Member Avatar for mp04279

I used to be able to access my Mom's computer via MSN Messenger Remote Assistance, but it doesn't work anymore. I get the following error:

'Remote Assistance connection could not be established because the remote host name could not be resolved. Please try again.'

Any ideas on how to fix this? She lives in Canada... I live in California...... It'd be ALOT easier to help her using Remote Assistance instead of trying to figure out what she see's over the phone! :eek: Thanks!

Mikaela

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Short diagnosis and next steps (for )

That exact error usually means the Remote Assistance ticket the novice sent contains a private/local IP (or otherwise can’t be resolved) so the helper cannot open a TCP/RDP connection to it. The RA invitation actually contains a connection string with an IP:port (often :3389) and a flag that marks the ticket as encrypted or not. (learn.microsoft.com)

Practical troubleshooting (quick, ordered):

  1. If you used the “save as file / send by e‑mail” method, save the invitation (rcBuddy .msrcincident) and inspect the RCTICKET entry — it will show an IP:port. If it’s a 192.168. or 10. address that’s the problem; replace it with the public WAN IP (whatismyip or the router status page) and retry only if the ticket is not encrypted. The invitation format and the RCTICKET/RCTICKETENCRYPTED fields are documented. (learn.microsoft.com)

Router / NAT / firewall notes:
Remote Assistance builds an RDP-style connection and needs a reachable IP/port. If the novice is behind a NAT router that doesn’t support UPnP, the connection will often fail (both sides behind non‑UPnP NAT typically cannot connect). Two fixes: enable UPnP on the router (so RA writes the public IP into the ticket automatically), or temporarily forward TCP port 3389 from the router to the novice machine and use a non‑encrypted invitation edited to the public IP. Be aware that opening 3389 to the Internet has security risks — only do it briefly and remove the rule afterward. (learn.microsoft.com)

Other checks and alternatives:
As suggested, verify any software firewall allows Remote Assistance/Messenger traffic; as suggested, make sure Windows’ Remote Assistance components are enabled on both machines. If editing tickets or router changes are impractical, use a NAT-friendly cloud relay tool (Quick Assist on modern Windows or third‑party tools such as TeamViewer) — those avoid the direct 3389/NAT problems. (learn.microsoft.com)

References:

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Member Avatar for jai614

make sure the remote assistance service is running and not disabled
go to start then click run and type this services.msc and make sure remote desktop help session manager is set to automatic

Also right click on My Computer go to properties then click the remote tab and check Allow Remote assistance...

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