Preparing Your Desktop for Remote Desktop - Mac

Follow these steps to prepare your Mac so you can remote desktop from another location.

Step 1: Preparing Your Computer at Work

Make note of your computer’s IP address. You will need this to connect to your computer using remote desktop. To see your IP address, go to ip.alfred.edu in any browser. This will bring up a screen like below. The 149.84 number is your IP address.

IP screen shot

Step 2: Sleep Settings

You will need to make sure that the sleep option is set to never. This will stop your computer from going to sleep so you can remote into it. To adjust the sleep settings on your computer, follow the steps below:

  1. You will first need to go to your Apple menu in the top left and select "System Preferences".

    System Preferences screen shot
  2. Located in System Preferences, select "Energy Saver".

    Energy Saver screen shot
  3. From here you should see options for when your computer sleeps. You will need to make sure “Prevent computer from sleeping automatically when the display is off" is checked.

    Power Adapter screen shot

Step 3: Preparing Your Computer at Home

  1. In order to remotely access your computer at work, you will need to first install and connect using a VPN.

    Instructions on how to install and connect using VPN
  2. From there you will need to connect using remote desktop.

    Instructions for remote desktop
  3. When you are finished, sign-out of your computer. Do not shut it down, as this will shut down your desktop at the remote location.

Need Help?

If you have any questions, please contact the ITS Helpdesk at [email protected] or 607-871-2222.