Control your Mac remotely with Tailscale

What you are setting up

Tailscale connects your devices in a private network called a tailnet. Remoted connects to the Mac over that network, and the Mac’s Screen Sharing service supplies the desktop. Tailscale provides the network route; it does not enable screen sharing or replace the Mac’s login.

This guide uses Tailscale on both devices. An exit node or subnet router is not needed for this arrangement. Keep the Mac powered on, awake and connected. A sleeping or shut-down Mac may not be reachable.

• How Tailscale connects devices

1. Install Tailscale on the Mac

Enable Screen Sharing and allow the Mac account you will use, as described in our first-connection guide.

1. Download Tailscale from its official macOS installation page.
2. Open it and follow the onboarding prompts to install its VPN configuration.
3. Sign in and make sure Tailscale is connected. Keep it running while you want remote access.

• Install Tailscale on macOS
• Set up Remoted and Screen Sharing

2. Install Tailscale on iPhone or iPad

If you use a work or shared tailnet, ask its administrator to approve the devices and allow the required connection. Being signed in does not override the tailnet’s access rules.

1. Install the official Tailscale app from the App Store.
2. Open it, follow onboarding and approve the VPN configuration when iOS asks.
3. For your own devices, sign in with the same Tailscale account as the Mac and connect. Confirm both devices appear in the same tailnet.

• Install Tailscale on iOS and iPadOS

3. Find the Mac’s Tailscale address

Open the device list in Tailscale or its admin console and copy the Mac’s Tailscale IPv4 address. It starts with 100. Use the address shown for your Mac, rather than an example or its local Wi-Fi address.

You can also use its full MagicDNS name if DNS is working. If a name fails, try the Tailscale IP address first. Nearby discovery may not list a computer across this network; add it manually.

• Find devices and their addresses
• MagicDNS names

4. Connect in Remoted

1. Add a computer or use Quick Connect. Enter the Mac’s Tailscale IP address or full MagicDNS name.
2. Keep the configured Screen Sharing port, normally 5900, and start with Standard mode.
3. Authenticate with the permitted Mac account’s username and password. These are not your Tailscale credentials.
4. Once connected, try touch controls and confirm you can see the intended desktop. Remembering credentials is optional.

• How Tailscale protects connections

5. Test away from your home Wi-Fi

Switch your iPhone to cellular data, or use a different internet connection on your iPad. Confirm Tailscale is still connected, then reconnect in Remoted using the same Tailscale address. Leave the Mac online.

For this setup, keep Screen Sharing private. Do not forward its port to the public internet. High Performance still depends on the Mac, its configuration and network conditions; a working Standard connection does not guarantee every mode.

If it does not connect

If you still need help, email remoted.dev@gmail.com with the app and OS versions, connection mode, error and steps to reproduce. Keep credentials, private addresses and desktop content out of the message.

1. Check that both devices are online, connected to Tailscale and in the intended tailnet. Resolve device approval or expired sign-in prompts.
2. Try the Mac’s Tailscale IP address to check whether the problem is only name resolution.
3. Check Screen Sharing, the permitted Mac account and the configured port.
4. Ask the tailnet administrator to check access rules for Screen Sharing, normally TCP port 5900 for Standard mode. Also check the Mac’s firewall.
5. If another VPN is active, check for conflicts using Tailscale’s Apple troubleshooting guide.

• Tailscale’s Apple troubleshooting guide
• Tailscale device connection checks