70.2 Managing a Remote Control Session

Remote Management lets you remote control a managed workstation. You can use Remote Control to provide user assistance and to help resolve workstation problems. With remote control connections, the remote operator can go beyond viewing the managed workstation to taking control of it.

You can effectively manage a Remote Control session by performing the following tasks:

70.2.1 Controlling the Display of the Viewing Window

You can control the display of the managed workstation by using the Viewing window control options.

To enable the control options:

  1. Click the Remote Management Agent icon, located at the top left corner of the Viewing window.

  2. Click Configure.

  3. Select the control options you want to enable for the remote session.

    Option

    Description

    Blocks Mouse Movements to Agent

    To reduce network bandwidth consumption, blocks all the mouse movements to the Agent.

    Enable High Quality Scaling

    Enhances the quality of images in the Scale To Fit mode.

    Enable Accelerator Keys

    Enables the accelerator keys on the management console so that you can change the default accelerator key sequences during the remote session.

    Enable Encryption

    Encryption is an optional feature and is effective per session. If the saved configuration has enabled encryption, the session is encrypted from the start of the session.

    Encrypting a whole session provides greater security because the data transferred over the wire is encrypted and it is difficult to decipher anything meaningful even after the data over the wire is captured. However, it impacts performance slightly and is recommended when the security requirement is very stringent.

    System Key Pass

    Passes Alt-key sequences from the management console to the managed workstation.

    NOTE:During a Remote View session, the System Key Pass-Through option is not enabled.

    Hide Wallpaper

    Suppresses any wallpaper displayed on the managed workstation. This option is enabled by default. If you want to display the wallpaper on the managed workstation during a Remote Control or Remote View session, disable this option.

    Color Quality

    By default, on a fast Link, the color quality is set to Normal and on a slow link the color quality is set to 256 colors. You can change the color quality of the slow link or the fast link to one of the following:

    • 16 Colors: Forces the use of 16-color palette on the managed workstation during a Remote Management session. This enhances the Remote Management performance particularly over a slow-link.

    • 256 Colors: Forces the use of 256-color palette on the managed workstation during a Remote Management session. This enhances the Remote Management performance over a slow-link.

    • Normal: The color is not altered and the setting is the same on the managed workstation during a Remote Management session.

    Network Type

    If the managed workstation is connected by a LAN, select the Fast Links option to enhance the Remote Management performance.

    If the managed workstation is connected over a dial-up link or by WAN, select the Slow Links option to enhance the Remote Management performance.

  4. To save the Control Parameter settings, click the Save on Exit check box.

    The saved settings are implemented in the next Remote Control session.

70.2.2 Using the Viewing Window Accelerator Keys

You can use accelerator keys to control the display of the Viewing window. Default accelerator key sequences are assigned to each accelerator key option. The Accelerator Keys dialog box displays the default key sequence in the edit field of each accelerator key option. You can define a custom accelerator key sequence to change the default sequence. For more information, see Defining a Custom Accelerator Key Sequence.

To enable the Accelerator Keys option:

  1. Click the Remote Management Agent icon, located at the top left corner of the Viewing window.

  2. Click Configure.

  3. Select Enable Accelerator Keys.

To open the Accelerator Keys dialog box:

  1. Click the Remote Management Agent icon, located at the top left corner of the Viewing window.

  2. Click Accelerator Keys.

Table 70-2 Viewing Window Accelerator Keys

Option

Default Keystroke

Description

Toggle Full Screen

Ctrl+Alt+M

Applicable only if the resolution settings on the management console and managed workstation are same.

Sizes the Viewing window to the size of your screen without window borders.

Refresh Screen

Ctrl+Alt+R

Refreshes the Viewing window.

Restart Session

Ctrl+Alt+T

Re-establishes the connection with the managed workstation.

Enable Accelerator Keys

Ctrl+Alt+A

Enables you to change the default accelerator key sequences.

Stop Viewing

Left-Shift+Esc

Closes the Viewing window.

Configure Dialog

Alt+M

Opens the Control Parameters dialog box.

Accelerator Keys Dialog

Alt+A

Opens the Accelerator Keys dialog box.

Poll Full Screen

Alt + L

Scans and renders the information of the entire screen of the managed workstation continuously.

Scale To Fit

Ctrl+Alt+G

Hides the scroll bars and scale the Remote Management window to fit your screen.

System Key Pass

Ctrl+Alt+S

Passes Alt-key sequences on the management console to the managed workstation.

Mouse/Keyboard Lock

Ctrl+L

Locks the keyboard and mouse controls at the managed workstation.

Blank Screen

Ctrl+Alt+B

Blanks the screen at the managed workstation.

Reboot

Ctrl+Alt+D

Sends the Ctrl+Alt+Del keystroke to the managed workstation.

Invokes the Security window on Windows 2000/XP managed workstation. Invokes the reboot confirmation dialog on Windows 98 managed workstation.

Start

Alt+R

Invokes the start menu on the managed workstation.

Switch Applications

Ctrl+T

Switches applications on managed workstations.

70.2.3 Using the Toolbar Buttons on the Viewing Window

The following table describes the toolbar options in the Viewing window:

Table 70-3 Toolbar Options in the Viewing Window

Button

Default Keystroke

Key Function

Screen Blanking

Ctrl+Alt+B

Enabled only if the Allow Blanking User's Screen option is enabled in the effective Remote Control policy of the managed workstation.

Blanks the screen at the managed workstation. When the remote operator selects this option, the screen of the managed workstation is blacked out and the operations performed by the remote operator on the managed workstation are not visible to the user at the managed workstation.

Not supported over certain display adapters. Refer to the ZENworks 7 Desktop Management Readme for the list of display adapters that do not support this feature.

Mouse and Keyboard Lock

Ctrl+L

Locks the keyboard and mouse controls at the managed workstation. When the remote operator selects this option, the user at the managed workstation is not able to use the keyboard and mouse controls of the managed workstation.

System Start

Alt+R

Invokes the Start menu on the managed workstations.

Application Switcher

Ctrl+T

Sends the Alt-tab key sequences to the managed workstation.

Switches applications on managed workstations. If you use the toolbar button, you must click it continuously to traverse through the applications and then press Tab to select the desired application. If you use the Ctrl+T accelerator key, you must use it as you would use the Alt+Tab sequence to switch between applications.

System Key Pass Through

Ctrl+Alt+S

Sets the system key pass to On or Off.

Passes Alt-key sequences on the management console to the managed workstation.

Reboot

Ctrl+Alt+D

Sends the Ctrl+Alt+Del keystroke to the managed workstation.

Displays the Security window on Windows 2000/XP managed workstation. Displays the reboot confirmation dialog on Windows 98 managed workstation.

Refresh

Ctrl+Alt+R

Refreshes the viewing window.

Full Screen Polling

Alt+L

Scans and renders the information of the entire screen of the managed workstation continuously.

Scale To Fit

Ctrl+Alt+G

Hides the scroll bars and scales the Remote Management window to fit your screen.

Session Encryption

 

Encryption is an optional feature and is effective per session. If the saved configuration has the option enabled, the session is encrypted from the start of the session.

Encrypting a whole session provides greater security because the data transferred over the wire is encrypted and it is difficult to decipher anything meaningful even after the data over the wire is captured. However, it impacts performance slightly and is recommended when the security requirement is very stringent.

You can define a custom key sequence if you do not want to use the default key sequence. For more information, see Defining a Custom Accelerator Key Sequence.

70.2.4 Enabling the Wallpaper on the Managed Workstation

When the remote operator initiates a Remote Control session, any wallpaper displayed on the desktop of the managed workstation is suppressed. This feature reduces the response time from the managed workstation for requests from the management console because less traffic is generated over the network while the wallpaper is suppressed.

You can configure the control parameter for this option to change the default settings and enable the display of the wallpaper on the managed workstation. When you terminate the Remote Control session, the suppressed wallpaper is restored.

To enable the display of suppressed wallpaper on the managed workstation:

  1. Click the Remote Management Agent icon, located at the top left corner of the Viewing window, then Configure.

  2. Deselect the Hide Wallpaper option.

70.2.5 Obtaining Information About Remote Management Sessions

Using the Information window, the user at the managed workstation can view details about the session, such as the name of the remote operator who is remotely managing the workstation, the security settings, and the protocol in use for the remote session.

To view information about remote sessions:

  1. Right-click the Remote Management Agent icon located in the system tray of the managed workstation.

  2. Click Information.

  3. Click the General tab to view the general information and the Security tab to view the security information.

See the following sections for details:

70.2.6 Obtaining General Information

The following table explains the general information you can obtain about Remote Management sessions from the Information window:

Table 70-4 General Information of Remote Management Sessions that can be obtained from the Information Window

Parameter

Description

RM Operation

Lists the ongoing Remote Management sessions.

RM Information > Initiator

Displays the name of the remote operator.

RM Information > Protocol

Displays the protocol that the Remote Management Agent uses to communicate with the management console during a remote session.

Optimization Status > RC/RV Optimization

Displays if the optimization driver is enabled or disabled for the Remote Management session. The remote session performance is enhanced if the optimization driver is enabled.

70.2.7 Obtaining Security Information

The Security Information dialog box displays information based on the following categories of remote sessions:

  • Remote Control

  • Remote View

  • File Transfer

  • Remote Execute

  • Others