Who it's for / Small teams
For small teams sharing one Windows program.
A small team usually has one program everyone depends on and nobody wants to administer. It runs on Windows, half the team does not, and the person who set it up is also the person who has a real job to do. FarDesktop puts the program and its data in one place and gives each person a window onto it.
A familiar scene
A six-person firm shares one specialist program. It runs on the office PC under someone's desk. When that person is out, nobody can work. When two people connect at once, things break.
Moved to a managed Windows machine, everyone has their own sign-in and their own session, from the Mac, the old laptop or the tablet. The machine does not sit under anybody's desk.
Imagined, but familiar. Not a customer story.
What changes for you.
One program, one set of data
No more copies of the file on different laptops, and no arguing over which is current.
Separate accounts for each person
See who did what, add people in minutes and remove them cleanly when they leave.
Works on whatever people own
Macs, Windows laptops, Chromebooks and tablets all reach the same program in a browser.
No server to run
The machine is looked after for you, so nobody on the team becomes the accidental administrator.
How to try it.
- 1.
Count simultaneous users
Decide how many people need it at the same time, and whether the program's licence permits that.
- 2.
Settle accounts and access
Give each person their own sign-in and decide who should have access to what.
- 3.
Try it with two people first
Have two colleagues work on real tasks for a day before you move everyone.
Things to be honest about
We would rather you hear these from us first.
- Programs whose licence allows only one user at a time, or only one computer.
- Heavy graphics programs, which may need a stronger machine.
- Hardware that is plugged into someone's own computer, such as a dongle or scanner.
- A shared login. It is convenient and makes everything harder later.
Questions people ask.
Can several people use it at once?
Each person can have their own session. Whether the program and its licence allow simultaneous use is worth checking.
Do we need an IT person?
Not for a managed machine. If you ran your own server, you would.
How do we remove someone?
Take away their account. Their access ends without changing anyone else's sign-in.
Worth reading
8 min read
Share one Windows program with a small team
Five people, one Windows-only program, no desire to run a server. The practical ways small teams share Windows software, and the trade-offs of each.
Read9 min read
Remote desktop, app streaming or a VM?
Three common ways to use Windows software from another device, compared in plain terms: who each suits, what it costs in effort and where it breaks.
Read8 min read
Windows software licensing in the cloud
Moving a Windows program to a remote machine does not erase licensing. What to check with Windows and with the software vendor, in plain terms, before you move.
Read