VPN vs Cloud Computers for connecting to home from Thailand

[WaveHunter]

21 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

If the connection of your device is wireless rather than by cable I believe you will need to logon to your sister's network to wake it up as I do.

When you do that if you set that up you will get security issues on your browser used to login to her network which you will need to override.

 

https://www.teamviewer.com/en/info/wake-on-lan/

 

The only requirement for operating Wake-on-LAN over the internet is that the remote device is connected to a power source and is connected to the internet via a network cable. 

 

You could I suppose just message your sister when you want a session and she could turn on your device manually.

I'll have to look into that; thanks for mentioning it, but I have heard of people who are able to log into their office computer remotely from their home and are able to do that with no assistance from someone in the office (like in the middle of night for instance).  How are they able to do that then?

[Jingthing]

13 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

I'll have to look into that; thanks for mentioning it, but I have heard of people who are able to log into their office computer remotely from their home and are able to do that with no assistance from someone in the office (like in the middle of night for instance).  How are they able to do that then?

Two options.

 

Plugged in to network with a cable.

 

Or

 

User logs into the Lan's router then they can wake up the target device that is connected wirelessly.

 

[WaveHunter]

15 hours ago, Jingthing said:

If the connection of your device is wireless rather than by cable I believe you will need to logon to your sister's network to wake it up as I do.

When you do that if you set that up you will get security issues on your browser used to login to her network which you will need to override.

 

https://www.teamviewer.com/en/info/wake-on-lan/

 

The only requirement for operating Wake-on-LAN over the internet is that the remote device is connected to a power source and is connected to the internet via a network cable. 

 

You could I suppose just message your sister when you want a session and she could turn on your device manually.

I read your linked info and thanks for providing it.  However, I wonder if what they are talking about is actually turning the computer, on as opposed to waking up a computer that is already on and in sleep mode.  Even though the software is called "wake on LAN" when you read the description they are describing being able to turn the computer on, and I think they mean booting it up from OFF, not waking it from sleep mode.  Do you see my point?

 

I know it might sound trivial, but connecting the laptop by cable would be real inconvenient and messy for my sister since the router is in her living room, and it would just be unsightly to have my computer and cable cluttering up her living room.  Much better to have my computer on a shelf in her study without the need to run a cable.

[Jingthing]

3 hours ago, WaveHunter said:

I read your linked info and thanks for providing it.  However, I wonder if what they are talking about is actually turning the computer, on as opposed to waking up a computer that is already on and in sleep mode.  Even though the software is called "wake on LAN" when you read the description they are describing being able to turn the computer on, and I think they mean booting it up from OFF, not waking it from sleep mode.  Do you see my point?

 

I know it might sound trivial, but connecting the laptop by cable would be real inconvenient and messy for my sister since the router is in her living room, and it would just be unsightly to have my computer and cable cluttering up her living room.  Much better to have my computer on a shelf in her study without the need to run a cable.

Let's break this down.

You're in Thailand. 

You have the MAC address of your device in the US.

By what miracle are you going to be able to send ANY signal to your device if you are not connected to the LOCAL network that it's connected to in the US whether by wireless or cable?

Your solution is what I do.

You need to set it up so that you can login to her LAN router and then WOL your device from there. 

The router software that I connect to is often very slow, requires multiple steps to get to where I can WOL and often requires multiple refreshes.

Also sometimes if something happened there I can't connect at all and my host needs to reset the router.

Maybe your experience will be smoother.

Good luck.

Edited January 6, 2023 by Jingthing

[Photoguy21]

Use a VPN. If you use a cloud computer you are relying on a 3rd party to ensure the security of your data. A VPN will encrypt it within your computer.

[Jingthing]

1 minute ago, Photoguy21 said:

Use a VPN. If you use a cloud computer you are relying on a 3rd party to ensure the security of your data. A VPN will encrypt it within your computer.

Many US banks don't like to see VPN logins and may block.

[Photoguy21]

1 minute ago, Jingthing said:

Many US banks don't like to see VPN logins and may block.

That is possible

[fdsa]

1 hour ago, Photoguy21 said:

Use a VPN. If you use a cloud computer you are relying on a 3rd party to ensure the security of your data. A VPN will encrypt it within your computer.

using a VPN is very same as you give all your network traffic to a 3rd party (VPN provider) instead of giving it to your home internet provider.

If your traffic is not encrypted with SSL/TLS - the VPN provider will see everything you do online. And if encrypted with weak methods (as in like 90% of websites) they will see a part of your information such as domains you visit and possibly URLs, which they will sell to the marketing agencies later.

 

but yes - at least you won't store your information on someone else's "cloud" computer.

Edited January 6, 2023 by fdsa

[Photoguy21]

18 hours ago, fdsa said:

using a VPN is very same as you give all your network traffic to a 3rd party (VPN provider) instead of giving it to your home internet provider.

If your traffic is not encrypted with SSL/TLS - the VPN provider will see everything you do online. And if encrypted with weak methods (as in like 90% of websites) they will see a part of your information such as domains you visit and possibly URLs, which they will sell to the marketing agencies later.

 

but yes - at least you won't store your information on someone else's "cloud" computer.

Name a VPN that does not encrypt you data in the phone.

[eisfeld]

26 minutes ago, Photoguy21 said:

Name a VPN that does not encrypt you data in the phone.

It will encrypt the data on your device and it'll be decrypted on the VPN server who can then see your traffic just as your ISP would. Oh and any ISP in between the VPN exit and the destination server can see it too. You replaced a 3rd party (your ISP) with another 3rd party (VPN provider) that you need to trust. A typical, commercial VPN is not end-to-end encryption. But this is getting off topic.

[KhunHeineken]

On 1/5/2023 at 9:05 AM, WaveHunter said:

Can anybody tell me why this is not the easiest and best solution?

The laptop will cost you more than other devices that have been suggested.  It will also use more electricity, and being secondhand, will be more prone to failure. 

 

On 1/5/2023 at 9:05 AM, WaveHunter said:

NOTE:  Of course I will check out AnyDesktop and see how it compares to TeamViewer, but they sound like they are purposed to do more or less the same thing, and don't require all this stuff that everybody keeps mentioning in this thread like dedicated IP's and VPN's.

I used to use TeamViewer.  After trying AnyDesk, I will not go back.  Give it a try and see for yourself.

 

On 1/5/2023 at 9:05 AM, WaveHunter said:

I mean...I am not trying to mask my IP address from my own computer in her house, or mask her IP address to the sites I visit using that computer in her house. 

Your goal is masking your IP address from certain websites, and while your work around will work, as I said, it's expensive, labor intensive, and inefficient. 

 

There are cheaper and easier ways to achieve your goal. 

[KhunHeineken]

On 1/5/2023 at 9:31 AM, WaveHunter said:

Bottom line, I'm inclined to try Any Desk over Team VIewer but I have a feeling that both are probably more or less the same....but thanks for giving me another option to consider.

Yes, they similar, but what have you got to lose trying AnyDesk?  You just may prefer it, as I did. 

[WaveHunter]

OK, here is where I am right now but the big question I have is still not being addressed:

 

I am going to use AnyDesk.  I will buy a cheap computer for my sister to set up in her home in the US so I don't have to bother her each time I want to connect.  It will be in sleep mode except when I'm connected to it, using AnyDesk.

 

I would prefer that the computer will connect with her internet by WiFi but I've been told that will be a problem, and that I must use a ethernet cable instead.

 

1)  Is this true or not?

 

2)  If it is connected with an ethernet cable will that work OK?  Either way, the big question in my my mind is whether or not I will be able to wake the computer via a remote connection.  I would hate the idea of having to bother my sister to "wake the computer" every time I want to use it.

 

[Jingthing]

18 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

OK, here is where I am right now but the big question I have is still not being addressed:

 

I am going to use AnyDesk.  I will buy a cheap computer for my sister to set up in her home in the US so I don't have to bother her each time I want to connect.  It will be in sleep mode except when I'm connected to it, using AnyDesk.

 

I would prefer that the computer will connect with her internet by WiFi but I've been told that will be a problem, and that I must use a ethernet cable instead.

 

1)  Is this true or not?

 

2)  If it is connected with an ethernet cable will that work OK?  Either way, the big question in my my mind is whether or not I will be able to wake the computer via a remote connection.  I would hate the idea of having to bother my sister to "wake the computer" every time I want to use it.

 

You need to check whether Any Desk supports WOL with cable. 

 

As shown before TeamViewer does.

 

You say your sister has IT Help.

Why not just set it up so that you can login to her router LAN software and then you can WOL your device through that connected wirelessly.

 

I don't recommend a Windows laptop for this. I recommend a cheap box with Linux instead. 

Edited January 14, 2023 by Jingthing

[KhunHeineken]

34 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

OK, here is where I am right now but the big question I have is still not being addressed:

 

I am going to use AnyDesk.  I will buy a cheap computer for my sister to set up in her home in the US so I don't have to bother her each time I want to connect.  It will be in sleep mode except when I'm connected to it, using AnyDesk.

 

I would prefer that the computer will connect with her internet by WiFi but I've been told that will be a problem, and that I must use a ethernet cable instead.

 

1)  Is this true or not?

 

2)  If it is connected with an ethernet cable will that work OK?  Either way, the big question in my my mind is whether or not I will be able to wake the computer via a remote connection.  I would hate the idea of having to bother my sister to "wake the computer" every time I want to use it.

 

If you insist on buying a computer, like I said, go into the BIOS and change the settings to turn on after power outage, or similar, and buy a wifi switch and connect it to that.  You can then turn the computer on and off from anywhere in the world and you don't have to worry about sleep mode and Wake On Lan.  

 

An ethernet cable will always be preferable to wifi. 

[WaveHunter]

You guys have really been great helping me out, especially @Jingthing and @KhunHeineken

 

After reading the last replies from you guys, I checked the AnyDesk knowledge base to see if, and how AnyDesk provides WOL, and they had a article explaining it all, but I'm not really sure what it says since it's pretty technical.

 

It says something that really confused me, and one thing that leads me to believe that WOL can be accomplished without the need for a ethernet connection.

 

I wonder if you guys could take a look and help me understand this:

https://support.anydesk.com/knowledge/wake-on-lan

 

The one main thing that confused me was this statement:  "At least one additional AnyDesk device in the network of the sleeping device must be online."  Does this mean that my sister's computer also has be have AnyDesk on it, and does it mean that her computer has to be on and not in sleep mode fr me to remotely connect to my computer in her house?

 

Also, in the operating system-specific settings, it mentions: "Wake-over-WiFi needs the same setup in the BIOS/UEFI and a WiFi Router that supports it."  Doesn't that statement mean that an ethernet connection is NOT necessary, assuming her router supports "wake-over-wifi?

 

It's real important that my computer at her house can connect with wi-fi and not need an ethernet cable for a couple of important reasons:

   1)  A lot of computers today do not have a plug for an ethernet cable

   2)  My sister's router is tucked away out of sight on a shelf in her living room, and I don't want to create a mess for her with cables since all of the devices in her house connect only with wi-fi.

[KhunHeineken]

38 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

t's real important that my computer at her house can connect with wi-fi and not need an ethernet cable for a couple of important reasons:

   1)  A lot of computers today do not have a plug for an ethernet cable

   2)  My sister's router is tucked away out of sight on a shelf in her living room, and I don't want to create a mess for her with cables since all of the devices in her house connect only with wi-fi.

As I said, if you still insist on this method, Google "Intell NUC."  They are small PC's, not much bigger than a cigarette box.  No screen, no keyboard.  They have an ethernet port.  It would sit next to her router with a short ethernet cable. Google "Mini PC" for other similar devices.  Perfect for what you want to achieve.  Get one with a SSD.  Let moving parts, for more reliability over the years. 

Edited January 15, 2023 by KhunHeineken

[WaveHunter]

3 hours ago, KhunHeineken said:

As I said, if you still insist on this method, Google "Intell NUC."  They are small PC's, not much bigger than a cigarette box.  No screen, no keyboard.  They have an ethernet port.  It would sit next to her router with a short ethernet cable. Google "Mini PC" for other similar devices.  Perfect for what you want to achieve.  Get one with a SSD.  Let moving parts, for more reliability over the years. 

Those devices sound interesting but I plan to just buy an old used mac laptop off of eBay since I want it to be an OSX system, not PC.  My question was really only to do with https://support.anydesk.com/knowledge/wake-on-lan FAQ, and the questions I asked about it.

 

• Does what the article describes mean that my sister's computer also has have AnyDesk on it, and does it mean that her computer has to be on and not in sleep mode for me to remotely connect to my computer in her house?

• Doesn't the part of the article that describes "Wake-over-WiFi" mean that an ethernet cable is NOT necessary, assuming her router supports "wake-over-wifi"?

   

Edited January 15, 2023 by WaveHunter

[Jingthing]

A laptop on sleep all the time will to tend burn out.

[Jingthing]

43 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

Those devices sound interesting but I plan to just buy an old used mac laptop off of eBay since I want it to be an OSX system, not PC.  My question was really only to do with https://support.anydesk.com/knowledge/wake-on-lan FAQ, and the questions I asked about it.

 

• Does what the article describes mean that my sister's computer also has have AnyDesk on it, and does it mean that her computer has to be on and not in sleep mode for me to remotely connect to my computer in her house?

• Doesn't the part of the article that describes "Wake-over-WiFi" mean that an ethernet cable is NOT necessary, assuming her router supports "wake-over-wifi"?

   

I don't understand that but as I've been saying I do use WOL by logging into the host's LAN software and effecting WOL from there. I start up the box from shut down and shut down again after each session. I use TeamViewer. 

 

I wonder if it would be smart to have Anydesk installed as well. Then they could be backups to each other and switching programs might make it less likely that the companies would put a block on because they suspect unfair free usage?

[WaveHunter]

53 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

I don't understand that but as I've been saying I do use WOL by logging into the host's LAN software and effecting WOL from there. I start up the box from shut down and shut down again after each session. I use TeamViewer. 

 

I wonder if it would be smart to have Anydesk installed as well. Then they could be backups to each other and switching programs might make it less likely that the companies would put a block on because they suspect unfair free usage?

Actually the main reason I decided on AnyDesk is that more than a few reviews from users who had been on TeamVIewer and then switched to AnyDesk said that TeamVIewer had unfairly blocked their use and forced them get a professional account. 

 

I think that AnyDesk makes a point of not doing that just to have a competitive edge over TeamVIewer.  The reviewers acknowledged that they felt AnyDesk was much more relaxed about that then TeamVIewer had been.

 

There were other reasons I chose AnyDesk.  A lot of reviewers of Teamviewer complained that if the internet bandwidth is low, the software’s efficiency decreased, and its features such as cursor control and file transfer lag, compared to what they experienced in AnyDesk.

 

Since AnyDesk is a lot newer than TeamViewer it seems that their software is more compact and efficient, though I only read that on their site and don't really know how it compares to TeamVIewer.

 

Bus still, many users that had switched from TeamVIewer said that AnyDesk was faster and its remote access screen works almost as quickly as the local system, and it was quite responsive in terms of latency.

 

Who really knows which is best?  I just got a better feeling about AnyDesk form everything I read.

 

 

[Jingthing]

I want to expand on the Fair Usage issue.

Many users of TeamViewer are flagged as not being eligible for free fair usage and my understanding is that in such cases their sessions time out very quickly or there's a total block.

This came to my attention recently as I've been using it more often than usual this month and my connection was kicking me off very quickly over numerous sessions, 

But apparently that wasn't it, because the issue resolved itself. 

Anyway, in cases where Teamviewer does flag your account the way to fix it is to file an appeal in which you must explain what your usage is about.

They promote free usage to help friends with technical stuff, etc. It's really good to help elderly relatives etc.

In my view if you were honest to them on an account appeal and told them I used it to fake being in the US for financial firm logins in the US, I would expect them to NOT approve of that usage.

I don't want to test it! 

You could lie but then they could probably look at your usage and figure out that you've lied, which might be even worse.

 

[Jingthing]

2 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

Actually the main reason I decided on AnyDesk is that more than a few reviews from users who had been on TeamVIewer and then switched to AnyDesk said that TeamVIewer had unfairly blocked their use and forced them get a professional account. 

 

I think that AnyDesk makes a point of not doing that just to have a competitive edge over TeamVIewer.  The reviewers acknowledged that they felt AnyDesk was much more relaxed about that then TeamVIewer had been.

 

There were other reasons I chose AnyDesk.  A lot of reviewers of Teamviewer complained that if the internet bandwidth is low, the software’s efficiency decreased, and its features such as cursor control and file transfer lag, compared to what they experienced in AnyDesk.

 

Since AnyDesk is a lot newer than TeamViewer it seems that their software is more compact and efficient, though I only read that on their site and don't really know how it compares to TeamVIewer.

 

Bus still, many users that had switched from TeamVIewer said that AnyDesk was faster and its remote access screen works almost as quickly as the local system, and it was quite responsive in terms of latency.

 

Who really knows which is best?  I just got a better feeling about AnyDesk form everything I read.

 

 

Sounds interesting. 

I guess my feeling is if it ain't broke, keep with the program I'm using, but like I said I'm wondering about having both of them installed.

[WaveHunter]

1 hour ago, Jingthing said:

A laptop on sleep all the time will to tend burn out.

It only has to last for 10 months until I return to the States.  Besides, I have been using my old (2013) MacBook Pro that way, never really shutting it down, just letting it go into sleep mode, and it's still running perfectly after almost 10 years (which amazes me) ????

 

[Jingthing]

Just now, WaveHunter said:

It only has to last for 10 months until I return to the States.  Besides, I have been using my old (2013) MacBook Pro that way, never really shutting it down, just letting it go into sleep mode, and it's still running perfectly after almost 10 years (which amazes me) ????

 

It will probably last 10 months. 

I did have a laptop burn out that way but then switched to the box which has really been much better overall. 

[WaveHunter]

3 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Sounds interesting. 

I guess my feeling is if it ain't broke, keep with the program I'm using, but like I said I'm wondering about having both of them installed.

That might be a good idea I guess.  I'll try with AnyDesk first, just connecting to my sister's computer with here sitting there (which I know will freak her out seeing me moving her cursor around on the screen LOL).  If it works ok on her computer, then I'll buy a used macbook, and her IT guy will set everything up.

 

Anyway, I can't tell you how much I appreciate your help with all of this.  I'm pretty sure you were the one that suggested this idea in the first place (about TeamVIewer) and I'm really grateful you did, because it just sounds like the best way to achieve my goal....SO THANK YOU SO MUCH :)

 

 

[Jingthing]

3 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

That might be a good idea I guess.  I'll try with AnyDesk first, just connecting to my sister's computer with here sitting there (which I know will freak her out seeing me moving her cursor around on the screen LOL).  If it works ok on her computer, then I'll buy a used macbook, and her IT guy will set everything up.

 

Anyway, I can't tell you how much I appreciate your help with all of this.  I'm pretty sure you were the one that suggested this idea in the first place (about TeamVIewer) and I'm really grateful you did, because it just sounds like the best way to achieve my goal....SO THANK YOU SO MUCH :)

 

 

I hope it works out for you.

I've been doing this for several years already but not without occasional headaches.

[WaveHunter]

15 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

It will probably last 10 months. 

I did have a laptop burn out that way but then switched to the box which has really been much better overall. 

You switched to a desktop?  For me it was the other way around. 

 

I used to have a Mac Pro which was a monster desktop that I used for photo editing, and then when I got a MacBook Pro laptop, just intending to use it for travel, I found it was way faster than my big Mac Pro, even though the Mac Pro had 32gB of ram compared with 16 in my MacBook Pro laptop.

 

Maybe it's different with PC's but I don't know hardly anybody using OS-X that works on desktops anymore, especially now that Apple's new M-1 chip is in all of their new laptops, replacing the intel chips they used to use.

 

Anyway...thanks again for all of your advice.

 

Edited January 15, 2023 by WaveHunter

[WaveHunter]

4 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

I hope it works out for you.

I've been doing this for several years already but not without occasional headaches.

Is there a way to live in this modern world without headaches?  I don't think so.  I just keep a big bottle of Tylenol handy!

[Jingthing]

9 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

You switched to a desktop?  For me it was the other way around. 

 

I used to have a Mac Pro which was a monster desktop that I used for photo editing, and then when I got a MacBook Pro laptop, just intending to use it for travel, I found it was way faster than my big Mac Pro, even though the Mac Pro had 32gB of ram compared with 16 in my MacBook Pro laptop.

 

Maybe it's different with PC's but I don't know hardly anybody using OS-X that works on desktops anymore, especially now that Apple's new M-1 chip is in all of their new laptops, replacing the intel chips they used to use.

 

Anyway...thanks again for all of your advice.

 

No!

I switched to a small cheap "computer" box without a monitor.

I think it was under 100 dollars new.

My host has always used Android but I use Windows.

The device that burned out was a laptop (not a Mac).

It's better if both use the same operating system for version compatibility. 

Edited January 15, 2023 by Jingthing