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After running the "accept all defaults" installation, all I had to do to connect to a machine was launch the program. Out-of-the-Box Functionalityīeing a cynic, I normally do not give credence to phrases such as "36 Easy Payments" and "Your call is very important to us," but "out-of-the-box functionality" is the only way I can think to describe my experience with DameWare. Not even most low-end remote administration packages can compete with that kind of ROI. For example, MRC sports a $120 price tag for each administrator, so an IT shop of five administrators can support an infinite number of PC users for only $600. Don't let the size fool you: MRC boasts many features that its larger-budget peers have - at a small fraction of the price.īefore I explain the licensing, I want you to ask yourself this: When was the last time I found that my most positive impression of a company or its products stemmed from its benevolent licensing scheme and reasonable prices? Unlike other remote admin tools, DameWare does not require a license per computer managed, and instead charges per administrator. Think of Mini Remote Control (MRC) as both the host and remote software, packaged in one small, 8MB MSI installer.
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Somewhere between these two extremes, one will find DameWare Mini Remote Control by DameWare Development LLC. Not everyone needs a program that is over 30MB in size and has features such as host invitation, chat or tabbed navigation of open sessions. On the other end of the spectrum, there are solutions, like pcAnywhere 12.0, that many IT professionals can't live without, yet others may consider to be "too much" software for their specific needs. Microsoft Outlook Remote Access plug-in, for example, allows administrators to shut down a remote machine, run and close programs, retrieve files and send e-mail commands. Many remote administrative solutions can give the user very basic functionality with a low price. Ultimately making an informed purchasing decision requires research that will help you find a solution that caters to both the requirements and the limitations of your specific environment. Like anything in IT - cost can be subjective, and a larger price is not always indicative of greater quality or features that will be relevant to your needs. If you are running a Windows-based shop, you probably already know that there are numerous remote administration options ranging in cost from free to more than $75 per client. Remote administration is a concept that nearly all of us are familiar with in one way or another.
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