DeskTrust Connect vs. TeamViewer: the consent-first alternative

TeamViewer is the gold standard for remote desktop access — for over two decades. If you need the manager to actually control the employee\'s mouse and keyboard from across the internet, TeamViewer is the mature product.

DeskTrust Connect\'s manager screen viewing is a different shape. It\'s deliberately view-only, consent-first, and audit-heavy. Here\'s when to pick which.

Pick TeamViewer when…

• The remote helper needs to type and click on the target machine, not just observe.
• The target machine may be locked or unattended and needs to be woken up remotely.
• File transfer between the two machines is part of the workflow.
• You\'re providing external customer support to non-employees.

Pick Connect when…

• An employee is at their desk and needs to show a manager what they\'re doing.
• You need proof of consent for regulatory reasons.
• You want a permanent audit log of every session, approved or not.
• You don\'t want the manager to be able to silently control anything.
• You\'re paying for DeskTrust anyway and don\'t need TeamViewer\'s remote-control feature specifically.

The consent story

TeamViewer\'s attended-mode session shows a "your screen is being shared" notification. That\'s good. But it\'s not blocking, doesn\'t require re-consent per session, and doesn\'t audit-log the request itself. In deployed configurations we\'ve seen with customers, TeamViewer runs in unattended mode — no notification at all.

Connect can\'t operate that way. There is no unattended mode. Every session requires:

1. The employee to click Approve in a modal
2. The employee to pick the specific screen or window they\'re sharing
3. A persistent red "screen being viewed" pill for the entire session
4. A one-click STOP button available at all times
5. An immutable audit row written for every state transition

For internal employee support in most jurisdictions, this is the safer legal posture. For third-party customer support where the customer chose to install TeamViewer specifically for this use case, TeamViewer\'s model is fine.

The pricing angle

TeamViewer Business is $50 per month for one named user. TeamViewer Corporate is $102 for multi-user. For a team of 20, that\'s $2,000+ a month you\'re paying for capability you might not fully use.

Connect: $0 extra on your DeskTrust plan.

The remote-control gap

We know remote control matters for some support workflows. Connect v1 is view-only. Remote control (via the DeskTrust agent, not the browser) is on the v1.5 roadmap. If it\'s critical to you right now, keep TeamViewer for that specific workflow and use Connect for everything else.

Practical migration path

1. Enable Connect for your DeskTrust org (Dashboard → Billing).
2. Enable the "Manager-initiated screen viewing" toggle in Settings.
3. Have your legal team review the consent disclosures (they\'re jurisdiction-aware).
4. For one month, route all non-remote-control support requests through Connect.
5. Measure: what percentage of your TeamViewer sessions actually needed remote control?

If it\'s <20%, downgrade TeamViewer to a single license and save the rest.