Secure Remote Desktop Sharing with VNC on Windows - Installing and Enhancing UltraVNC
(Page 3 of 4 )
You can find installation and configuration guides for UltraVNC here and here. Since the installation process for every VNC software is similar on Windows, I won't get into the details of setting up VNC. Read those two guides; they're very comprehensive and illustrative with tons of screen shots.
In this section I will lead you through the easy steps of how to add a DMS plugin so that you can have a secure connection. We already discussed previously that UltraVNC has the ability to run DMS plugins for encryption. That's what we're going to do now. At the installation process you might notice the DSM Encryption Plugin checkbox; it is an older release of the MSRC4Plugin. You might want to check it or not, it doesn't really matter since we're going to replace it with the latest release.
Assuming that you've installed UltraVNC you should visit this website and download one of the available plugins.
Currently there are three plugins: MSRC4Plugin, ARC4Plugin and AESV2Plugin. Each of them has a quick introduction explaining what and how their specific encryption works. Read that thoroughly, examine and decide which one you want. For the purpose of this article I'm going to use the first one, MSRC4Plugin. An argument for my choice could be that it is the most updated plugin, thus it is more powerful. Its latest release, version 1.2.2, came out on 8/16/2006; the other ones are from 2005 and are RCs (Release Candidates).
As I've mentioned earlier the UltraVNC package already contains the MSRC4Plugin (version 1.2.0). If you don't check that box while setting up your UltraVNC then don't make problems since we're going to use the latest one anyway. If you checked that box then you have an older version of MSRC4Plugin. In this case I strongly advice replacing it with the latest release (that is in our case 1.2.2); see the changelog to see the list of updates.
Extract the content of your downloaded archive into your UltraVNC folder (i.e., "C:Program FilesUltraVNC"). Just a warning note: do not extract into the 'plugin' folder because it's just a place to store plugins for VNC. You need to copy them to your VNC's main folder to get them automatically recognized. Now, fire up UltraVNC Server!
You should see the above screen shot at the lower left corner of your VNC's "Current User Properties" (or also called "Admin Properties") interface. Click on that arrow, select "MSRC4Plugin_NoReg.dsm" (that should be your only choice) and make sure you check that box near "Use." After this, just click on "Config."
The MSRC4 Plugin Configuration window shows up and automatically searches for your plugin keys. It won't find any. Therefore you need to make your first key at your first run; that key will be used in the future. You are going to need that key at every client computer, otherwise you won't be able to view your server running on that specific key-based encryption. Select "128 bit" (it's automatically selected anyway, but make sure it is) and click on "Gen Key." If you leave its name at default then it's going to be "new_rc4.key." Rename it to "rc4.key" for convenience; also, this way it will get auto-detected by your client(s).
After hitting "Gen Key" your specific key will be created and the configuration tool will close. Just for the sake of example here's the content of the key I've just generated:
128 bitL h ݞm"Ě`c-(Vqk nʐd,dhKBP*Cw*7"'S,UD‑D
Now you're ready. Set your Authentication VNC Password, make your other changes and click on "OK." Your secure VNC server will be up and running!
Don't forget to copy your "rc4.key" onto your flash drive or send it to yourself via an email. You won't be able to view and interact with your very own server from a client if you don't have your RC4 key! When you're preparing your client all you need to do is to copy your "rc4.key" into your UltraVNC main directory. Run your client, check the box called "Use DSMPlugin" and enter your server's IP address. Click on connect, enter your password and you're ready to rock. Enjoy
That covers everything related to UltraVNC and DMS Plugins. It's a very powerful client + server combo package for Microsoft Windows operating systems, and now you're going to use the advantages of its capabilities to the max and benefit enormously.
Next: Installing TightVNC and Setting Up an SSH Tunnel >>
More BrainDump Articles
More By Barzan "Tony" Antal
/ 14 
