The advent of the Internet has allowed the development of remote access capabilities to a growing variety and number of microscopy systems. To date, the confocal microscope has not been included among these systems. At the California State University (CSU) Confocal Microscopy Core Facility, we have established a remote access confocal laser scanning microscope facility that allows users with virtually any type of computer platform to connect to our system. Our Leica TCS NT confocal system is accessible to any authorized user via the Internet by using a free software program called VNC (Virtual Network Computing). Once connectivity is established, remote users are able to control virtually all the functions to conduct real-time image analysis and quantitative assessments of their specimen. They can also move the motorized stage to view different regions of their specimen by using a software program associated with the stage. At the end of the session, all files generated during the session can be downloaded to the user’s computer from a link on the CSU confocal website. A number of safeguard features have been developed to ensure security and privacy of data acquired during a remote session.
