Getting Started with NoMachine Network
Start your journey to the next level of network computing
NoMachine Network makes remote access to your NoMachine-enabled computer and desktop sharing as straightforward as possible whilst keeping the connection and your computer secure. Use it to provide remote assistance or to facilitate remote collaboration for teams who work on, or need to access, a shared computer. Publishing a computer on Network is easy to do because it can be done without being logged in to the Network service. To reach that computer you’ll need a NoMachine account and a Network Subscription. Read on to know how to get access to a computer using NoMachine Network.
- Download and install NoMachine version 9, even the free edition, on your client and server machines. NoMachine Network is fully supported across all the NoMachine product family.
- To connect to any NoMachine computer over Network, you need its Machine Id. A computer gets a unique Machine Id when it gets published, or "added", to NoMachine Network. You can add as many machines as you like to NoMachine Network, with no limitation, and all free of charge. What's more, you do not need a NoMachine account or even be logged into the Network service to do that.
- After installing, open NoMachine and navigate to 'Settings > Network > Machine'. (Fig 1).
Fig. 1 – Settings -> Network -> Machine
- Click 'Add' (Fig. 2). This generates the Machine Id and an Access Id for your machine. The Access Id is an additional layer of security and is enabled by default.
- Make a note of the Machine Id (including the dashes '-') and Access Id. You will need them in the next stages.
Fig. 2 – Click Add to configure the computer's availability on Network
- Click 'OK' (Fig. 3). For this tutorial, the computer will be available to 'Everybody'. To limit access now, you can also manually add the User Ids in the available space.
- Alternatively, you can add users from your own personal "Users book". To do that you need to have already created a NoMachine account and be logged in on the Player.
Fig. 3 – Click OK to publish the computer on Network
- Create a NoMachine account on the website or directly from within the NoMachine Player, if you don't already have one, by clicking on 'Create a new account'. This is your User Id and you use it to log in to the Network service from any Player.
- If you are a customer already, you do not need to create an account because you are already registered.
- Even though you don't need an account to publish computers on Network, you will need it to be able to connect to your Network computer.
- Your User Id also gives you access to your own Machines and Users books which are stored on Network. Whichever device you login from, you will find your computers and contacts right there.
Fig. 4 – Create an account by following the steps
- In order to connect to a NoMachine Network-enabled computer using its Machine Id, you need to purchase a Network subscription.
- Remember that if you don't want to connect using the Network service, you can still reach your NoMachine computer on LAN or via a simple Internet connection using your computer’s IP address. Check out our other tutorial to know more about that.
- Acquiring a subscription is easy and can be done by proceeding to the store and logging in with your NoMachine account.
- Now go to the device you want to connect from.
- Install NoMachine for the appropriate operating system.
- Login to Network with your NoMachine User Id and password. You can login bottom left in the NoMachine Player or go to Settings, select Network, then Login.
Fig. 5 – Login panel
- The Machine Id you noted down earlier is required now because you will use it to start your first Network connection.
- You can start your connection in two ways: i) insert the Machine Id of the machine you'd like to connect to in the Search field and click on 'Connect to new Machine Id', or ii) click 'Add' and insert the Machine Id in the Host field of the Add panel.
- The name of the connection is up to you to configure. If you don't insert a name, NoMachine provides one for you based on what was inserted in the host field.
- If the Access Id has been enabled on the remote machine, insert it when prompted.
Fig. 6 – Insert your Machine Id in the search field and click the 'Connect to ...' link
Fig. 7 – Type in the Access Id
- Provided the Access Id is correct, you can now log in with your system account (Fig. 8) by typing in your username and password.
- If you don't have a system account because you are connecting to someone else's computer, choose to connect as a guest using Guest Desktop Sharing. You will require authorization from the desktop owner in order to successfully connect.
Fig. 8 – After inserting the Access Id, the Login panel asks for system credentials
- Approve and verify the host identification as a last step.
- Congratulations! You're now connected!
Fig. 9 – You're in!
