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Back to My Mac is being cut from all versions of macOS on July 1

In an updated support document, Apple has revealed that Back to My Mac support will be cut from all versions of macOS on July 1, not just Mojave.

"As of July 1, 2019, Back to My Mac service is not available in any other version of macOS," an updated support page indicates. As alternatives, the company suggests using iCloud Drive, Apple Remote Desktop, and native screensharing tools.

Back to My Mac lets people connect directly to one or more Macs for screensharing and file transfers. The tool has been absent from Mojave since the first betas launched in 2018, but it had been thought that Apple might keep the service running for older Macs.

One problem with Apple's recommendations is that Apple Remote Desktop can be buggy and costs $79.99. Third-party options can be cheaper or even free, such as Chrome Remote Desktop.

Some ways around iCloud Drive include Box, Dropbox, and Google Drive. iCloud does however have deep integration across Apple platforms, and a 50-gigabyte account is only $0.99 per month.

The broader cutoff was first spotted by MacRumors.

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33 Comments

JWSC

said about 4 years ago

It was a nice concept. But in practice I found it to be an unwanted intrusion into my workflow. Good that Apple tried it. Good that Apple will lay it to rest.

Soli

said about 4 years ago

I miss this more than most other things Apple did. People often lament the loss of MagSafe but it doesn't come close to the void left by Back to My Mac because things have changed so radically in battery life that a near-always-connect Mac isn't as needed whereas the need for a simple and automatic access to other Macs has increased for me, USB-C offers a considerably more than MagSafe's power-only utility, there are countless options for re-adding a MagSafe-like option to any modern Mac notebook, and Apple has no built-in replacement for Back to My Mac.

chasm

said about 4 years ago

It seems odd to me that Apple would cut off simple screen sharing, given that its a great way to help other Mac users remotely. Getting relatives and friends to purchase and install a third-party app to do this is far more difficult.

i get that its a very underused feature, and parts of it were redundant with modern systems, but screen sharing was a big help to me in getting many of my friends and family to switch to Macs.

samrod

said about 4 years ago

chasm said:

It seems odd to me that Apple would cut off simple screen sharing, given that its a great way to help other Mac users remotely. Getting relatives and friends to purchase and install a third-party app to do this is far more difficult.

i get that its a very underused feature, and parts of it were redundant with modern systems, but screen sharing was a big help to me in getting many of my friends and family to switch to Macs.

I hope dropping Back to my Mac doesn't mean Apple is killing local file sharing or stripping screensharing from Messages.

lowededwookie

said about 4 years ago

chasm said:

It seems odd to me that Apple would cut off simple screen sharing, given that its a great way to help other Mac users remotely. Getting relatives and friends to purchase and install a third-party app to do this is far more difficult.

i get that its a very underused feature, and parts of it were redundant with modern systems, but screen sharing was a big help to me in getting many of my friends and family to switch to Macs.

They haven’t, they’ve just cut off external access to the drive on your Mac, something that isn’t needed with iCloud. Screen sharing is still a part of macOS through settings it’s just not going to be as easy as you’ll need IP Addresses etc. That being said though I find apps like TeamViewer to be better for remote screen sharing.

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