Access your Mac anywhere

Learn how to control your Mac via your iPad, iPhone or another Mac

- CARRIE MARSHALL

REQUIRES You'll need an iPad/ iPhone and your Mac

YOU WILL LEARN How to remotely control your Mac

IT WILL TAKE 10 minutes

YOU'RE MILES AWAY from your Mac, and you need to access something on it that isn't stored in iCloud or another cloud storage service. What to do? If you have remote-access software, you can connect via your iPad, iPhone or another Mac to access and edit files remotely.

There's no shortage of remote-access options for Macs, and they range from built-in (but a little techy) SSH access in macOS's System Preferences > Sharing > Remote Login, to dedicated remote- access solutions, such as MSP360, Splashtop and others.

However, one of the simplest options is completely free: Google Chrome Remote Desktop. Install the Remote Desktop extension in the Chrome web browser on your Mac, and you will be able to access and control your machine from your iPhone, iPad or any internet-connected computer that runs Chrome. As we'll discover, once you're set up, the Chrome Remote Desktop is simple and very effective indeed. 

HOW TO Access your Mac with Chrome Remote Desktop

1 Get the extension 

To use Chrome Remote Desktop, first install the Google Chrome browser and then use it to visit remote-desktop. google.com/access. You should now see the screen above: click on the blue download button to continue.

2 Name your Mac