Control your PC from your phone: the MoLock Remote guide
MoLock Remote puts your whole Windows desktop in your phone's browser — screen, mouse, keyboard, files and clipboard. This guide walks through the first session, every gesture, the keyboard tricks and the settings that matter on mobile data.
Mahmoud Mohamed · 10 min read
DESKTOP-MOE2EEEnd
EscTabCtrlAltWin⇧←↑↓→
Before you start
MoLock Remote is part of MoLock 2.9. It is not a separate app and there is no extra account: it lives inside the same MoLock Account you already use to lock your PC, take a photo or switch on Lost mode. Three things need to be true before your first session:
- The PC runs MoLock 2.9 or later. Updates arrive automatically; you can also send
/updateto your bot. - The PC is linked to your account. If it appears in your account's device list, it is linked.
- The PC is on and online. Remote control needs a live connection. If the PC is asleep or offline, the account tells you so and keeps trying for a short while — it does not queue a session for later, so a PC that wakes up hours from now will never open an old request.
Remote control is on by default once a PC is linked. You can turn it off on the PC itself (Settings → Remote) or per device from your account, and both switches win over everything else. The same settings let you decide whether a session may move files, unlock MoLock and sync the clipboard.
Your first session, step by step
- Open your account. In any browser — Chrome or Samsung Internet on Android, Safari on iPhone or iPad, Firefox or Edge anywhere — go to your MoLock Account and sign in as usual.
- Pick the PC and tap Remote. Each online PC has a Remote button on its card. You can also send
/controlto @MoLockOfficialBot: it lists your PCs with a button that opens the viewer for each one. - Wait a moment while the PC answers. Your browser creates a fresh pair of keys for this session only, the PC does the same, and the PC proves it is really your PC with the key that never leaves it. If that proof fails, the session stops with "This PC could not prove its identity" — you never see a screen you cannot trust.
- Look at the safety code (optional). A six-digit code such as 482 913 appears in your browser and in the indicator on the PC. If both match, nobody is sitting in the middle of the connection. Comparing it is optional; it is there for the moments you want certainty.
- Start working. The desktop appears, sharp and live. Everything that crosses the network — the picture, your taps, your typing, files, clipboard — is end-to-end encrypted.
At the same moment, the PC makes the session impossible to miss. A small indicator appears on its screen (by default an amber frame plus a pill showing the session and its end button), and the official bot sends you a message such as "Remote session started on DESKTOP-MO — Chrome on Android, Egypt", with a one-tap ⛔ End session button. The session is also written to your account's activity log. If you did not start it, one tap ends it.
- 🖥 Remote session started on «DESKTOP-MO»
Chrome on Android · Egypt⛔ End session - Session ended · 12 min · recorded in browser
Gestures: trackpad mode or direct touch
A Windows desktop was designed for a mouse, and a phone screen is small. MoLock gives you two ways to bridge that gap. Switch between them at any time from the toolbar.
Trackpad mode is the default on phones. Your screen behaves like a laptop touchpad: you steer a pointer, and the pointer does the clicking. It is the most precise option for small targets such as window buttons, checkboxes or a spreadsheet cell, because your finger never hides what you are aiming at.
Direct touch works the way your phone does: you tap exactly where you want to click. It feels natural on a tablet or when the view is zoomed in, and it is quicker for big targets like icons and menu items.
| What you want | Trackpad mode | Direct touch |
|---|---|---|
| Move the pointer | Slide one finger | — the pointer jumps where you tap |
| Click | Tap | Tap exactly there |
| Double-click | Double tap | Double tap |
| Right-click | Two-finger tap | Long press |
| Scroll | Two-finger slide | Two-finger slide |
| Drag or select | Double tap, hold, then slide | Drag with one finger |
| Zoom the view | Pinch — the zoomed view follows the pointer | Pinch |
| What you want | Trackpad mode | Direct touch |
|---|---|---|
| Move the pointer | Slide one finger | — (the pointer jumps where you tap) |
| Click | Tap | Tap exactly there |
| Double-click | Double tap | Double tap |
| Right-click | Two-finger tap | Long press |
| Scroll | Two-finger slide | Two-finger slide |
| Drag or select text | Double tap, hold, then slide | Drag with one finger |
| Zoom the view | Pinch (the zoomed view follows the pointer) | Pinch |
Pinch-to-zoom only magnifies the picture on your phone; it does not change the resolution of the PC. Zoom in to hit a tiny close button, zoom out to see the whole desktop again. In trackpad mode the zoomed view follows the pointer, so you can work on a magnified area without constantly panning.
The keyboard, special keys and shortcuts
Tap the keyboard button in the toolbar to bring up your phone's own keyboard. Whatever you type — in any language, including Arabic, and including text from voice dictation or a keyboard's suggestions — is typed on the PC as text. You do not need the PC's keyboard layout to match your phone's.
A phone keyboard has no Esc or Win key, so MoLock adds a keys bar above it: Esc, Tab, Ctrl, Alt, Shift, Win and the four arrows. Combine them with letters for any shortcut you know.
For the shortcuts you use most, there is a shortcuts menu so you do not have to juggle keys with one thumb:
- Win — the Start menu; Win+D — show the desktop; Win+E — File Explorer; Win+R — Run.
- Alt+Tab — switch windows; Win+Tab — Task view; Alt+F4 — close the window.
- Ctrl+Shift+Esc — Task Manager, for an app that stopped responding.
- Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V, Ctrl+X, Ctrl+Z, Ctrl+A, Ctrl+S and PrintScreen.
Keys barabove your phone keyboard
EscTabCtrlAlt⇧Win←↑↓→⋯
- WinStart menu
- Win + DShow desktop
- Win + EFile Explorer
- Alt + TabSwitch windows
- Alt + F4Close window
- Ctrl + Shift + EscTask Manager
- Ctrl + C / VCopy & paste
- Ctrl + ZUndo
- Ctrl + Alt + DelNot possible remotely — use MoLock's lock
When you leave the page, switch apps or a touch is interrupted, MoLock releases every held key and button on the PC. A Ctrl that stays "stuck" after you put the phone away cannot happen.
Monitors, clipboard and files
More than one monitor
If the PC has several screens, the toolbar lists them by name. Pick one to see it; switching is instant and the picture adapts to that screen's size and scaling. On a phone it is usually best to view one monitor at a time and zoom as needed.
Clipboard sync
Copy text on the PC and it is ready to paste on your phone; copy text on your phone and send it to the PC's clipboard. Clipboard sync covers text — addresses, links, a paragraph from a document — and it travels encrypted like everything else in the session. It can be switched off on the PC if you prefer to keep the clipboard local.
Files
The Files panel opens a simple browser of the PC: its drives, plus shortcuts to Desktop, Documents, Downloads, Pictures and Videos. Tap a file to download it to your phone, or upload a file from your phone into the folder you are looking at. Transfers are end-to-end encrypted and checked on arrival, so a damaged file is never saved silently. If file access is turned off on the PC, the panel says so.
DESKTOP-MO›Documents›Work
- ContractsFolder
- Invoice-0425.pdf312 KB · yesterday
- Budget-2026.xlsx88 KB · Monday
- site-plan.png1.4 MB
Invoice-0425.pdf64%
Upload to PCDownload
Picture quality on mobile data
MoLock does not stream a video of your screen. It sends only the parts that change, and only as fast as your browser can draw them. A still desktop costs almost nothing; scrolling a long page or playing a video costs the most. The quality preset decides how much detail each update carries:
| Preset | What it does | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Auto | Adjusts to your connection as you work. Starts on Saver on mobile networks or when your phone's data saver is on, otherwise on Balanced. | Most of the time |
| Saver | Half resolution, about 6 updates a second | Mobile data, weak signal, roaming |
| Balanced | Three-quarter resolution, about 12 updates a second | Everyday use on Wi-Fi or good 4G/5G |
| Sharp | Full resolution, about 20 updates a second | A fast connection and a bigger screen |
| Text | Full resolution with extra-crisp lettering, about 10 updates a second | Reading and editing documents, spreadsheets and code |
Qualitychange it mid-session
- AutoAdaptiveAdapts to your connection · starts on Saver on mobile data
- SaverHalf resolution · about 6 fps
- Balanced¾ resolution · about 12 fps
- SharpFull resolution · about 20 fps
- TextFull resolution, crisp lettering · about 10 fps
Pictures are sent only when something on the screen changes — a still screen uses almost no data
If the picture feels behind your finger, step down a preset. If small text looks soft, switch to Text — it lowers the update rate a little in exchange for letters that are easy to read even when zoomed out.
When the PC is locked — and the screens no app can reach
If MoLock's lock screen is showing, that is exactly what you will see in the session. If unlocking from a session is allowed on that PC (it is by default), tap Unlock: MoLock opens once, records it, and the official bot tells you it happened. You can also Lock the PC from the session at any time, for example before you hand it back to someone at home.
Some screens belong to Windows itself: the Windows sign-in and lock screens, and the permission prompts that ask "Do you want to allow this app to make changes?". Windows deliberately keeps every app — MoLock included — from seeing or controlling them. When one appears, the picture pauses and the viewer shows a clear notice instead of a frozen image you might mistake for a hang. The session stays open; as soon as the prompt is gone, the picture resumes.
Ending a session
There are several ways to end a session, and any of them works on its own:
- The End button in the viewer, or simply closing the tab.
- The ⛔ End session button in the bot's message.
- End all sessions in your account, which closes every remote session on every PC at once.
- On the PC, the end button on the indicator or the shortcut Ctrl+Alt+Shift+X. This shortcut always works on the PC, even when "block local input" is on.
Sessions also end by themselves. If you send no input for 30 minutes, the session closes; the viewer warns you at 25 minutes so a tap keeps it alive. A single session can last at most 8 hours. Every ending is reported, with the session's length, and appears in your activity log.
Remote session · ownerRECEnd
Whoever is at the PC can end the session at any momentCtrl+Alt+Shift+X
Practical tips for working from a phone
- Turn the phone sideways. A Windows desktop is wide; landscape gives you a much larger picture and a roomier keys bar.
- Zoom instead of squinting. Pinch into the part of the screen you are working on, do the job, and pinch out. It is faster than hunting for a tiny target at full size.
- Use Text for documents. Reading an email or editing a spreadsheet is far easier with crisp lettering than with a higher update rate.
- Choose Saver before you need it. On a train or abroad, start on Saver; Auto will also do this on mobile networks, but choosing it yourself keeps your data predictable.
- Mind the battery. A live session keeps the screen on and the radio busy. For long sessions, plug the phone in or lower the brightness.
- Draw the curtain for privacy. Curtain mode covers every monitor of the PC with a notice that the PC is being used remotely by its owner, so someone in the room cannot read what you are doing. The curtain never appears in your own picture. If you also want to stop anyone at the PC from moving the mouse, turn on block local input.
- Record when it helps. Sessions can be recorded in your browser or on the PC, with the recording state shown on both sides. When that is a good idea — and when it is not — is covered in Recording remote sessions.
No extra app, no second password: your account is the key, and every session announces itself.
Where to go next
The MoLock Remote page has the full feature list, the gesture cheat-sheet and answers to common questions. If you want to know exactly what the relay can and cannot see — and why the picture of your desktop is unreadable to everyone but you — read How MoLock Remote keeps your screen private.