If both computers run Windows and have 77Fox installed, you can remote control one from the other with a 9-character connection code. The person at the other PC clicks Allow access, or you enter the password set on that PC and connect straight away. It's free, but both PCs must be signed in to a 77Fox account with remote control turned on. It only works between the Windows desktop apps: the web console, the browser extension and phones can't control a PC or be controlled.
Typical cases: checking a home desktop's AI job from the office, or fixing a relative's PC without a long phone call. If both PCs already run 77Fox, its remote control saves you setting up Windows' built-in Remote Desktop or another remote access app.
Before you start
Both computers need:
- Windows with the 77Fox desktop app, available from the download page.
- A signed-in 77Fox account; the two PCs can use different accounts.
- Remote control turned on. It's off by default; the switch is at the top of the Remote control page, and the controlling PC needs it on too.
The Remote control page has the connect form and current session up top, with History, Trusted devices and Settings tabs below. It also shows the PC's fixed 9-character code of letters and digits. You can pick your own or randomize it; the old code stops working at once. Requests show your device name, the Windows computer name by default, so rename it in settings if it's unclear.
Three ways to connect
The controlling PC picks Request access or Password access. A trusted device is the third case: an earlier approval with Always allow this device turned on lets your requests through without a click.
| Method | Someone needed at the other PC? | Prompt on the other PC? | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Request access | Yes, they click Allow access | Yes, a call-style pop-up, bottom right | Helping family or colleagues |
| Password access | No | No pop-up, only a tray marker | Your own second PC |
| Trusted device | No, they approved you before | No pop-up, only a tray marker | Two PCs you use yourself |
Request access
Enter the other PC's code and click Request. A call-style window pops up in the bottom-right corner of their screen with your device name, saying you'll be able to operate the computer and receive its system audio and microphone. Nothing connects until they click Allow access, there or in the tray menu; Decline ends the request. Turning on Always allow this device in that window makes your PC a trusted device.
Password access
When remote control is first turned on, 77Fox creates a random 10-character password; you can set your own instead, at least 8 characters. Choose Password access, enter the code and password, and you're in with no pop-up on the other side. On the page, the password stays masked; reveal it and it hides again after 30 seconds. New password stops the old one working for new connections, while a running session carries on.
Trusted devices
Your PC becomes trusted when the other person turns on Always allow this device while approving you, or clicks Authorize device during a session. You still click Request, but 77Fox verifies the device and connects without a pop-up. Trust is tied to that one computer, so the same account on another PC must be approved again, and revoking it under Trusted devices ends that device's current session.
Know what these two methods mean. With a password or a trusted device, the other PC shows no confirmation pop-up, only a marker on the tray icon. Its system audio and default microphone are still sent to you, so you can hear anyone talking near it. Use password access and Always allow this device only between your own computers, never on someone else's.
Your first connection
The safest route is Request access, shown here with a relative's PC:
- Install 77Fox on both PCs, sign in and turn on remote control.
- Your relative reads you their 9-character code or sends it with the copy button.
- On your PC, choose Request access, enter the code and click Request.
- Your relative checks the pop-up shows your device name and clicks Allow access, leaving Always allow this device off.
- The viewer opens and you use your own mouse and keyboard; Open viewer brings it back if it gets buried.
- When you're done, click Disconnect or close the viewer. Your relative can also disconnect from the tray icon.
For your own home PC it's shorter: turn on remote control before you leave, note the code and password, then use Password access from the office.
Picture quality and sound
A session starts with the quality settings of the PC being controlled. While connected, the viewer toolbar changes frame rate, resolution and bitrate on the fly, which switches to Custom.
| Preset | Frame rate | Max resolution | Max bitrate | When bandwidth runs short |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Automatic (default), Balanced | 30 | 1080p | 6 Mbps | Balances both |
| Smooth | 30 | 720p | 2 Mbps | Keeps the frame rate |
| Sharp | 30 | 2160p (4K) | 16 Mbps | Keeps the resolution |
| Custom | 15, 30 or 60 | 720p to 2160p | Steps from 1 to 30 Mbps | Balances both |
The viewer shows live frame rate, resolution, latency and bitrate. If latency climbs and the picture stutters, drop to Smooth; for code or spreadsheets, go back to Sharp. With several monitors on the other PC, pick one from the toolbar, or go full screen.
Sound travels one way: the other PC's system audio and default microphone come to you, and your microphone is not sent. To talk while you work, use a phone call; 77Fox's separate voice calls are covered in Share prompts with your team: workspaces and calls. The other person can switch off Microphone or System audio from the tray, and if their PC has no working microphone, the picture keeps going.
To operate programs running as administrator on the other PC, someone there clicks Enable administrator control once in its remote control settings, which asks for Windows authorization. After that, connecting never triggers an elevation prompt.
Safety: read this first
Remote control hands your computer to another person. The feature page has the same safety notes.
Scams. If anyone claiming to be tech support, your bank or the police asks for your connection code and password, or asks you to click Allow access, give them nothing and hang up.
The owner switches it on. The owner of the PC first turns on remote control in 77Fox and either sets a password or approves each request on the spot, and the tray can disconnect at any time. During a session a small dot sits on the tray icon, orange while a request waits and green once connected. Right-click it to see which device is connected, disconnect, or switch off the microphone or system audio feed; this entry can't be hidden.
Passwords are for your own devices. Give the password only to your own devices or people you trust. Copy connection info copies the code and password together, so treat that text like the password itself. When you help someone else, ask them for the code only and let them approve you.
Rotate and switch off. If you use a random password, set Random password refresh to After password session to get a fresh one after each password session, or turn off Allow password access so others can only send requests. When you don't need remote control, turn it off; a session in progress ends immediately.
Check the history. The History tab keeps up to 100 sessions per PC with direction, method, duration and result. It stores no passwords, and reconnecting from it always sends a request. Spot a device you don't know? Revoke it under Trusted devices and randomize your code.
What it can't do
- Operate the lock screen, Windows before anyone signs in (after a restart, say), UAC prompts on the secure desktop, or Ctrl+Alt+Del.
- Copy files between the two PCs; the two clipboards stay separate.
- Accept more than one controller at a time, counting a request that's still awaiting approval.
- Work outside the Windows desktop apps; the web console, extension and phones can neither control nor be controlled.
FAQ
Is remote control free?
Yes. 77Fox remote control is free; both PCs only need to be signed in to a 77Fox account.
Do both PCs need the same account?
No. Each PC can use its own 77Fox account, the usual setup when you help family or colleagues.
Whose servers does the connection use, and can 77Fox see my screen?
Screen, sound and input travel between the two PCs over encrypted WebRTC, relayed through servers that 77Fox runs. The 77Fox server that sets up the connection only passes on connection signals and online status; it never receives your password in plain text, your screen, your audio or your keyboard and mouse input. Device private keys, passwords and the trusted device list stay on each PC, aren't synced and aren't included in backups.
Can I connect if the other PC is locked?
You can't operate it. The lock screen, Windows before sign-in and UAC prompts are outside what remote control can handle, so someone needs to unlock the PC and get back to the desktop first.
Will the person at the other PC know I'm connected?
With Request access they approve you themselves. With a password or trusted device there's no pop-up, but the tray icon carries a marker, and its menu names the connected device. You're working on that PC's real desktop, so anyone in front of it sees the cursor move and can disconnect from the tray.