Apple Eliminating Back to My Mac Service in All Versions of macOS in July

Friday May 31, 2019 11:07 am PDT by Juli Clover
Apple today announced in an updated support document that the Back to My Mac service is being eliminated from all versions of macOS on July 1, 2019.

Apple previously warned that Back to My Mac support would be eliminated in macOS Mojave, but the updated wording seems to suggest the feature will be removed from all versions of macOS rather than just macOS Mojave.

As of July 1, 2019, Back to My Mac service is not available in any other version of macOS. You can use these alternatives for file access, screen sharing, and remote desktop access.
macOS Mojave has not had the Back to My Mac feature since the first developer beta launched, and Apple confirmed plans to end support for the feature in August 2018.

Back to My Mac is designed to let Mac owners connect to one Mac from another Mac for file transfers and screen sharing purposes. It lets users create a network of Mac computers with two or more Macs, but it can be complicated to set up and use, which is perhaps why Apple has decided to discontinue it.

In the support document, Apple suggests customers can access their files across all of their devices - including new machines - from iCloud Drive. Other Macs can be operated through screen sharing functionality, and Macs can be managed remotely with Apple Remote Desktop, software available from the Mac App Store for $80.

Some Back to My Mac users are sure to be unhappy with Apple's decision to sunset the feature entirely and the suggestion that users transition to Apple Remote Desktop for remote management purposes given its high price tag, but there are third-party options like TeamViewer and LogMeIn.

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autrefois
9 months ago
So instead of actually fixing it, they just discontinue it. That’s the courage I like to see!
Rating: 34 Votes
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RogerWilco
9 months ago
Free storage and traffic on Apple servers? LOL -- that was so Steve Jobs. Step right up and have those credit cards ready, Eddie's Magic Services Machine needs subscription revenue!
Rating: 25 Votes
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TwoBytes
9 months ago
The news article doesn't mention Apple Remote Desktop hasn't been updated in 2 years so it's really a no go app..
Rating: 24 Votes
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atxknepp
9 months ago
I have used Back to My Mac since it was released 12 years ago. It was a technology that was ahead of it's time considering it was for the "normal" Mac user. There was not another major OS that had this technology built in that was super easy for anyone to use.

As for the people that are complaining that it never worked for them, I have nothing to say to that. Maybe it was because I always used Airport routers and all Apple devices but it has never given me problems. I use this feature daily and it will be sorely missed when it's gone.

It was the ultimate tool that allowed me to keep my server upstairs while working on it through my other devices downstairs ... or even when I wasn't even in the house. On top of all that it was free and baked right into the OS! I remember one trip when I was in Europe, had a great internet connection, and worked on my MacPro for hours doing computations that my laptop couldn't.

For all of those people who never used Back to My Mac, I feel sad that you will never know how awesome this feature was. Almost as awesome as the vaporwear that would have allowed iDevices to transfer desktops between computers and keep them synchronized and no I don't mean in a doesn't-work-like-it-should iCloud Drive sort of way.
Rating: 20 Votes
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Khedron
9 months ago
Turn off support for a free feature and tell users to go buy an out of date $80 replacement

Another hard earned bonus for Tim
Rating: 18 Votes
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transitobserver
9 months ago

Free storage and traffic on Apple servers? LOL -- that was so Steve Jobs. Step right up and have those credit cards ready, Eddie's Magic Services Machine needs subscription revenue!


You mean the same Steve Jobs that stopped offering a free email service and online storage when Apple discontinued iTools in favor of a $99/year subscription, which only came back when iCloud was launched 10 years later?
Rating: 13 Votes
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atxknepp
9 months ago

The easiest way to get back to your Mac remotely is by using Google’s Remote Desktop app. Works like a charm. Even the blind can set it up because there’s practically no setup.

Don't forget all of the other awesome included features like all of Google's keyloggers, metadata stripping, and monitoring built right in!
Rating: 12 Votes
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Martin75
9 months ago


As for screen sharing, I cannot get this to work due to the remote network setup over which I have no control.


If you are able to ssh into his machine, then you can also get screen sharing to work by piping it through an ssh tunnel. Here is how this works. Open two terminal windows. In the first one, type

ssh -N -L 5901:localhost:5900 remoteuser@my.server.org &

(With remoteuser@my.server.org replaced by whatever the login and name or IP address of your other computer is.) Then, in the second window, type

open vnc://localuser@localhost:5901

with "localuser" replaced by your local username. Best,

Martin
Rating: 9 Votes
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WestonHarvey1
9 months ago
This thing always worked horribly. Worst screen sharing solution for the Mac. Any time I needed to rely on it, something at home required a reboot. Guess how well that works when no one is home.
Rating: 9 Votes
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davidramsay
9 months ago

I have never used it and I will definitely not miss it. iCloud Drive works well and there in no need for Back to my Mac anyway (or any other cloud based storage service).


I disagree, my disabled son lives in a home some 50 miles away and being able to maintain his iMac from my home is my use of it, especially as the homes staff do not have a clue regarding macOS.

As for screen sharing, I cannot get this to work due to the remote network setup over which I have no control.

As for apple remote desktop, they should;

a - update it
b - provide it free to those who need to maintain machines remotely

... at the very least.
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The easiest way to get back to your Mac remotely is by using Google’s Remote Desktop app. Works like a charm. Even the blind can set it up because there’s practically no setup.


So you trust google?
Rating: 7 Votes

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