I want to provide occasional remote tech support for somebody (or maybe multiple somebodies), with the ability to see and control their mac. I’d like it to be as simple as possible, especially at the other end. I’m wiling to pay an up-front cost, e.g. for Apple Remote Access, but am not keen to pay for a subscription for something I might only use a few times a year. Also, I’d prefer that the person at the other end be able to leave it disabled most of the time, for security. Any recommendations?
I used to use TeamViewer, and still could, but it’s gotten rather weird (new requirement to have an account, and a new interface that at first glance looks opaque).
Use the Screen Sharing app that’s built-in to macOS. It’s free, secure, and meets all the requirements you stated. I just used it today to update my mother’s MacBook to macOS 26.6, and she lives a few hundred miles away.
I use Jump Desktop for this. My mother’s Mac and my own network when away. Mac and iOS, There’s a free version and I see they’ve adopted a subscription which is new to me, must be for teams. I recall a one off payment aeons ago for the app. Try the free version, they say it’s fully functional.
AnyDesk and Splashtop worked great for me for years. Both are cross platform. Last I knew Splashtop was about $60/yr but I was able to use the free version of AnyDesk
Concur with this (build int Apple Screen Sharing) for that use case. Especially easy to trigger via an iMessage or FaceTime session.
Years ago I used to pay for Timbuktu for this. Then when Apple came out with the Back to my Mac service it made that all obsolete. And then with the VNC-compatible screen sharing and something like Tailscale (also mentioned elsewhere in this thread), I could control any of my Macs from an iPad or iPhone from anywhere with a VNC app. Sadly the macOS 26.6 update appears to have stopped that from working (there were several Screen Sharing-specific security fixes in the update that may have been to blame for that), but the Mac to Mac screen sharing still works great for that.
My experience with Apple Screen Sharing has not been successful for quite some time now.
It used to “just work” between myself and my brother. No fiddling with esoteric settings required. I would fire up Screen Sharing, select his Apple Account name and we’d be in business. We are both on Apple Silicon machines running Tahoe (currently 26.6).
Whatever changed, and I’m not really remembering accurately when this issue began for me, now has sharing attempts deliver the message “MYNAMEHERE would like to view your screen” to my brother’s iMac, which then disappears a fraction of a second later (he sent me a movie of this).
Just today, in researching how to fix an SSD boot drive that will not mount in a 2010 27-inch iMac, I found the following commands on page 212 of Take Control of the Mac Command Line with Terminal (3.5) referring to screen sharing issues:
To disable screen sharing:
sudo launchctl bootout system /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/ com.apple.screensharing.plist
To enable screen sharing:
sudo launchctl bootstrap system /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/ com.apple.screensharing.plist
I’m grasping at straws here. These apparently override whatever switches are, or are not, set and get screen sharing to function again. I’ve got to research this a bit and then see if my brother’s Apple Silicon iMac would be able to share with me once again if these Terminal commands were to be issued.
For years, I used Teamviewer to support friends and family; their free-for-personal-use policy was generous, setup was easy, and it worked reliably. When their policy changed and these kinds of support calls required a paid subscription, I explored alternatives and landed on HelpWire:
Free, simple, reliable and cross-platform to boot.
TeamViewer may provide a free-of-charge version for selected Software Products to Customer solely for personal and non-commercial purposes (“Free Version”). The use for the exercise of Customer’s trade, business or profession, or the use for the purposes for which Customer directly or indirectly receives compensation (e. g. teamwork with colleagues, free support provided to third parties which have bought Customer’s own software or other product), shall not constitute personal usage.
How did you “fire it up”? The Screensharing app or selecting “connect to server” in the finder menu?
That sounds like there is lying something on his keyboard or a stuck esc or enter key that instantly dismisses the dialog. (Had that on more than one occasion.)