Can’t connect my 2018 Mac Mini to my iMac (late 2013)

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Can’t connect my 2018 Mac Mini to my iMac (late 2013)

I purchased the brand new 2018 Mac Mini to hook up to my late model 2013 27” iMac to use it as a monitor in target display mode. However, even after purchasing an Apple Mini DisplayPort to DVI Adapter, an Apple HDMI to DVI Adapter, and a DVI TO DVI cable, I still can’t get my iMac to recognize my Mac mini when everything is all plugged in. When I press Command F2, nothing happens. Although my 2013 iMac is compatible and can go into target display mode...it does not. What is wrong? What can’t my iMac see my mac mini which is plugged in properly???

Mac mini (2018), iMac 27” late 2013

Posted on Nov 10, 2018 8:58 PM

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Answer 1

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VikingOSX

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Nov 26, 2018 12:56 PM in response to misingyu2

Thunderbolt 3 male to Thunderbolt 1/2 female cable— Apple $49
Thunderbolt 1/2 male to Thunderbolt 1/2 male cable, 2m — Apple $39

2018 Mac mini [1][2] ---------------[2] Late-2013 iMac.

Then, Target Display Mode via cmd+F2 on the iMac.

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Answer 2

BobHarris

Level 9

53,759 points

Nov 11, 2018 7:04 PM in response to misingyu2

From the above specified web page:

If your Mac has Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) ports, you can connect it using the Apple Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter.

iMac models you can use as a display	Cable you need	Port you need on your other Mac
iMac (27-inch, Late 2009)	Mini DisplayPort to Mini DisplayPort	Mini DisplayPort or Thunderbolt
iMac (27-inch, Mid 2010)	Mini DisplayPort to Mini DisplayPort	Mini DisplayPort or Thunderbolt
iMac (Mid 2011-Mid 2014)	Thunderbolt	Thunderbolt

iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Late 2014) and later iMac models can't be used as Target Display Mode displays.

HDMI and DVI are not mentioned.

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Answer 3

BobHarris

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53,759 points

Nov 11, 2018 8:00 AM in response to misingyu2

See the System Requirements section

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Answer 4

misingyu2 Author

Level 1

11 points

Nov 11, 2018 8:57 AM in response to BobHarris

I already read all of the Apple support pages and followed all of the instructions, but to no avail. Command F2 does not work when I try to put my iMac into Target Display Mode. I even restarted my iMac holding down the letter T, as I read on one of the posts to see if that would put it into Target Display Mode. My screen will turn black and then an image of the Apple Thunderbolt icon will appear on my screen, but nothing else happens. In order to get my iMac to respond, I then have to restart my iMac. I have also tried to select a different startup machine in System Preferences, but again, my iMac does NOT see my mac mini.

When I spoke to someone earlier this week at Apple Support they instructed me to order the following cables/adapters in order to connect my machines:

Apple HDMI to DVI Adapter
Apple Mini DisplayPort to DVI Adapter
DVI to DVI cable

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Answer 5

Dec 31, 2018 12:00 AM in response to misingyu2

I just successfully connected my Mac Mini 2018 (i7, 16 GB, 256 GB, Mojave) to my iMac 2011 27" (i5, user upgraded RAM to 16 GB and 500 GB samsung 850 evo SSD, running Mojave) and it works seamlessly. Three things you need to remember.

1) Connect the Apple Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter, with the Thunderbolt 3 end to the Mac Mini (image attached) and the Thuderbolt 2/1 end to the iMac

2) Make sure that on the Mac Mini (you need to do this with another monitor first), you have logged in and then go to Settings > Security and Privacy > Click the lock to make changes (bottom left) > Uncheck "Disable automatic login" (screenshot attached). The Mac Mini needs to be already logged in, for the iMac to accept the Target Display request.

3) Boot up the Mac Mini (confirm by checking white LED on front panel) and wait 30 seconds for it to login automatically. Boot up the iMac parallelly. Once you've given the Mac Mini 30 seconds or so to log in, then hit Cmd+F2 on the iMac's keyboard (you'll need keyboards attached to both the iMac and the Mac Mini) and with a second's pause the iMac will show the Mac Mini's display signal.

I'll check back to answer any questions anyone might have.

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Answer 6

misingyu2 Author

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11 points

Nov 14, 2018 5:47 AM in response to BobHarris

I originally purchased a thunderbolt to thunderbolt cable, as that is what the Apple Support page says to do when trying to connect a late model 27” iMac to the new Mac Mini. However, the Mac mini does NOT have a Thunderbolt port. It has a thunderbolt 3 port. There is no adapter or cable that goes from a thunderbolt to thunderbolt 3. That’s why I think the Apple Support person told me I needed to purchase the 3 additional cables/adapters. He said without the additional cables there was no way to physically connect my iMac to my Mac mini. After that failed, I contacted

Apple Support again, but they have yet to find a solution.

I am able to connect my Mac mini to a newer model ViewSonic monitor, however I am still UNABLE to connect my iMac to my Mac mini.

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Answer 7

misingyu2 Author

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Nov 14, 2018 6:15 PM in response to bert.dunsford

Just like the chart above describes, my late 2013 iMac ONLY has the original Thunderbolt port. Unfortunately, I do not have a Thunderbolt 2 port. The issue is there is no Thunderbolt (original) to Thunderbolt 3 cable. That’s why they asked me to purchase the additional cables. But, even with the additional cables/adapters, my iMac does not see my Mac mini when everything is connected. 😖

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Answer 8

Nov 26, 2018 8:52 AM in response to BobHarris

Having same issue, and I purchased that USBC-thunderbolt adapter from Apple store but the problem persists just as you describe. Interestingly, I can connect a macbook pro with a thunderbolt-thunderbolt cable to the imac (mine is late 2012) and use target display on the imac just fine.

When using the 2018 mac mini, however, the imac screen does respond and flickers to black as though trying to perform the target display request. It feels like something is not right in the cabling itself, since target display can be achieved if using straight through thunderbolt connections. This is true even with the older imac running Sierra and the macbook running Mojave.

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Answer 9

misingyu2 Author

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11 points

Nov 26, 2018 1:33 PM in response to VikingOSX

Yep! I tried these cables too. When I pressed command F2 nothing would happen. So I finally took it to the Apple store yesterday and they at least got it to flicker, when they pressed F2. So now I wait to hear back from the Apple store to see if they were able to get it to work in Target Display Mode.

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Answer 10

Dec 15, 2018 4:14 AM in response to misingyu2

The local Apple Store here has a Thunderbolt cable that is supposed to support TB1 and TB2 with the same connector on both ends. The fact that your local Apple Store could only get the iMac monitor to flicker is not a good sign though.

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