VLC is one of the most used programs to play any type of video, even in the strangest formats and extensions (the most "experienced" users will surely remember its extreme compatibility in the golden age of Windows XP!). This completely free program has entered the hearts of many users, who use it daily instead of Windows Media Player or the multimedia app integrated in Windows 10.
But if we wanted to control it remotely, from our smartphone, without having to press any button on the PC keyboard "> Cast videos from VLC on Chromecast
Prepare VLC on PC for remote connections
If we haven't done so yet, download VLC to our PC using the link here -> VLC .
The program is also compatible with Max OS X and Linux; since the options are identical on all versions, you can also prepare VLC for remote control on a Mac or on a PC on which you have installed a GNU / Linux distribution.
For this guide I will show the steps to be performed to configure VLC on Windows, being however the most used operating system in the world.
After the download and completed the installation of VLC we open the program, which will appear as in the image below.
Confirm where necessary on the initial window (where you will be asked to periodically check for updates and if you want to download the metadata of the songs and films played).
To start the configuration, press the CTRL + P keys on the PC keyboard or go to the Tools -> Preferences menu.
Inside the Preferences menu we click on the bottom left on the All item and in the new advanced menu we find the Main Interfaces item.
To the right of the program we insert the check mark on the Web entry.
Now we expand the Main Interfaces menu (just click on the arrow on its left) and in the Lua menu we insert a password under the HTTP Lua sub-menu.
We can enter any password, even simple (1234 for example).
At the end, click on Save at the bottom, close the settings menu and close and reopen VLC.
Closing VLC is important otherwise the changes will not take effect; if you have problems with this configuration make sure you have closed VLC and reopened.
Upon restarting, a Windows firewall request may appear: we accept without any problem.
Now VLC is ready to be controlled remotely using one of the apps that I will recommend you in the rest of the guide.
IP recovery of PC with VLC
Some apps are able to configure themselves automatically as soon as VLC is ready to receive connections, in other cases we will have to manually retrieve the IP address of the PC on which there is VLC to be controlled remotely.
The fastest way to recover the PC IP is to open the command prompt on Windows (we find it by looking for it in the Start menu) and typing:
ipconfig
In the all black window we will see the connection interfaces of the PC and among these also the IP address assigned to the PC.
Let's mark this number on a piece of paper or on a notebook together with the port used by VLC for remote control (i.e. 8888).
In my case the address to control VLC will become 192.168.1.138 .
Download the right app on Android
Once you have finished configuring VLC on your PC and obtained the IP address for remote control, we can download the following free app for our Android devices -> VLC Mobile Remote .
This app is able to automatically configure itself with VLC thanks to the integrated search system, but alternatively also offers a menu where you can enter the IP address and password chosen during configuration on the PC.
Once the app is connected we can control the playback of songs and videos played on VLC on the PC remotely but also take advantage of most of the VLC features such as subtitles, control the volume, change tracks, control DVDs, Control Playlists, add and play files and finally also get notifications on your smartphone with each change made in playback.
In addition to this app we can try one of the alternatives for Android those present in the following list; they are all valid with the configuration method presented in this guide, we just have to choose our favorite app:
- VLC Stream and Remote
- VLC Remote Free
Download the right app on iPhone or iPad
If you have an iPhone or iPad you can configure the free VLC Remote app, available from here -> VLC Remote .
This app has an automatic search system for the configured VLCs as already seen in the guide, just wait for the PC icon with the active VLC to appear.
Click on the PC icon and we will be asked for the password for the VLC remote interface: enter the password chosen during the configuration phase and prepare to enjoy the remote controls of VLC from the sofa or bed!
With the app for Apple devices we can control playback, go back and forth in the song or playlist being played, access PC folders containing multimedia files, get advanced controls for DVDs and manually set the delay for video and l 'audio (in case of content out of sync).
Alternative apps to control VLC on PC are also available on iPhone and iPad; we preferred to collect them all in this part of the guide, so that we can comfortably choose the app to use on Apple devices.
- Remote for VLC - PC & Mac
The first app is identical to the one available for Android and reviewed in the guide, while the second is a generic remote control app that requires the presence of a server on the PC in order to control VLC and other programs.
READ ALSO: Open streaming videos with VLC on PC and Android
