If you plan on using Workbench to remote access your Mac often, the setup below is important to complete before you leave your Mac. Your Mac needs to be awake and running Workbench to accept a connection request from your iPad or iPhone.
If your computer goes to sleep or restarts unexpectedly while you're away, you won't be able to connect until someone is able to wake it in person.
Remote Access Setup
Enabling Remote Access in Workbench
Before setting up anything in macOS, make sure Remote Access is enabled in Workbench first. Without this enabled, your Mac will not be visible or accessible from your other devices.
To access these settings:
Open Workbench and click on the ellipses (…)
Click on Remote Access Settings
Enable Enable Remote Access
Workbench now has full Remote Access
How to Prevent Sleep on macOS
Workbench currently enables this automatically when remote access is set up. However, we still recommend double checking that your Mac is set to never sleep before you leave, especially if you are relying on consistent access. Workbench cannot wake a sleeping Mac once it's inactive.
Enable Prevent Sleep in Workbench
Open Workbench and click on the ellipses (…)
Click on Remote Access Settings
Enable Prevent Sleep
Your macOS settings will now prevent sleep
Note: If you want to put your Mac to sleep after you're done using Workbench, remember to turn this setting off in Workbench or manually adjust it back to your preference in macOS Settings
How to Disable Sleep in macOS Settings
macOS Sequoia or later:
Go to Apple Menu > System Settings > Battery > Options…
Turn off: "Prevent automatic sleeping on power adapter when the display is off."
Enable Auto Login
If your Mac restarts while you're away, Auto Login ensures it boots up your desktop instead of waiting for you to enter your password on the login screen. While not required, it is highly recommended to enable Auto Login on your Mac in case your computer randomly reboots.
macOS Sequoia and Later
Go to System Settings > Users & Groups
Turn on "Automatically log in as"
Enable Workbench to Auto Start at Login
This ensures Workbench launches automatically every time your Mac starts up, so it is always running and ready to accept a connection. Workbench handles this automatically, but here is how to check and enable it manually if needed.
Enable Start at Login in Workbench
Open Workbench and click on the ellipses (…)
Click on Remote Access Settings
Enable Start at Login
Your macOS settings will now start Workbench when your computer boots up
Add Workbench to Login Items in macOS
macOS Sequoia and Later
Go to System Settings > General > Login Items
Click the + under "Open at Login"
Add Workbench from the Applications list
⚠️ FileVault and Remote Access
If FileVault is enabled on your Mac, that means a password will be required to be entered after a random reboot. This can affect remote access and block the Workbench connection. This is especially worth checking if you travel for extended periods or live somewhere that experiences frequent power outages
To disable FileVault on your Mac go to: System Settings → Privacy & Security → FileVault
If you recently had an unexpected reboot and cannot connect, this is a good place to start.
💡 Display Sleep vs System Sleep
Workbench only requires your Mac to stay awake, so having your display turn off can be a successful workaround. That said, Workbench may fall back to the last known resolution when the display is off, so it is worth testing before you leave your Mac.