Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Manually Connect to Screen-Sharing Computers
Virtual Network Computing (VNC) screen sharing
27
is the technology that
powers OS X's screen-sharing feature, and it's an open standard. This means
OS X computers can both share their screens with users of non-Mac comput-
ers and connect to screens shared in this way.
To connect to a Mac, users of Windows or Linux will need to download an
up-to-date VNC client like RealVNC,
28
for example, and specify the network
address that was listed in System Preferences when Screen Sharing was
activated. You might also have to configure your Internet router to allow
VNC/screen-sharing connections, as mentioned during the setup instructions
earlier—consult its documentation for more information.
To connect your Mac to a Windows or Linux computer running a VNC server
(or to connect to another Mac that doesn't have Back To My Mac configured),
open a Finder window, and click Go→Connect to Server. Then in the dialog
box that appears, type
VNC://
followed by the address. To connect to a computer
located at 192.168.1.5, for example, I'd type
VNC://192.168.1.5
. You can also type
this into the Safari URL bar rather than use Finder.
Whichever method is chosen, all that happens is that OS X's hidden Screen
Sharing app is activated—the same one that's used for Mac-to-Mac screen-
sharing sessions. It can be found in the
/SYSTEM/LIBRARY/CORESERVICES
folder (open
Finder, hit
SHIFT
+
COMMAND
+
G
, and then type the address to browse to the
folder). You can drag and drop this utility to the Dock for easy access—upon
running, it will prompt for the network address of the remote computer and
then, if it's able to connect, for login and password details.
Adding Windows Screen-Sharing Support to Your Mac
Microsoft also offers for download a free client that allows Macs to connect
to Windows computers running Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP), which is the
Microsoft technology responsible for screen sharing on Windows computers.
29
