Let’s say that you wanted to access both your home and office PCs. The easiest way to do this would be by using remote pc access software. Also known as remote administration, this concept exists in both its legal and illegal forms and simply means that one can gain access to any PC from a remote location without having to be physically located at that particular computer. And in layman’s terms, a remote location could be anywhere from being in the next room to the other side of the world.

Some of the common tasks that are possible through this software are such as shutting it down, accessing peripherals, viewing and modifying information and applications that are on that particular computer.

Depending on whether this is for personal (which just requires access to basic information such as files and data) or corporate use (whose functions can allow an employee to access sensitive company while on the road or from home), a Virtual Private Network or an Online Remote Access service can be deployed to enable remote administration.

Microsoft’s Remote Desktop Client is an option that comes bundled with operating systems such as Windows XP, Server 2003/ 2008 and Vista. Windows NT and 7 which have remote administration tools such as Active Directory and Remote Server Administration Tools also enable IT administrators to perform complex tasks on a network.

Some popular options of third-party remote desktop software are Anyplace Control, Apple Remote Desktop 3, BeAnywhere, GoToMyPC, LogMeIn, RealVNC, ShowMyPC, SkyFex, TeamViewer and UltraVNC.

Apart from these options, remote administration can also be executed using wireless devices such as Palm, Pocket PC and Blackberry devices as well as some mobile phones.