How to Remotely Access a Mac

Last Updated: March 11, 2018

Say you are sitting in the office and you need access to a coworker's computer. You could physically go to that computer, but that takes both time and energy. Thanks to Mac OS X's remote login feature, there is now a faster way to gain this access. Remote login allows you to transfer files back and forth as well as perform other tasks.

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Turning on SSH

1
Open System Preferences on the computer you plan to connect to.
2
Click the Sharing icon.

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3
Check the box correlated to Remote Login. This turns on your SSH setting.
4
Select allow access for All users.
5
Note the login information in the quotes. It is needed for a later step.
6
Repeat this process for the computer you are going to use to access the first computer.

Part 2

Part 2 of 2:

Logging In

1
Launch Terminal on the accessing computer.
- Go to the upper right corner of your screen and there you should find a magnifying glass. Click on it and type Terminal. Then double-click on Terminal.
2
Wait for the Terminal to open.
3
Recall the login information from the computer you want to access. If you do not remember where the login information was, go back to the first method.
4
Type in ssh computername@123.34.56.789. Hit ↵ Enter.
- After entering the login information, a confirmation prompt may appear. If it does, type yes and hit ↵ Enter.
5
Enter the password of the computer you are wanting to log into and then hit ↵ Enter.
- When typing the password into the Terminal, the cursor will not move.
6
Done! You have successfully logged into that computer. You should see the name of the computer you accessed left of the cursor.

Warnings

You will not be to access a Mac computer unless you are both connected to the same network.

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This will not work with Windows or Linux.

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Make sure you turn off your SSH when not in use.

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The computer must not be in sleep mode.

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Passwords needed for both computers.

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