Remote Management for Mac OS X
Please note that Screen Sharing is used more often by ITS staff. Enable Screen Sharing for Mac OS X
Have you ever been on the phone with User Support and found it hard to explain what you're trying to accomplish or the steps you've already tried? Have you ever had a problem that took you half an hour to solve, when it turned out there was a simple five-second fix?
It is possible to share your screen with a staff member in ITS using Apple Remote Desktop. Apple Remote Desktop allows a staff member (with permission) to manage your computer from another location. The staff member can see what's on your sceen and control the mouse. A window showing your screen will appear on the desktop of the staff member working with you, so he or she can see what's going on, help you troubleshoot errors, demonstrate solutions to the problem, and make sure the issue is fully resolved.
The "observe" and "control" aspects of remote management are turned off by default, but can easily be turned on to give access to a tech in ITS. Other settings, which allow ITS to manage all Macs on campus (but which do not allow anyone from ITS to "see" or control your computer) are turned on by default and should always be left on.
Enable Remote Management for Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard
Enable Remote Management for Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger
- Click on the Apple Menu to open System Preferences.
- Open Sharing.
- Select Remote Management if it is not already selected. Remote Management should be checked.
- In the Allow access for section of the window, select Only these users and then select osxadmin (or a different accout if specified by the staff member).
- Click on the Options button.
- Put a check-mark in every option in this window. Click OK.
- Notice the text "Other users can manage your computer using the address..." Copy the IP address (131.229.xxx.xxx) and give it to the tech who will be logging into your computer.
- When the tech no longer needs remote access to your computer, you can come back to the Options window and un-check control and observe.
- Click on the Apple Menu to open System Preferences.
- Open Sharing.
- Select Apple Remote Desktop if it is not already selected. Apple Remote Desktop should be checked.
- Click on the Access Priveleges button.
- In the Access Priveleges window, select osxadmin (or a different accout if specified by the staff member) and put a check-mark in every option under "Allow user to do the following on this computer." (Many options will already be checked, it is especially important that "Observe," "Control," and "Show When Being Observed" are checked.)
- Click OK.
- Notice the text "Other users can manage your computer using the address..." Copy the IP address (131.229.xxx.xxx) and give it to the tech who will be logging into your computer.
- When the tech no longer needs remote access to your computer, you can come back to the Access Priveledges window and un-check Control and Observe (please leave all other options checked).
