Use Chrome Remote Desktop 4 easy steps to get started. Want to sign in to a computer from another desktop or mobile device? Here’s how to use Google’s Remote Desktop to connect.

At one time, in a not-so-distant world, accessing computers remotely required all kinds of costly, intricate software and technical know-how.

These days, it’s a different story. Google’s gratis Chrome Remote Desktop service makes it easy to switch to virtually any computer — Windows, Mac, Linux, or Chrome OS — from another desktop or mobile device. You can enter all the contents of the remote system and even click around as if you were session right in front of it.

Chrome Remote Desktop can be useful for signing in to your own personal or work computer remotely, and it can be equally valuable for peeking into someone else’s system — whether it’s your co-worker’s or your mom’s — to provide hands-free help. to be in the same position

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And best of all? Receipt the service up and running is as easy as possible. In fact, all you have to do is fix what kind of connection you want and then complete a few fast steps and you’ll be connecting remotely like nobody’s business.

(Annotation that Chrome Remote Desktop may not work with society-managed, enterprise-level Google Accounts. In that case, it’s up to the IT section.)

Using Chrome Remote Desktop to access your own pc


Step 1: Prepare the computer for connection
If you want to access your computer from another desktop or mobile device, start by opening Chrome on the host computer (or if you’re using a Windows, Mac, or Linux system that somehow doesn’t already have Chrome downloaded and installed). Scene Chrome, navigate to Google’s Chrome RDP web app, and click the notice blue arrow icon inside the box labeled “Set up remote access.” (If you view a blue button labeled “Turn On” instead of a blue arrow, congratulations: You’re one pas ahead! Skip to the subsequent paragraph, and you’ll be back on track.)

You will then be prompted to download the Chrome Remote Desktop extension. Click the blue “Add Chrome” button on the page that appears and confirm that you want to proceed Then, go back to your original tab, and you’ll get a prompt to name your computer and wait to proceed.

Use Chrome Remote Desktop
You can name your computer anything you want, as long as you recognize it. (Click on any image in this story to enlarge it.)
Once you enter a computer name and click the “Next” button, you’ll be asked to create a PIN of at least six digits. For safety purposes, you’ll need that PIN — in addition to signing in to your Google Account — to access the computer remotely. (Google says that all Remote Desktop sessions are encrypted for added safety.)

Use Chrome Remote Desktop
Chose a PIN
And that’s about it: your operating system may pop up a warning asking you to allow the app to initiate a remote connection (and some versions of macOS may require you to grant a few permissions in Chrome Remote Desktop in System Preferences. ), still you After proving this, the Chrome RDP tab will show you that the pc is online and waiting

Available anytime the computer is on and Chrome is running (and since Chrome usually starts automatically and runs in the background, that means it’s probably available anytime the computer is awake — period). Just note that if you want to keep connections possible for an extended period of time, you may need to inspect your computer’s power management settings to make sure the system doesn’t enter hibernation mode (even when the display is off).

If you ever want to disable remote connections, simply return to remotedesktop.google.com/access or click the Chrome Remote Desktop icon to the right of your browser’s address bar. You can then click the trash can icon next to your computer name to remove it from the app. Alternatively, you can uninstall the app completely by simply right-clicking its icon and selecting “Remove from Chrome”.

Step 2: Join the computer from another desktop or mobile device
Here’s the easy part: All set to connect to your host pc, all you have to do to access it from another desktop pc is visit the same Remote Desktop website — remotedesktop.google.com/access — in the Chrome browser. You’ll need to sign in to Chrome using the same Google Account you used on the host system, but you won’t need to install any specific apps or extensions; You’ll just see your computer name, and you can click on it to start connecting.

After tapping your PIN, you’re in — and you can move around your screen, click and run whatever you shortage, and generally use the pc as if you were sitting in front of it. A panel on the side of the display will provide options for adjusting the display and sending complex commands like Ctrl-Alt-Del. This will allow you to synchronize clipboards between your current computer and the host computer, if you’re so inclined, so you can seamlessly copy and paste text between the two.

Use Chrome Remote Desktop
The host pc desktop is fully accessible in a browser tab, with a collapsible panel for advanced commands. Image credit: computerworld
For mobile entry, you’ll want to download the Chrome Remote Desktop app for iOS or Android. If you’re signed in to your phone with the same Google account you use on your computer, the app will automatically show the computer and allow you to connect to it with a quick tap and typing in your PIN.

You will then be able to mouse over your desktop using your fingers. You can slide in any direction to scroll or pinch to zoom. In the Android app, swiping down from the top of the screen reveals a control bar that lets you switch to a trackpad mode — where you can left-click by tapping with one finger or right-click by tapping with two. — and switch to a keyboard mode to pull up your device’s on-screen keyboard and submit text. On iOS, click the menu button in the bottom-right corner of the screen to access the same options.

Use Chrome Remote Desktop
Your entire desktop, at your fingertips — on your phone. Image credit: computerworld
It’s not the most elegant way to get around a computer — and you probably don’t want to use it for any kind of intensive work — but it can be useful for quick-hit tasks like restarting your system remotely or grabbing a file you’ve stored in the cloud. forgot to do

Using Chrome RDP to access someone else’s computer


Step 1: Prepare the computer for connection
If you want to view someone else’s screen, the process for setting up Chrome Remote Desktop is slightly different. And since you probably won’t be physically present at the host computer. You’ll need to give these instructions to someone. Who will be there and able to complete this part of the setup.

On the computer you want to access remotely, start by visiting the “Help” section of Google’s windows rdp vps web app. Click the circular blue arrow in the box labeled “Get Support,” then click “Add to Chrome”. In the box that appears, and confirm that you want to install the Chrome Remote Desktop companion extension. (If you don’t see the blue arrow, the extension already installed — and you’re one step ahead. Pat yourself back and continue.)

Use Chrome Remote Desktop
The setup for a remote support session is slightly various, but the end result is the same.
Go back to your original tab, and you’ll get a prompt instructing. You to click a “Generate Code” button to give anybody else access. When you do this, the site will generate a one-time access code that will only be valid for five minutes. Share that code with the person you want to give access to — over the phone. In an email or text message, or whatever works best. And then sit back and wait for them to start connecting.

Step 2: Connect to the pc from another desktop
Once you have the access code and are ready to connect, go to remotedesktop.google.com/support in Chrome on any other computer. Submit the access code in the “Provide backing” box and then click the “Connect” button to begin

(If you want to connect from a mobile device. You’ll need to open a new tab in Chrome on your phone?. Check the box in the browser’s main menu to request a desktop version of a site. And then navigate to the same link from there. Chrome Remote Desktop The mobile app only works with connections associated with your own Google Account. So you can’t use it in this context.

The person on the other end has to manually click a button to authorize. The connection (and macOS users may also need to allow it in System Preferences). And then you’ll connected to their computer and able to click and control around. In the same manner, as described in the first part of this guide.

Google still has the original version of the Chrome Remote Desktop app published and available in the Chrome Web Store. But that version is now officially discontinued and no longer actively supported or maintained. So if your system has it from previous use. Now is the time to uninstall it and move to this new setup instead.

Not even remotely difficult – right?

This story was originally published in October 2017 and was most recently updated in May 2020.