DEV Community

Cover image for Remote Workstation Bridge: Your Powerful Desktop, Anywhere 🚀
João Brito
João Brito

Posted on

Remote Workstation Bridge: Your Powerful Desktop, Anywhere 🚀

#raspberrypi #tutorial #networking #remotework

Ever feel held back by your aging laptop? Most of us require its portability, but it just can't keep up with demanding tasks like coding or 3D modeling. Upgrading internal components is often impossible, and buying a new high-performance laptop can be incredibly expensive. Meanwhile, your powerful desktop PC, with all its upgradeable glory, sits at home, out of reach.

This guide solves that exact problem. I'll show you how to build a secure and efficient bridge to your home desktop from anywhere in the world. By using a cheap Raspberry Pi and free software, you can wake up your desktop on demand and stream its full power directly to your laptop's screen with minimal latency. It's like taking your entire desktop setup with you, packed into the convenience of your portable machine.

The Core Idea

The magic lies in a simple, low-power device: the Raspberry Pi. It will stay running 24/7 at home, connected to your network. When you're on the go, you'll connect to the Pi and tell it to wake up your powerful desktop using a Wake-on-LAN (WoL) command. All your devices (laptop, desktop, and Pi) will be connected to a secure, private virtual network using ZeroTier, making them think they're all in the same room. Finally, you'll use Parsec to stream your desktop's display to your laptop in high-fidelity with incredibly low latency, perfect for both work and play.

What You'll Need

Hardware

  • A Desktop PC: The "host" machine you want to access. It must be connected to your router via an Ethernet cable.
  • A Laptop: The "client" machine you'll be working from.
  • A Raspberry Pi 3B+ (or newer): This will act as our 24/7 bridge.
  • A MicroSD Card: At least 8 GB.
  • A MicroSD Card Reader
  • A Power Supply for the Raspberry Pi.
  • An Ethernet Cable for the Raspberry Pi.

Software & Services

  • Raspberry Pi OS Lite (32-bit): A lightweight, headless operating system.
  • wakeonlan: A Simple command line tool to send Wol packets.
  • ZeroTier: A free virtual private network service.
  • Parsec: A free, high-performance remote desktop application.
  • An SSH Client: Your laptop's terminal.

Step-by-Step Guide

Step 1: Configure Your Desktop for Wake-on-LAN

1.  Enable WoL in BIOS/UEFI: Restart your desktop and enter the BIOS/UEFI setup. Look for a setting named "Wake on LAN" or "Power On By PCI-E" and Enable it.
2.  Enable WoL in Windows:
    * Open Device Manager > Network Adapter > Properties.
    * In the Power Management tab, check "Allow this device to wake the computer."
    * In the Advanced tab, ensure "Wake on Magic Packet" is Enabled.
3.  Get MAC Address: Open Command Prompt (cmd) and run ipconfig /all. Note the "Physical Address" of your Ethernet adapter (e.g., 1A-2B-3C-4D-5E-6F).

Step 2: Set Up the Raspberry Pi

1.  Flash Raspberry Pi OS Lite: Use the Raspberry Pi Imager to flash the OS.
2.  Enable SSH: Before ejecting the SD card, create an empty file named ssh in the boot partition.
3.  Set up a name/password: Usually the dafault is name: pi; pass: raspberry 
4.  First Boot and Setup: Connect the Pi to your router and power it on. Find its IP address.
5.  SSH into the Pi:

    bash
    ssh pi@<YOUR_PI_IP_ADDRESS>
   

6.  Update and Install WoL Tool:

    bash
    sudo apt update
    sudo apt install wakeonlan
   

Step 3: Create Your Secure Network with ZeroTier

1.  Create a ZeroTier Account & Network: Sign up at ZeroTier Central and click "Create A Network." Note your 16-character Network ID.
2.  Install ZeroTier on All Devices:
    * On Raspberry Pi:

        bash
        curl -s [https://install.zerotier.com](https://install.zerotier.com) | sudo bash
       

    * On Desktop and Laptop: Download and install from the ZeroTier downloads page.
3.  Join the Network on each device using your Network ID.
    * On Raspberry Pi:

        bash
        sudo zerotier-cli join <YOUR_16_CHARACTER_NETWORK_ID>
       

    * On Windows/macOS, use the app's "Join Network" option.
4.  Authorize Devices: In your ZeroTier Central dashboard, check the "Auth?" box for each of your three devices.

Step 4: Set Up Parsec for Remote Access

1.  Create a Parsec Account: Sign up at parsec.app.
2.  Install Parsec on Desktop (Host): Install Parsec, log in, and ensure Hosting is Enabled in the settings.
3.  Install Parsec on Laptop (Client): Install Parsec and log in with the same account.

Step 5: Putting It All Together - The Workflow

1.  Connect to the Pi: From your laptop, SSH into the Raspberry Pi using its ZeroTier IP address (found in your ZeroTier dashboard).

    bash
    # Example command
    ssh pi@<PI_ZEROTIER_MANAGED_IP>
   

2.  Wake Up the Desktop: Send the magic packet to your desktop's MAC address.

    bash
    # Replace the MAC address with your desktop's
    wakeonlan 1A:2B:3C:4D:5E:6F
   

3.  Connect with Parsec: Wait a bit for your desktop to boot, then open Parsec on your laptop. Your desktop will appear as connectable or try refreshing it. Click "Connect" and enjoy!

Thanks for reading! I'd love to connect. You can find me on:

Top comments (0)