Controlling Apple Remote Desktop Clients

Apple Remote Desktop client computers can be controlled by any administrator computer that has the Control permission set. See Apple Remote Desktop Administrator Access for more information about Apple Remote Desktop permissions.

While you control an Apple Remote Desktop client computer, some keyboard shortcut commands are not sent to the remote computer, but they affect the administrator computer. These include:

Change Active Application (Command-Tab and Command-Shift-Tab)
Show or Hide Dock (Command-Option-D)
Log Out User (Command-Shift-Q)
Take Screen Shot (Command-Shift-3, -4)
Force Quit (Command-Option-Escape)

Also, special keys including the sound volume, screen brightness, and Media Eject keys do not affect the client computer.

These instructions assume that the observed computer has Apple Remote Desktop installed and configured properly (see Setting Up an Apple Remote Desktop Client Computer for the First Time) and that the computer has been added to an Apple Remote Desktop computer list (see Finding and Adding Clients to Apple Remote Desktop Computer Lists).

Select a computer list in the Remote Desktop window.
Select one computer from the list.
Choose Interact > Control.
To customize the control window and session, see Control Window Options.
Use your mouse and keyboard to perform actions on the controlled computer.
If your Remote Desktop preferences are set to share keyboard and mouse control, the remote computer's keyboard and mouse are active and affect the computer just as the administrator computer's keyboard and mouse do.

If your preferences aren't set to share control, the remote computer's keyboard and mouse do not function while the administrator computer is in control.