Attended or unattended remote access: which one do you need?

Attended: someone is at the PC and clicks Allow each time. Use it for helping a person. Unattended: you can connect when nobody is there. Use it for reaching your own PCs. RemoteAccessApp does both with the same free download: every PC starts attended, and unattended access is switched on at the PC when you want it. If you'd like the longer explanation first, our guide to the difference between attended and unattended remote access covers how each one works.

1. Your mother calls because the printer stopped working

Attended. She's at the PC, she can click Allow, and she stays in charge: she sees the banner while you're connected and can stop you at any time. Once RemoteAccessApp is on her PC, there's nothing more to set up.

2. You need a file from your home PC while you're at work

Unattended. Nobody's home to click Allow. Switch on unattended access at the home PC before you leave, and turn on two-step verification for your account. It's part of free unattended remote access in RemoteAccessApp. Here's how to do it from a work laptop.

3. A customer or coworker asks for help

Attended. It's their PC and their session. Asking first every time is what makes remote support trustworthy, and it's one of the things we decided the app had to do, as we explain in why we built RemoteAccessApp.

4. You look after a relative's PC every week

Start attended. If clicking Allow each time becomes a chore for them, they can switch on unattended access on their own PC. It's their decision, made at their PC, and the banner still shows during every session.

5. A PC in the office that nobody sits at

Unattended, if it's a PC you're responsible for. Keep it awake and signed in, and see how to wake it remotely if it sleeps.

• Only ever let people you know connect.
• Turn on two-step verification for your RemoteAccessApp account. It's free.
• With unattended access on, check the PC's list of trusted consoles and browsers now and then, and remove what you don't use.