pleasehelpmelol

Q: screenshare via thunderbolt

I have two macbooks in the same house,

 

I like to screenshare and have full control one from the other.

 

I have been doing this over my network but by network is slow.

 

Can I do this via a thunderbolt cable? Control one mac with the other exactly as screenshare currently does but with a cable NOT a network.

 

I do not want to use one as a monitor to the other and I do not want to use a network.

 

Surely this should be very simple? Plug both in select screenshare and use the thunderbolt option? Why have they made this difficult.

 

Please help asap.

Posted on Oct 26, 2015 7:11 AM

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Q: screenshare via thunderbolt

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  • by Grant Bennet-Alder,Apple recommended

    Grant Bennet-Alder Grant Bennet-Alder Oct 26, 2015 7:27 AM in response to pleasehelpmelol
    Level 9 (61,322 points)
    Desktops
    Oct 26, 2015 7:27 AM in response to pleasehelpmelol

    You can use a ThunderBolt cable to treat one Mac as a Hard drive, mounted on the other using Target Disk Mode:

     

    Share files between two computers with target disk mode - Apple Support

     

    --------

    I have been doing this over my network but my network is slow.

     

    Then lets work on speeding it up.

     

    Ethernet:

    Do you have the ability to connect over Ethernet cables? They are about the same size as telephone wire, but are engineered for minimal crosstalk and noise. Each cable can run up to 100 meters. If you do not already have a Gigabit Ethernet switch, there is a selection in the Apple online store. You do not necessarily need to replace your Router, since your Internet connection itself is unlikely to be Ethernet speed.

     

    802.11ac Wi-Fi:

    The newest Routers (including Apple Routers can run at MUCH higher speeds, sometime approaching Gigabit speeds under ideal conditions. In the US, the latest Apple Router is also available refurbished (read indistinguishable from new). Your newish MacBook likely have 802.11ac capability build-tin, but you can check for that before spending anything.

     

    You can also ADD a faster Router to your existing Home Network. My house is solid masonry construction, and Wi-Fi signals drop off very rapidly. I am currently using three Routers, wired together with Ethernet cables, to provide Wi-Fi access under these difficult conditions.

  • by pleasehelpmelol,

    pleasehelpmelol pleasehelpmelol Oct 26, 2015 7:28 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder
    Level 1 (1 points)
    Oct 26, 2015 7:28 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

    Thank you for this.

     

    But no I can not speed up my network and I do not want a harddrive.

     

    I want to screenshare, via a cable. Is this doable, what software do I need. Why this is not built in I have no idea.

  • by lllaass,Apple recommended

    lllaass lllaass Oct 26, 2015 7:35 AM in response to pleasehelpmelol
    Level 10 (190,362 points)
    Apple Watch
    Oct 26, 2015 7:35 AM in response to pleasehelpmelol

    That should work if you setup a Thunderbolt bridge between the two Macs

    http://www.macworld.com/article/2142073/connecting-two-macs-using-thunderbolt.ht ml

  • by pleasehelpmelol,

    pleasehelpmelol pleasehelpmelol Oct 26, 2015 7:46 AM in response to pleasehelpmelol
    Level 1 (1 points)
    Oct 26, 2015 7:46 AM in response to pleasehelpmelol

    I have connected them and made a thunderbolt bridge but screensharing isnt an option unless they are both on the same wifi network to do over network just as before.

     

    I want to screenshare completely independently of the internet using the cable only.

  • by Grant Bennet-Alder,

    Grant Bennet-Alder Grant Bennet-Alder Oct 26, 2015 8:25 AM in response to pleasehelpmelol
    Level 9 (61,322 points)
    Desktops
    Oct 26, 2015 8:25 AM in response to pleasehelpmelol

    Make certain the ThunderBolt IP is the topmost network connection, by Gear--> Set Service Order in System preferences > Network.

  • by brunofromcapetown,

    brunofromcapetown brunofromcapetown Oct 11, 2016 4:17 AM in response to pleasehelpmelol
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 11, 2016 4:17 AM in response to pleasehelpmelol

    Hi,

    Have you now found a solution ? I have bought the ThunderBolt cable to realise that Target Display Mode is no longer available... Is there any workaround ?

    Thanks

    Bruno

  • by lllaass,

    lllaass lllaass Oct 11, 2016 7:09 AM in response to brunofromcapetown
    Level 10 (190,362 points)
    Apple Watch
    Oct 11, 2016 7:09 AM in response to brunofromcapetown

    Just what model Macs do you have?

    brunofromcapetown wrote:

     

    Hi,

    Have you now found a solution ? I have bought the ThunderBolt cable to realise that Target Display Mode is no longer available... Is there any workaround ?

    Thanks

    Bruno

  • by Grant Bennet-Alder,

    Grant Bennet-Alder Grant Bennet-Alder Oct 11, 2016 8:57 AM in response to pleasehelpmelol
    Level 9 (61,322 points)
    Desktops
    Oct 11, 2016 8:57 AM in response to pleasehelpmelol

    I use Screen Sharing and a lot of File Sharing over Gigabit Ethernet. I find it is plenty fast enough, provided:

     

    • you are using cables with all eight conductors present (otherwise you are limited to 100Base-T speeds)

    • you enable Jumbo  (9000 byte) frames

    • you have an Ethernet Switch that can do Gigabit Ethernet. It does not need to be the same device as your Internet Router as long as the two are connected by an Ethernet cable.

  • by brunofromcapetown,

    brunofromcapetown brunofromcapetown Oct 11, 2016 1:57 PM in response to lllaass
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 11, 2016 1:57 PM in response to lllaass

    A fairly new MacBook Pro (2015) and an older MacBook Air (~2011)

  • by lllaass,

    lllaass lllaass Oct 11, 2016 2:40 PM in response to brunofromcapetown
    Level 10 (190,362 points)
    Apple Watch
    Oct 11, 2016 2:40 PM in response to brunofromcapetown

    Only recent iMacs, except the 4K and 5K ones, support Target Display mode.

    If the MacBook Air has a Thunderbolt port you can connect the two via a Thunderbolt cable and use Screen Sharing across a Thunderbolt network. That would likley not be much better than connecting the two via gigabit Ethernet

  • by brunofromcapetown,

    brunofromcapetown brunofromcapetown Oct 11, 2016 5:00 PM in response to lllaass
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 11, 2016 5:00 PM in response to lllaass

    Thanks lllaass

    I have connected both MacBooks using the TB cable.  What do you recommend using for Screen Sharing then ?

  • by BobHarris,

    BobHarris BobHarris Oct 11, 2016 5:42 PM in response to lllaass
    Level 6 (19,640 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 11, 2016 5:42 PM in response to lllaass

    lllaass wrote:

     

    Only recent iMacs, except the 4K and 5K ones, support Target Display mode.

    If the MacBook Air has a Thunderbolt port you can connect the two via a Thunderbolt cable and use Screen Sharing across a Thunderbolt network. That would likley not be much better than connecting the two via gigabit Ethernet

    My Late 2009 27" iMac support Target Display mode, and I have successfully attached my iMac to my Macbook Pro.  This URL lists the Macs that support Target Disk mode

    <Use your iMac as a display with Target Display Mode - Apple Support>

  • by brunofromcapetown,

    brunofromcapetown brunofromcapetown Oct 11, 2016 11:24 PM in response to BobHarris
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 11, 2016 11:24 PM in response to BobHarris

    Thanks

    There is however confusing information about Screen Sharing on some forums.  I am confident there must be a free or inexpensive solution to achieve Screen Sharing using ThunderBolt (or whatever cable).

  • by BobHarris,Apple recommended

    BobHarris BobHarris Oct 12, 2016 7:48 AM in response to brunofromcapetown
    Level 6 (19,640 points)
    Mac OS X
    Oct 12, 2016 7:48 AM in response to brunofromcapetown

    brunofromcapetown wrote:

     

    Thanks

    There is however confusing information about Screen Sharing on some forums.  I am confident there must be a free or inexpensive solution to achieve Screen Sharing using ThunderBolt (or whatever cable).

    And there is Target Display mode, that allows making one Mac a dumb display that is attached to another computer as if it were an external monitor.  The Mac in "Target Display" mode is not an active computer.  Command-F2 puts a qualified Mac into "Target Display" mode <Use your iMac as a display with Target Display Mode - Apple Support>.  Thunderbolt can be used to connect the Mac in Target Display mode to the computer that will use it as an external monitor (actually the Thunderbolt cable is acting as a DisplayPort cable).

     

    NOTE:  Only the Macs listed as supporting Target Display mode can be turned into a dumb external monitor for another computer via a DisplayPort (Thunderbolt) cable.

     

    There is System Preferences -> Sharing -> "Screen Sharing" via networking which allows one computer to view the display of another computer, and even control the other computer remotely.  In this case Thunderbolt would be used as a Mac to Mac networking cable.  Seen System Preferences -> Network and the list of interfaces on the left.  Using Thunderbolt as a network would be just a faster form of networking, but no different from using Ethernet, WiFi or the Internet to remotely access a Mac.

     

    There is a software package called ScreenRecycler <https://www.screenrecycler.com/ScreenRecycler.html> that uses VNC technology to make an older Mac appear as an external monitor for another computer, which used the Local Area Network (LAN) as the interconnect, of which Thunderbolt networking would qualify.  But again, it is essentially networking and nothing that requires Thunderbolt.