New Poster
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3 Messages
VNC unreliable when connected through XFi pods
Hi. We have a Windows 10 desktop PC that was for several years connected directly by ethernet to our Xfinity router. The PC runs a VNC server (RealVNC) that allows us to connect to it from wherever we are. We did not have any issues with this configuration.
Last month we decided to move the PC to another room, so bought an XFi pod for the room and connected the PC again via ethernet to the pod. This generally works well - there is strong signal between the router and pod and we see throughput in excess of 200mbit/s in tests. However the VNC server is now only accessible intermittently. It seems that after the PC has been idle for a while the VNC server ceases to be discoverable - we get a "searching the network" message on the client followed by a timeout. It almost seems as if the XFi pod goes to sleep. I don't know if there's a setting we need to change - the firmware is probably pretty up to date as we had to upgrade it when we put a second pod on the network.
TIA for suggestions.
flatlander3
Problem Solver
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1.5K Messages
5 years ago
Yikes!!
Don't expose VNC directly to the internet. That's just asking for a problem and is frequently pwned.
If you want remote access, some router/gateways offer a VPN service. That is an equally a bad idea. 1st, the firmware and hardware has limitations, and everyone in the world tries to exploit and hammer open ports, and max out a cpu looking for a buffer overrun or similar error. Also, you have no control over firmware when an exploit IS found -- if the manufacturer even bothers to patch it.
If you are going to do it, run and manage a VPN server yourself. For free, I'd suggest Linux or BSD and OpenVPN, or buying an actual secuity firewall/VPN appliance. Data breach and identity theft will cost you more time and money than what you spend.
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MacATDBB
New Poster
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3 Messages
5 years ago
Thanks for your thoughts. I think the security side of using a VNC (or a VPN) is a separate issue and one I'm fairly comfortable with given the enterprise target audience of the RealVNC software and its 256 bit session encryption.
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