The article explains 3 ways to access your home network remotely. Be it a single PC, entire network or your home IP camera, this article explains the technique and method to access the network.
How to access your entire home network
Lets assume that you have a PC or a laptop which needs to access your home network from the internet. You want to be part of the home network as if your are also part of the local network at home.
To set this up, you would need VPN. VPN routers are used for this purpose. The home router should be upgraded with a VPN router.
The TP-Link AC4000 Tri-Band WiFi Router (Archer A20) -MU-MIMO, VPN Server is a good choice for a VPN server. The router supports 1625 Mbps on both 5 GHz bands and 750 Mbps on 2.4 GHz band.
Once the VPN server is setup on the router, an appropriate VPN client which comes along with the VPN server can be downloaded and installed on the device (PC or laptop). The appropriate credentials to establish connection with the VPN router can be configured on the device (PC or laptop) for connection.
After connection, the device would have an IP address which belong to the local home network range. The device would be part of the home network and can access any resources.
How to access a specific PC on the home network remotely
If you need to access a specific PC on the home network, then a normal router would suffice. Port forwarding is a feature which needs to be configured to allow remote access to a PC on the network. VNC and remote desktop are two protocols which are used to access a PC remotely.
Port forwarding feature on the Wireless router should be configured to allow the necessary port to be forwarded to the internal PC. For example, lets assume that remote desktop is used on the PC requiring remote access.
The router should be configured to forward remote desktop connection request from the internet to the specific IP address, which is the IP address of the PC.
This would then enable users from outside to the access the destop of the remote PC.
It should be ensured that the PC is configured with appropirate security credentails (username and password) for log in. Else, it can become a security threat and anyone can gain access to it from the internet.
How to access your home network camera remotely
Home cameras have inbuilt app which which you can use to connect remotely over the internet. The app can be installed on your PC or mobile. There is no need of any specific configuration which needs to be performed as it is automatically taken care by the app.
FAQ
1. If I need to access only a specific PC within my home network , do I need to buy a VPN router
No. A VPN router is needed only if you want to access the entire home network. Else , port forwarding feature on the router would suffice.
2. What type of router should I buy for port forwarding feature
Almost all routers support port forwarding feature. You do not need to buy any specific router to support port forwarding.
3. Can I use remote desktop if a VPN is enabled.
Yes you can. But in this case, you would not be connecting to the router, but to the IP address of the PC configured for remote desktop since you are on the local home network.
Conclusion
It can be understood that a Wireless router with VPN server would be requried if you want to connect and be part of the home network completely. But you won’t need one if you just want to connect a PC or your camera on your home network.
Product Recommendation
Firewall router for home – ASUS WiFi 6 Router (RT-AX3000)
Dual wan router for home – Synology RT2600ac – 4×4 dual-band Gigabit Wi-Fi router