Hi there,

I have a laptop running windows 7 and a desktop running xp. I would like to know if I can acces the desktop via my laptop and use the desktop as if I was sitting at the desktop. I am not sure about the proper terminology and I hope that I have explained what I am after ok.

The desktop is connected directly to the wireless router and the laptop is connect only via the wireless router.

If you need more information please let me know and I will provide any further details.

RegardsI'm not sure about W7 but XP has a utility in the Accessories folder called "Remote Desktop Connection". You must know the IP ADDRESS of the computer you want to control to access it with this utility.


Alan <>
Any idea how I find the IP address?

After finding the IP address what do I need to do next.Open a command prompt and type: ipconfig and press enterI would not use Remote Desktop Connection for this purpose. What you need to do is enable File Sharing is Windows XP; that will allow the laptop to see the folders and/or files you've marked for File Sharing is Windows XP.

REFERENCE: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/304040Remote Desktop does not always work correctly (my experience).
One of problems is with a Cold Start of the Router. Example: If the Wireless Laptop is on top of the ARP stack and the rest (hardwired PC's) are on the bottom, then at (cold) re-start the ARP stack could be cleared and the hardwired ones will have a new Internal IP-address, while the Wireless ones will fall on the bottom, throwing the IPs of the Remote Desktop out of whack.
One way of dealing with that is to assign a Static IP to the PC's, but that defeats the whole purpose.

As SOYBEAN says: The proper way of dealing with this problem is to "enable Filesharing".

By the way: Remote Desktop does not work anyways for Windows 2000 and below.Thanks for the advice

I think I will not WORRY about the remote desktop thing.

Just one last question....

How do I SET up the desktop to print to the printer attached to the laptop?

I assume you have a non-wireless printer.
Then in your case:
-plug in the printer into the Desktop instead, resolve any issue to make sure you can print you can print from the Desktop. Print a "test page".
-now try to print from your laptop. The Laptop will search for an available printer. Then resolve issues such as "add a printer" and "Default Printer". You should not have any problems printing a "test page".

Now you can print anywhere from your Wireless Laptop, without having a printer attached to it, provided the Desktop is up and running.