Support

Have a question or issue regarding RemoteDroid? Contact us directly or read on…

Frequently Asked Questions

It doesn’t work! Why not?
There are a number of reasons why RemoteDroid may not be working for you.

First, confirm that you have all the elements you need to begin:

  • A functioning wireless network to which your computer is connected.
  • Wi-Fi on your device turned on. (Instructions for activating Wi-Fi on your G1 are here.)
  • A copy of the RemoteDroid server application (download here) installed and running on the computer you wish to control with your phone
I can’t even get the server application to work on my computer. How do I do that?
While the server application was written in Java so it would work on a wide variety of operating systems and computer setups, it still may not work for you. Here are a couple of things to try:

  • If you are running a version of Windows, try clicking on the .bat file (instead of the .jar file) to launch the application
  • Check to see that the version of Java you have is 1.5 or higher. You can use this online tool to check now.
  • If you find that you need to get a more recent version of Java, download it here.

Finally, it’s possible your computer is not capable of running Java 1.5 or higher. Certain older operating systems, such as Mac OX 10.3 (Panther) can’t run Java 1.5, so RemoteDroid will not work. Sorry.

The server application appears to be running, but why is my phone still not connected to my computer?
It’s possible the problem is with your network connection. Try setting your firewall to allow traffic on UDP port 57110.

In OSX:

  • Go to System Preferences -> Security -> Firewall
  • Either allow all incoming connections, or specifically allow the port that RemoteDroid uses. (57110)

Also check to make sure that your network isn’t otherwise overloaded with traffic from filesharing or other bandwidth-intensive activity. RemoteDroid uses that same network to connect your phone and computer, so you’ll need room for those to communicate smoothly.

Lastly, it’s possible that the server app isn’t giving you the right IP address. You can find your own IP in the following ways:

OSX: (Thanks, Kully)

  • Go to System Preferences -> Network
  • Click on the AirPort tab. This will tell you if you’re connected to a wireless network, and will give you the correct IP address to use.

Win XP, 2000

  • Go to Start -> Run
  • Type cmd in the popup box
  • type ipconfig /all at the DOS prompt. This will give you a list of all your network adapters. Use the IP address from your wireless adapter.

Linux:

  • At a command prompt, tpye ifconfig. This will give you a list of all your network adapters.
What port does RemoteDroid use?
UDP port 57110.

Will it work over EDGE, or 3G?
No. RemoteDroid uses the Open Sound Control protocol, which isn’t a secure protocol, so transmitting data over the Internet at large would be a bad idea. It’d also have tremendous latency problems, so it’s really just a bad idea.

Can you make this work as a Bluetooth keyboard for the PS3?
First I’d have to buy a PS3 to test it with. But that’s not a purchase I currently plan on making.

I’d love it if your app could do [insert any other cool feature idea here]. Can you add that to RemoteDroid?
I might, and it fact I’m now working on feature additions and improvements. Have a good idea? Go ahead and send it to me and I’ll look into it.

Version History

Version 1.4
Released 03/01/10. Improved soft keyboard support, added support for all keys in the soft keyboard with keyboard equivalents, made trackball click act as CTRL key, added multitouch scrolling and click-and-drag support for Android 2.0+ devices. (Added by Nicholas Frenay).
Version 1.3
Released 11/07/09. Added soft keyboard support for touchscreen-only devices, now runs in full-screen mode.
Version 1.2
Released 01/05/09. New features added to phone application: tap to click, trackball scroll wheel, customize mouse sensitivity and save IP address of server.
Version 1.1
Released 01/01/09. Updated server application to be compatible with Windows Vista (32- and 64-bit). Most Windows users can now double-click on the .jar file to run.
Version 1.0
Released 12/31/08. Original release.

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