Connection issues

Most connection problems are local network issues or a missing username. Work through these in order.

Can’t connect at all (timeout)

1. Check your local firewall / VPN. Corporate networks often block outbound 59010 (VNC) and sometimes 22 (SSH). This is the #1 cause. Try from a different network or a phone hotspot to confirm.
2. Confirm the machine is up at status.myremotemac.com.
3. Test each service separately:

   nc -vz YOUR-IP 22       # SSH
   nc -vz YOUR-IP 59010    # VNC / Screen Sharing

   If SSH works but VNC doesn’t, it’s a VNC-client or port issue, not the machine being down.
4. Double-check the IP, port and username from your welcome email / dashboard.

Did you forget your username?

The most common “it refuses me instantly” cause: connecting without a username. Always use ssh your-username@YOUR-IP and vnc://YOUR-IP:59010. The username is required for both password and key authentication.

Locked out after a few tries (fail2ban)

Logins are protected by fail2ban: 5 failed attempts within 10 minutes bans your IP for 1 hour, on both SSH and VNC. If nothing connects right after several failures:

• Wait for the ban to expire (up to 1 hour), or connect from a different IP.
• Fix the root cause first (username, port 59010, correct key) before retrying.
• Need it lifted sooner? Contact support@myremotemac.com with your public IP.

See Security → Brute-force protection for the full rules.

VNC authentication fails

• Make sure your client uses macOS / Apple authentication (username + password), not legacy “VNC password”.
• Try RealVNC Viewer or TigerVNC, which handle Apple auth automatically.
• Confirm you’re on port 59010, not 5900.

Screen Sharing (ARD) agent is down

If SSH works but the VNC desktop won’t connect, the macOS Screen Sharing / Remote Management (ARD) agent may have stopped — this can happen after an automatic macOS update. Connect over SSH and check it:

# 1. Is anything listening on the VNC port?
sudo lsof -nP -iTCP:59010 -sTCP:LISTEN

# 2. Are the Screen Sharing / ARD processes running?
pgrep -lf "ARDAgent|screensharingd"

# 3. Inspect the launchd service
sudo launchctl print system/com.apple.screensharing | head -n 20

If nothing is listening or the processes are missing, restart the agent:

# Restart the Remote Management (ARD) agent
sudo /System/Library/CoreServices/RemoteManagement/ARDAgent.app/Contents/Resources/kickstart \
  -restart -agent

# …or restart the Screen Sharing launchd service
sudo launchctl kickstart -k system/com.apple.screensharing

A macOS update can also deactivate Remote Management entirely. Re-activate it with:

sudo /System/Library/CoreServices/RemoteManagement/ARDAgent.app/Contents/Resources/kickstart \
  -activate -configure -access -on -restart -agent -privs -all

Then retry vnc://YOUR-IP:59010. If it still won’t come up, contact support.

No VNC after a reboot (FileVault)

If you’ve enabled FileVault, the disk stays locked after a reboot — the desktop (VNC) and normal login are unavailable until it’s unlocked. Unlock it over SSH first, or avoid the lock by rebooting with:

sudo fdesetup authrestart

On recent macOS you can unlock at the pre-login SSH prompt (password only — keys don’t work at that stage). Full details in FileVault & reboots.

Black or frozen screen over VNC

• The Mac may have gone to display sleep. Connect over SSH and wake it:

  caffeinate -u -t 2

• After a reboot, the login session may need a user to sign in — see Reboot & reset.

”Your screen is being observed” — is someone watching?

No. macOS shows that menu-bar indicator whenever Screen Sharing / Remote Management is active with a connected session — which is your own VNC connection. It is not a third party. Click the icon to see active sessions. Apple explains it here: support.apple.com/en-us/120315. More in Security.

Session keeps dropping

• Usually unstable local Wi-Fi/latency. Prefer a wired connection and lower the VNC quality (see Performance).
• Keep an SSH session open in parallel; if SSH stays up while VNC drops, the network path is fine and it’s a VNC-client setting.

Tip

Still stuck after these steps? Email support@myremotemac.com with: your machine IP, what you tried, the exact error, and the output of the nc -vz checks above. That gets you a fast answer.