Computer Associates International Inc has added remote desktop control to its portfolio, with the acquisition – well it must be at least a couple of weeks since it last went shopping – of privately held Avalon Technology Inc for an undisclosed sum. Avalon developed the Remotely Possible/32 family of remote control software for Windows NT, 95 and 3.x, which Computer Associates says it will now integrate with its Unicenter TNG systems management software, its ARCserve backup and recovery software and InocuLAN virus checker. The Islandia, New York giant has to date not offered its own remote control software, but has integrated with third party software such as Microsoft Corp’s SMS. Remotely Possible will enable administrators to take remote control of a desktop or NT server via a network, dial-up or the internet. The administrator can offer remote helpdesk support, administration of the desktop or server and end-user training. The product enables a one to many, or many to one connection, so the administrator can train a group of users at the same time, and a group of users can see the administrator’s console. Computer Associates says this product comes in to its own in conjunction with its other products, and will be used to sort out exceptions rather than as a tool in its own right, for example if a remote software upgrade fails on a few desktops, the administrator can rectify this remotely on those individual desktops. The company insists the integration of Remotely Possible will not affect its relationship with third party remote software vendors.