Installing Unattended Access Remotely

[Fred Marshall]

I have a few computers that seem to lose their unattended access altogether.  Then, of course, I have to set it back up again.  
Most of the time I have someone there to help.  But this is intrusive and I'd like to be able to get it done on my own.  
These computers are on a network and I have a workstation on the network and can use Windows Remote Desktop or UltraVNC to connect to the target computers.
Yet, GTA is my preferred tool and is more convenient.
So, now and then I use Remote Desktop to start the Unattended Access install for GTA and sometimes it sorta works.  But most of the time the "Set up Unattended Access" is grayed out at my GTA console and I can't get the whole job done.

How do you do it?

[GlennD]

Hi Fred,

Installing via Remote Desktop can be problematic as unless you are connected using the console (I think that is the correct name for it), you won't see the prompts to complete the set up. VNC should work as it is showing you the actual desktop. 

"But most of the time the "Set up Unattended Access" is grayed out at my GTA console and I can't get the whole job done." So you are starting an Attended session with your Client who is logged in with Admin rights, and the option to set up Unattended Support is grayed out in the Tools menu? Do you check to make sure the GoToAssist software is no longer on their computer? If the Unattended Client service is still running we will think it is already set up for Unattended Support and won't allow another install.

[Ask Itee]

Hi Fred,

I have experienced the same for various reasons.  Have you investigated why they lose their access

[Jim Osdale]

Fred, 
We downloaded the unattended installer from the GTA website, then we place this file on our own website. See below



If anyone needs our help, they go to our website, we ask them to install the unattended installer software. This happens to go pretty easily on the customer PC, and they get a notice in their task bar that unattended support was successfully installed.

Sometimes though, if we're dealing with the customers who are not so computer savvy, this popup installation window may be hidden behind another window as I have seen this in the past

Once they get the software installed, you can go immediately to the list of unattended computers, but this is the tricky part, you need to know the "NAME" of the PC that just installed the software. If you can ask the customer to get this for you, then you can search for it (I use the filter window in the lower right to condense my search) and you're in.



I have asked Citrix if they would be able someday to let us filter the unattended support list of customers to show a date of when installed, then we could sort the list and find out the most recently installed. 

[GlennD]

Hi Jim, if you look at your Inventory on the website you can see the install date for Unattended Support. If you're not leaving Unattended Support on these Clients computers, have you thought about trying our new standalone Attended App? https://www.fastsupport.com/download/attended-app

[Jim Osdale]

I never use the website for unattended support because it's so much more convenient to use the window above. Thanks for the tip though

[Fred Marshall]

OK.  Well I had no idea that having the Unattended software installed on a client *first* would prevent asking for Unattended support from my end.  It makes good enough sense, it's just a surprise.  

I don't have nearly as many "requests" from new users as I have from existing users where the intent is to have Unattended access set up once and for all.  So the case I wanted to deal with here was where I already have control of the computer via RDP or UltraVNC and want to set up Unattended GTA access where it's been lost or where there's a new computer on the network.  So, the web-based approach doesn't seem to fit.  

Glenn: So you are starting an Attended session with your Client who is logged in with Admin rights, and the option to set up Unattended Support is grayed out in the Tools menu? Do you check to make sure the GoToAssist software is no longer on their computer? If the Unattended Client service is still running we will think it is already set up for Unattended
Support and won't allow another install.

Well, not exactly.  I am starting a session with UltraVNC and downloading the Unattended access GTA and installing it.  Then I have a GTA session and want to make it unattended all the way by giving it the needed password.  It sounds like I should be using a slightly different approach.

[Jim Osdale]

Since we setup the computers in advance we send out and sell for our business, everyone one of them is setup with unattended support, and then we rename the connection with a friendly name we would recognize for the location of the PC.

[Fred Marshall]

I've run into this enought times to want to share and perhaps get some help!!

I have a new computer on the network.  I can RDP into it from inside the network using a computer that I *can" access with GTA.

Once I connect with GTA>#1 and RDP #1>#2 then download GTAUA from the website, then install it, it never starts.

So then, I go to helpme.net and try from there using a Support Key.

In that case, I get:

Connected to GoToAssist

Your session should begin shortly.  You can close this windows now.

BUT NOTHING HAPPENS thereaftger.

(The GTA service is running)

[GlennD · Accepted solution]

Hi Fred,

When you are using RDP, remember you are not viewing that computer's actual desktop, so you will not see any of the software prompts displayed during a regular installation.  In order to use RDP to install you musy be in console mode.