Re: remote access from my phone to my laptop
A couple of options:
(Free)The best one I have found over a local network is MS-RemoteDesktop assuming the laptop has a professional+ version, not home version of windows. I use this all the time at home.
(Free)Via the cellular network, Teamviewer works well though I have not used it for unattended access but likely has that feature.
($)Also via cellular, I use LogMeIn. On a phone, you move the screen to the pointer, not the pointer to the object on the screen like a typical mouse GUI. For a tablet, the stylus pointer works very good.
Likely there are others but these are the ones I use. When setup with Dropbox or other cloud sync solution, it is great for getting/sending files from/to your phone/tablet and computer.