Access another computer with Chrome Remote Desktop

You can use a computer or mobile device to access files and applications on another computer over the internet with Chrome Remote Desktop.

Chrome Remote Desktop is available on the web on your device. You will need to download the Chrome Remote Desktop app to use your mobile device for remote access.

Set up remote access to your computer

You can set up remote access to your Mac, Windows, or Linux computer.

On your computer, open Chrome.
In the address bar, type remotedesktop.google.com/access.
Under “Set up Remote Access,” click Download .
Follow the onscreen directions to download and install Chrome Remote Desktop.

You may have to enter your computer password to give Chrome Remote Desktop access. You may also be prompted to change security settings in Preferences.

Learn more about how to use Chrome Remote Desktop on Linux.

To use Chrome Remote Desktop on your device, learn how to share your computer with someone else.

Share your device with someone else

You can give others remote access to your device. They’ll have full access to your apps, files, emails, documents and history.

On your computer, open Chrome.
In the address bar at the top, type remotedesktop.google.com/support, and press Enter.
Under “Get Support, “ click Download .
Follow the onscreen directions to download and install Chrome Remote Desktop.
Under “Get Support,” select Generate Code.
Copy the code and send to the person you want to have access to your computer.
When that person enters your access code on the site, you will see a dialog with their e-mail address. Select Share to allow them full access to your computer.
To end a sharing session, click Stop Sharing.

The access code will only work one time. If you are sharing your computer, you will be asked to confirm that you want to continue to share your computer every 30 minutes.

Access a computer remotely

On your computer, open Chrome.
In the address bar at the top, enter remotedesktop.google.com/access, and press Enter.
Click Access to select which computer you want.
Enter the PIN required to access another computer.
Select the arrow to connect.

For your security, all remote desktop sessions are fully encrypted.

Stop a remote session

When you’re finished, close your tab to stop your session. You can also select Options Disconnect.

Remove a computer from your list

On your computer, open Chrome.
In the address bar at the top, enter remotedesktop.google.com/access, and press Enter.
Next to the computer you want to remove, click Disable remote connections .

Give remote support

If someone has shared their remote access code with you, you can remotely offer support.
On your computer, open Chrome.
In the address bar at the top, enter remotedesktop.google.com/support, and press Enter.
Enter the code under “Give support” and click Connect.

Use Chrome Remote Desktop on Linux

Step 1: Install the Debian package for the host components

Download the 64-bit Debian package here.

Step 2: Allow remote connections

Go to the “Set up remote access to your computer” section above.

Step 3 (Optional): Customize your virtual desktop session

When you first connect, you'll get a default session chooser where you can select your desktop environment. If you always want to launch a specific desktop environment:

In /usr/share/xsessions/, find the .desktop file for your preferred desktop environment. In the file, you'll find a line that starts with Exec= with the command you need to start the session.
- For example, Cinnamon has a file named cinnamon.desktop. In some versions, the file might have the command: gnome-session --session=cinnamon.
Create a file called .chrome-remote-desktop-session in your home directory with the content: exec /etc/X11/Xsession '<YOUR_EXEC_COMMAND>'.
Replace <YOUR_EXEC_COMMAND> with the command at the end of your .desktop file.
- In the example for Cinnamon, the correct command is exec /etc/X11/Xsession 'gnome-session --session=cinnamon'.
Save the file called $HOME/.chrome-remote-desktop-session. You'll find this change the next time you restart the Chrome Remote Desktop host.
The virtual desktop session is created and .chrome-remote-desktop-session starts when Chrome Remote Desktop starts.

Tip: Your desktop environment may not support more than one session at a time. In this case, we recommend that you use different desktop environments for your Chrome Remote Desktop session and your local session, or use the session chooser.

If you use the session chooser, we recommend that you sign out of the desktop environment in Chrome Remote Desktop or your local session before you sign in to the same desktop environment on the other.

Remove Chrome Remote Desktop

Windows

On each computer where you want to remove Chrome Remote Desktop access, remove the app:
1. Go to Control Panel Programs Add/Remove Programs.
2. Find the "Chrome Remote Desktop" application.
3. Click Remove.

Mac

On each computer where you want to remove Chrome Remote Desktop access, uninstall the app:
1. Find the "Chrome Remote Desktop Host Uninstaller" application.
2. Launch the uninstaller and click Uninstall

Improve Chrome Remote Desktop

To learn how to improve Chrome Remote Desktop, Google collects and stores some anonymized data about network delays and how long your session lasted.

To learn more about Chrome Remote Desktop, view our Chrome Privacy Notice and Google Privacy Policy.

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