To ensure that Screens can connect to your Mac, follow these simple steps to set it up for remote access:
1. enable remote management
On the Mac you are connecting to, click here to open the Sharing settings or manually open the System Preferences app and go to General > Sharing.
Activate Remote management.
Click on the ⓘ button.
Make sure that Allow access for is set to All users. If you prefer to allow access to specific users, make sure that your user is listed under Only these users.
Note: If you are using macOS 14.5, it is best to select All Users due to a known issue. Further information can be found here.
Click on Options....
Tick the checkboxes for Watch and Control.
If you want to allow Connection requests from guest users, activate Anyone can request screen control authorisation.
2. enable remote login (optional)
If you want to use a secure connection (SSH tunnel) with Screens:
On the Mac you are connecting to, click here to open the Sharing settings, or manually open the System Preferences app and go to General > Sharing.
Activate Remote login.
Click on the ⓘ button.
Make sure that Allow access is set to All users. If you would rather only allow access for certain users, make sure that your user is listed under Only these users.
3. enable for network access
This ensures that your Mac responds to connections even when it is idle:
macOS 13 Ventura or higher
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on the Mac you are connecting to, click here to open the Energy settings or manually open the System Preferences app.
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select Battery or Power adapter, depending on whether your Mac is a laptop or a desktop.
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select Options...
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under Enable for network access, select Always.
macOS 12 Monterey or earlier
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on the Mac you are connecting to, click here to open the Energy settings, or manually open the System Preferences app.
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select Energy Saver or Battery.
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if available, select Power supply.
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activate Enable for network access.
Note: If you are connecting to a MacBook, make sure it is connected to a power source. Otherwise, it may not be activated when you try to access it remotely.
4. make your Mac accessible remotely
To remotely access your Mac, you should use Screens Connect, Tailscale or NordVPN. You can find step-by-step instructions here.
5. connect to your Mac
Once your Mac is set up, you can make your first connection with Screens. Find out here how to establish a connection.