Q: Wirelessly Wake on demand
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Nov 19, 2013 8:24 AMby John Galt,HelpfulTo my knowledge, only Apple AirPort Base Stations and the AppleTV support the Bonjour Sleep Proxy required for waking a sleeping Mac remotely, i.e. over the Internet.
It is open source though, so if you are considering other routers be sure to verify that specific feature by that exact name.
Don't buy third party routers. Apple's AirPort routers are more reliable than any other and will preclude any uncertainty regarding many features particular to recent versions of OS X, Mavericks most of all. Future OS X versions are likely to grow even more dependent on such features.
... ie. I want the screen to be turned on so I can fully access my Macbook as thought I am sitting in front of it.
You don't need any additional software to do that. It is already included in OS X and is called "Screen Sharing". Enable it in System Preferences > Sharing. You will also need to enable "Back to My Mac" in System Preferences > iCloud.
Your MacBook Pro can be sleeping but its power adapter must be connected and its lid must be open. Otherwise, it will not wake up remotely.
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Nov 19, 2013 8:31 AMby DarrenTK,Thanks John, that was very helpful! Just a couple follow up questions.
1) If I have the Apple Airport Router, how do I wake my Macbook via the Internet? Is there an application I can use to send the "magic packet" wirelessly from the Airport router to the macbook?
2) Can I use "Back to My Mac" Screen Sharing with my iPad/iPhone?
Thanks
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Nov 19, 2013 8:51 AMby John Galt,Helpful1. Any Mac you have with "Back to My Mac" enabled will appear in a Finder Sidebar. Other than a compatible router, nothing else is required. (Edit to add: you must also enable "Wake for network access" in System Preferences > Energy Saver.)
Its underlying infrastructure is quite complex for many reasons, including the need to ensure your Mac remains secure from unauthorised others, but from the user's perspective a Mac in an adjacent office with Screen Sharing enabled will look and work the same as one thousands of miles away:
OS X Mountain Lion: Use Back to My Mac
Though the article references Mountain Lion, it is equally applicable to Mavericks. The article does not specifically address the Bonjour Sleep Proxy that I referred to earlier. That is the feature required to wake a sleeping Mac over the Internet, and to my knowledge is supported at present only by Apple routers.
2. I don't know of a way to do that, but I haven't researched that possibility. I am nearly certain there are no Apple apps that offer that capability.
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Nov 19, 2013 8:49 AMby DarrenTK,Unfortunately, I only have one Apple computer (Macbook Pro).
From the description, Back to My Mac only works between 2 Mac computer, not a Mac and iPad.
Does this mean I won't be able to Wirelessly Wake my Macbook Pro and turn on the screen, if my other device is an iPad?
Thanks again John!
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Nov 20, 2013 3:23 AMby DarrenTK,I found a solution to this.
In case anyone else is wondering, here is what I did.
You will need to install Plex on the Mac and IOS device.
While the computer is asleep, just launch the Plex Application from the iphone/ipad and it will wake the Macbook wirelessly.
Then use LogmeIn app to connect to the macbook. I find logmein performance much better than iteleport or teamviewer.
I tried this on 4G network at work and successfully logged into my macbook at home numerous times
Hope this helps
