacBook Air and I'm going to be giving my MacBook Pro to my dad. He will be a Mac newbie, so I'm going to end up being the "tech support" person.
He's in TX and I'm in VA, so I can't just nip over there to help him out. I'm trying to figure out if there's a built-in remote access program or will I need to buy something to accomplish this? At this point, I don't even know what I don't know or need to know, so please educate me.
He's in TX and I'm in VA, so I can't just nip over there to help him out. I'm trying to figure out if there's a built-in remote access program or will I need to buy something to accomplish this? At this point, I don't even know what I don't know or need to know, so please educate me.
Teamviewer plus Skype. This is the combination my roommate uses for this precise scenario with her father. She installed them both before sending the computer, set them up in advance and made sure she had access. Because of the camera, it's even possible to use the computer as an emergency check-in system if someone isn't answering the phone when they should be (if he keeps the computer on all the time). Teamviewer is free for individuals.
If something goes wrong with the actual internet connection, none of this will help, so you might want to look up the number of a local tech geek service.
posted by instead of three wishes at 6:16 PM on October 6, 2015 [3 favorites]
If something goes wrong with the actual internet connection, none of this will help, so you might want to look up the number of a local tech geek service.
posted by instead of three wishes at 6:16 PM on October 6, 2015 [3 favorites]
Chrome Remote Desktop will get the job done. Just set it up for him beforehand, and I assume you can walk him though opening Chrome over the phone to allow access.
I've also heard good things about Team Viewer.
posted by cgg at 6:16 PM on October 6, 2015 [2 favorites]
I've also heard good things about Team Viewer.
posted by cgg at 6:16 PM on October 6, 2015 [2 favorites]
Another teamviewer vote. I've had the least issues with that compared to everything else available. It's pretty bulletproof and hard to screw up or block, or have router issues, etc.
It's especially great since it can be set up to stay running in the background(and auto launch), and to have a set password so you can just save the login/password info and only have to collect it once.
I used this extremely reliably with my mom, and the only issues i ever had involved her closing the lid/putting the laptop in suspend.
It also supports file transfer, which can be super useful in cases of say malware blocking certain sites from loading you'd need to remove it.
posted by emptythought at 6:21 PM on October 6, 2015
It's especially great since it can be set up to stay running in the background(and auto launch), and to have a set password so you can just save the login/password info and only have to collect it once.
I used this extremely reliably with my mom, and the only issues i ever had involved her closing the lid/putting the laptop in suspend.
It also supports file transfer, which can be super useful in cases of say malware blocking certain sites from loading you'd need to remove it.
posted by emptythought at 6:21 PM on October 6, 2015
Best answer: There is a not very well known screen sharing mechanism already built into the OS. You can get to it through Messages. Given the distance, you might as well have two screen sharing options available, just in case.
It is my experience, unfortunately, that the most common calls tend to involve problems accessing the internet, and very little can help you out there.
posted by zachlipton at 6:24 PM on October 6, 2015 [3 favorites]
It is my experience, unfortunately, that the most common calls tend to involve problems accessing the internet, and very little can help you out there.
posted by zachlipton at 6:24 PM on October 6, 2015 [3 favorites]
Another vote for Chrome Remote Desktop, which I use to support various family members (including one in a rural area over a very iffy 3G link). I've found it reliable, easy to explain to non-tech people, and it's never cared that I'm on some weird Linux thing and they're on a mix of Windows.
The only time it's failed was when one laptop had a (very peculiar, eventually fixed by the computer equivalent of deep brain surgery with a gamma ray scalpel but I didn't really know why it worked) access permissions problem that prevented my mother from even logging in. I don't know what would have worked there...
posted by Devonian at 6:29 PM on October 6, 2015
The only time it's failed was when one laptop had a (very peculiar, eventually fixed by the computer equivalent of deep brain surgery with a gamma ray scalpel but I didn't really know why it worked) access permissions problem that prevented my mother from even logging in. I don't know what would have worked there...
posted by Devonian at 6:29 PM on October 6, 2015
Another happy TeamViewer customer here.
posted by puritycontrol at 6:39 PM on October 6, 2015
posted by puritycontrol at 6:39 PM on October 6, 2015
Seconding zachlipton. All the remote viewers in the world mean nothing if Dad can't troubleshoot the wifi. Work hard on writing down the necessary steps to connect/reconnect and reboot the modem and router.
posted by JoeZydeco at 6:47 PM on October 6, 2015
posted by JoeZydeco at 6:47 PM on October 6, 2015
Response by poster: He's 100% on top of all the internet connection/router/etc. so I don't have to worry about that part thankfully. I will check out these great suggestions this week and hopefully pick one and get it set up before our next trip out there. Thanks a bunch!! :)
posted by moosedogtoo at 8:45 PM on October 6, 2015
posted by moosedogtoo at 8:45 PM on October 6, 2015
Um, Mac OSX has screen sharing (its actually VNC) built-in. No need for all these fancy add-ons.
Throw a dynamic IP client on there so you can FIND it online if and when its IP changes, and just VNC into it as needed to watch or control. (Command-K from the finder, type vnc://whatever, and Bob's yer uncle.)
Note that this will ALSO help you reach the router, to reconfigure it as needed. Make sure the router has remote access enabled.
This is all I've needed to keep various 60-90 year old parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles playing online Bridge and favoriting Facebook posts over lo these many years. Has not failed me once, even when routers were accidentally reset to defaults.
posted by rokusan at 1:19 AM on October 7, 2015 [2 favorites]
Throw a dynamic IP client on there so you can FIND it online if and when its IP changes, and just VNC into it as needed to watch or control. (Command-K from the finder, type vnc://whatever, and Bob's yer uncle.)
Note that this will ALSO help you reach the router, to reconfigure it as needed. Make sure the router has remote access enabled.
This is all I've needed to keep various 60-90 year old parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles playing online Bridge and favoriting Facebook posts over lo these many years. Has not failed me once, even when routers were accidentally reset to defaults.
posted by rokusan at 1:19 AM on October 7, 2015 [2 favorites]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by xingcat at 5:50 PM on October 6, 2015 [1 favorite]