How to set up remote access on a Dell PC

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   Step 1: Install RemoteAccessApp on the PC

   Run the free installer from the download page. It installs without administrator rights. If Windows shows a SmartScreen warning, here's what to do.

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   Step 2: Choose Set up this PC

   Sign in, or type the 6-digit setup code from Add a PC on your dashboard. Leave Start RemoteAccessApp with Windows ticked so it's running whenever someone is signed in.

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   Step 3: Keep the PC awake

   In Settings > System > Power & battery, set the screen and sleep times to Never when plugged in. On a Dell laptop, also check Dell Optimizer (or Dell Power Manager on older models): Peak Shift can run the laptop on battery at set times of day even when it's plugged in, so leave it off on a PC you want to reach. Lenovo Vantage's battery settings are different: they only limit charging, as remote access on a Lenovo ThinkPad or PC explains.

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   Step 4: Stop it locking itself

   Dell Optimizer's presence detection includes Walk Away Lock, which locks the PC when you leave it and, according to Dell, is on by default with a 60-second timer on supported models. RemoteAccessApp can't unlock the lock screen, so turn Walk Away Lock off in Dell Optimizer on a PC you'll reach remotely. HP and ASUS PCs have similar walk-away locks; see set up remote access on an HP PC and remote access on an ASUS PC.

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   Step 5: Turn on unattended access if nobody will be there

   Right-click the RemoteAccessApp icon in the taskbar tray and choose Unattended access. It can only be switched on at the PC itself. How to do it safely.

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   Step 6: Test it from another device

   Sign in to the RemoteAccessApp Console on another PC, or at remoteaccessapp.com in any browser, including your phone, and open the PC.

Press F2 at the Dell logo to open the BIOS. Depending on the model, Wake on LAN is under System Management or Power Management; Dell offers choices such as LAN Only and LAN or WLAN. If the BIOS has Deep Sleep Control, set it to Disabled, because Dell says Wake-on-LAN won't work with deep sleep on. Some motherboards in custom-built PCs have a Deep Sleep setting too; see remote access on a custom-built or gaming PC.

Dell also notes that Wake-on-LAN works only while the computer is connected to AC power. Microsoft says much the same about Surface devices, which also need a wired adapter or dock; see remote access on a Microsoft Surface.

Windows only wakes a PC with Wake-on-LAN from sleep, or from hibernate you chose yourself. With Fast startup on, which is the default, Microsoft says network adapters aren't armed for Wake-on-LAN from shutdown, so to wake a PC that's shut down, turn off Fast startup (Control Panel > Power Options > Choose what the power buttons do) and turn Wake-on-LAN on in the firmware.

Once the PC can wake from the network, press Wake up on the PC's tile in the Console or on the website: another of your PCs that's online on the same network, with an up-to-date RemoteAccessApp, sends it the wake-up packet. With no other PC of yours on that network, the packet has to come from another device there, such as a router with a wake feature. Once the PC is awake and signed in, it shows as online in RemoteAccessApp.

On Dell desktops, the BIOS setting AC Recovery decides what happens when power comes back: Power Off, Power On or Last Power State. Choose Power On or Last Power State for a PC you reach remotely. Dell laptops have Wake-On-AC instead.

When the PC starts, Windows still needs someone to sign in before RemoteAccessApp is online: it runs in the signed-in session. Keeping a PC reachable after a restart.

• McAfee: many Dell PCs come with a McAfee trial. If its firewall asks about RemoteAccessApp, allow it, or add it to the allowed apps.
• Killer networking: Alienware, Dell G series and some XPS models ship with Killer Control Center or Killer Intelligence Center, which can prioritize or block apps' network traffic. Make sure RemoteAccessApp isn't blocked there. Some Acer gaming PCs use Killer adapters too, as setting up remote access on an Acer PC notes.
• Windows SmartScreen may show a warning the first time you run a new download. What to do.

RemoteAccessApp reaches a PC that's on, online and signed in to Windows, with the app running. If yours shows as offline, check it hasn't gone to sleep, restarted for updates, or lost its network. The can't connect to a PC help article walks through the rest.