Starting with iOS 13 and macOS Catalina, Apple merged the two location sharing apps into Find My. The new Find My app works on macOS Catalina for location sharing and device tracking without. Oct 10, 2012 Screen Sharing will work across just about any supported Mac OS X versions too, a Mac running macOS Catalina, macOS Mojave, MacOS High Sierra, Mac OS Sierra, OS X El Capitan, Yosemite, Mountain Lion, Mavericks, and anything newer, can connect to a work Mac running Snow Leopard, and so on.
Screen Sharing is a feature in your Mac that allows you to graphically view and interact with a Mac in a remote location. By logging into your Mac in this way, you will see its desktop appear on your screen just as if you were in front of it, and not only be able to use it, but also copy files to and from it. This makes Screen Sharing perhaps one of the more useful services included in OS X.
Not only does it virtually place you in front of your Mac, but Screen Sharing also makes use of the multiple-account setup in OS X, so one person can be logged into his or her account on the remote Mac, and you can simultaneously screen share into your account to view your desktop and files, without interrupting their workflow.
This setup can be convenient, not only for your Mac at home, but also for those on corporate networks (provided the corporate firewall does not block Screen Sharing). If you have several Macs at work that you have an account on, you can use Screen Sharing to view the desktops of your accounts on those Macs all at the same time on another Mac.
How to set up Screen Sharing
Enabling either of these two services will allow you to share your Mac’s screen. Be sure to add your user account to the list of authorized users (click image for larger view).
Screen sharing simply requires a local network connection or a broadband internet connection, and then to have Screen Sharing enabled on the computers whos desktops you would like to see remotely:
- Go to the Sharing system preferences.
- Check either Screen Sharing or Remote Management.
- Set the “Allow access for” option to either allow all users, or just a specific user access to this service.
The difference between Screen Sharing and Remote Management is in supported features. Screen Sharing allows any permitted user to log in and interact with the remote desktop, and copy files to and from the system. Remote Management has an Options button that allows you to specify whether a user can start chat sessions, generate reports, open and quit applications, and change settings, etc. These options were initially intended for use with Apple’s Remote Desktop package for managing workgroups, but for most intents and purposes when using the Screen Sharing service, both will be identical.
Once set up, the system will broadcast the Screen Sharing capability via Bonjour networking so you can connect to it from any other Mac on the local network; however, it will not necessarily be available from the Internet (e.g., if you are at a Cafe somewhere and wish to access your home or work computer).
Be sure to enable this iCloud service, even if you do not use other iCloud options (click image for larger view).
To ensure connectivity from any location on the internet, you can set up port forwarding on your router and then use a dynamic DNS service like noip.com to make connecting easier, but this can be somewhat cumbersome to setup and maintain. Instead, you can use Apple’s iCloud service (even if you do not use iCloud for other purposes), to establish the connection:
- Create an Apple ID and log into the iCloud system preferences on the Mac to be accessed remotely.
- Check the “Back to My Mac” service, and then set the other services according to your needs.
- Log in to iCloud on the Mac you are working on from a remote location.
Establishing a connection
In order to connect remotely to your Mac, as with accessing any remote service you must first ensure the Mac is on and awake. You cannot start up your Mac remotely, and will have to use special services to wake your Mac from sleep modes remotely.
The “Share Screen” button should be available for the remote computer that appears in your Finder sidebar (click image for larger view).
With the Mac on and Screen Sharing configured, you should see it show up in the Sharing section of your Finder’s sidebar for every Mac you configure with the same iCloud account. From here, you can select the Mac, and then click the Share Screen button to launch Apple’s Screen Sharing application and establish a connection:
- Select the remote Mac in your Finder’s sidebar.
- Click the Screen Sharing button.
- Authenticate when prompted, optionally saving the authentication info in your keychain.
When you are connected, you will see the remote Mac’s screen appear in a window on your current Mac, and you should be able to interact with your Mac as if you were in front of it.
Note that you can establish separate screen sharing sessions to additional Macs, so you will be able to view multiple system’s screens at once; however, if you are logged into another Mac remotely, you cannot start up a screen sharing session on that Mac. Just imagine the redundancy of screen sharing to a remote system and then logging back into your current system so each is viewing the other’s desktop—it would be like the endless void of two mirrors facing each other.Dealing with slow connections
If your Internet connection is slow, then you may see a delay or two in your Screen Sharing session, so be patient if items do not respond to your input right away. At times, you might have to click something or otherwise provide an input, and then wait a few moments, trusting that the input was established, and wait for it to update on your screen.
Using Adaptive Quality will help ensure smooth operation with slow network connections.
If you are unsure if an input has been properly issued, you can do an action like opening the Apple menu, again clicking and then waiting for it to reveal on your screen. If this opens and the previous input did not take, then you can try the previous input again.
If the network connection to your Mac is regularly slow, then be sure to turn on adaptive quality instead of full quality in Screen Sharing’s View menu. This will ensure only the changed parts of the image being sent over the network are updated, instead of a stream of full screen re-draws that can bog down a slower network. For most intents and purposes, adaptive quality will give you negligibly different quality from full quality.
Special features in Screen Sharing
Screen sharing supports some convenient features that allow you to get work done quicker and without intruding on others:
- Multiple users
Choose this option to use your account without interrupting the person currently at the system.
One special feature that Screen Sharing supports, is if someone else is working in his or her account on the remote computer, then when you log in remotely you have the option of either viewing what that person is doing, or logging into your account separately and working with your files and settings, without interrupting that user.
This option will be presented anytime another account is active when you establish your remote connection, and while you can log in while the other user is active, keep in mind this user will see a screen sharing status menu appear, in which he or she can select an option to disconnect the remote connection you have established.
- Copying files and foldersA second option is to copy contents either to or from your remote Mac. All you need for this is to click and drag a file, folder, or selection of items to or from a location in the screen sharing window. Note that since the interaction with the remote system may be delayed by network speeds, you might need to click and drag files to the desired location, and then hold your cursor there until it show the green plus symbol, indicating releasing it will copy the files.
- The Clipboard
Use a shared clipboard to facilitate copying and pasting items between your Mac and the remote system.
In addition to copying files directly, you can use the clipboard to copy contents between systems. If you have a document open on your remote Mac, then you can select some text, or an image, and choose Cut or Copy from the Edit menu of your remote Mac (in the bounds of the Screen Sharing window). Following this, go to the Edit menu on your current Mac, where you should see an option to get clipboard contents, which will load the clipboard from the remote Mac to your current one, allowing you to paste this contents anywhere.
Copying and pasting in this manner can also be done in reverse; however, to make this easier, you can select the option in the Edit menu to use a shared clipboard. This will allow copied contents on either Mac to be synchronized, so you can immediately paste it without having to first use the Send or Get clipboard contents commands.
- Multiple MonitorsIf your remote Mac has multiple monitors attached, then Screen Sharing will offer you options to manage them. You can show them all in the same screen sharing window, but this will make them both relatively small when viewing remotely. This is great for an overview, but not the best for getting any work done. Alternatively, you can choose which monitor to view in Screen Sharing’s View menu, where you can select one or the other.
Viewing all desktops is good for an overview, but not optimal for getting work done. You can choose to view only one of these monitors in the Screen Sharing View menu.
Security concerns
As with any sharing service, you might be concerned about the security of the remote desktop session. The tunneled connection to your remote Mac using iCloud, and Apple’s authentication to the remote Mac both use encryption and cannot easily be intercepted by a third party. Therefore, if you trust standard file sharing and have your networks secured, then for the most part your connection should be safe.
Beyond the establishment of a secured connection is the fact that if your remote Mac’s screen is on, then anyone who can view the screen will see all of the actions you are taking. Unfortunately, you cannot sleep or otherwise mask the remote Mac’s display to hide your work, since the display will just wake up when you provide additional input. Therefore be sure this setup is secured before doing any work that you might wish to be private.
When you are finished with your remote session, if you close the Screen Sharing window then you will keep the remote Mac as-is, so be sure to log out of the remote system using its Apple menu, if you wish to secure your account.
Apple’s iOS supports several ways to display itself on a larger screen like PC, Mac, and TV. AirPlay mirroring technology is the most common method used to share iPad screen on Mac. While in this article, we will show you another two feasible ways to display your iPad screen on your Mac’s display so that you can share contents with others, host an interactive webinar, or even record your iPad on Mac’s large screen.
Terrific Ways on How to Mirror iPad to Mac
QuickTime Player – Default Way to Share iPad Screen on Mac
QuickTime Player is bundled with MacOS and you can use this default app on Mac to share your iPad screen. There are many pros with Quicktime to cast your iPad content to Mac’s screen. It costs nothing, provides instant responsiveness and can be set up easily. You can follow the guidance below to screen share iPad to Mac.
- Connect your iPad to your Mac with a USB cable.
- Launch QuickTime on your Mac after connection.
- Tap on “File” button and then find “New Movie Recording” from the list.
- As the input device will be set to the iSight camera on your Mac, please hit the down arrow next to the record button. Select iPad from the camera list and then you can show iPad screen on Mac.
Tips: In addition to mirroring iOS screen on Mac, you can also use QuickTime Player to record iPad screen on a Mac display.
ApowerMirror – Wirelessly and Conveniently Share iPad Screen on Mac
If you do not have a wire at hand, another good way that you can use to wirelessly cast your iPad screen to your Mac is called ApowerMirrror. It is a popular screen mirroring application for iOS and Android devices. And it can work smoothly both on your Windows PC and Mac. As long as your iOS devices enjoy AirPlay capability, you can mirror the iOS screen on PC or Mac with this tool. Now let’s take a close look at steps below to show iPad screen on Mac.
- Visit ApowerMirror website on your Mac and then download this app.
- Install this tool and launch it on your Mac.
- Set your iPad and Mac under the same wireless network.
- Click “AirPlay Mirroring” and “Apowersoft” after swiping up from the bottom of your iPad’s home screen.
- Once finished, you can share iPad Screen on Mac and enjoy contents on a larger screen.
The amazing part of ApowerMirror is that it allows you to mirror multiple iOS devices on PC or Mac simultaneously. What’s more, it empowers you to mirror iOS to Android or vice versa. Due to its steady performance and easy operation, this app has been well-received and applied to serving various purposes. You can use it in the classroom, office, presentation center and so forth. In addition to its mirror function, ApowerMirrror can also record your iOS or Android screen on PC or Mac.
LetsView
Another iPad supporting screen-sharing app that you can consider using is LetsView. LetsView is a multitasking platform that allows you to mirror your device to your Mac and other devices’ platform. It can do screen mirroring as the main function, screen recording, screen capturing and annotating. All these great features for free if you download LetsView on your iPad and PC. Also, aside from mirroring it to your Mac, you can do cross-platform mirroring. You can mirror it on Android, Windows, and TV. It’s worth the try. On the other hand, if you decided to use it, a walkthrough is written below.
Download and install the app on your iPad by going to your App Store. For your PC, click on the download button below.
- Connect both devices under the same Wi-fi network
- From the home screen of your phone, swipe up to reveal your control panel.
- Tap on “screen mirroring” then choose the name of your Mac and tap it.
- The mirroring will then begin.
Note: for iPhone X and XS users, swipe down from the upper right side of the home screen to reveal your control center.
Macos Screen Sharing App
Conclusion
The above content introduces you both the wired and wireless methods to share iPad screen on Mac. With this guidance, you can easily demonstrate your iPad screen on your Mac’s big screen. Of course, there are other methods available to serve this purpose. To make this article more readable, we warmly welcome you to recommend more apps in the comment below.
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