Terms
- Host
- The Mac whose screen is being shared. Only the Mac app can host.
- Viewer
- The device looking at and possibly controlling the host: an iPhone, an iPad, or another Mac.
- Hosting
- The state where the Mac is capturing its screen and accepting connections from trusted devices. Started with Start Hosting in the Host panel.
- Pairing
- The one-time process that makes a viewer trusted by a host. Ends with an approval on the Mac. See Pairing explained.
- Pairing window / Pair New Device
- The Mac screen that shows the QR code and Computer Code. Pairing is only open while this is showing.
- Computer Code
- A 12-character, case-insensitive code that identifies the host and how to reach it. Valid for two minutes. Typing it is the alternative to scanning the QR.
- Pairing link
- A pocketctrl:// link containing the same invitation as the QR code, for pasting on a Mac viewer.
- Invitation
- What the QR, Computer Code, and pairing link all represent: a short-lived ticket to send a pairing request. It cannot grant access by itself.
- Approval / New Device Request
- The window on the Mac where the owner chooses what a requesting device may do and confirms with Touch ID or password. Waits three minutes.
- Credential
- The random secret the Mac issues to each approved device. All later traffic is encrypted and authenticated with keys derived from it.
- Trusted device
- A device that holds a valid credential for a host. Listed in the Mac's Host panel.
- Unattended access
- An approval option. The device's credential is saved on the Mac so it can reconnect any time the Mac is hosting, without a new approval. Opposite of session-only.
- Session-only
- An approval without unattended access. The credential lives in memory and is discarded when hosting stops or the Mac app quits.
- Remote input / remote control
- Mouse, trackpad, and keyboard control of the host. A per-device permission, plus a host-wide switch, plus the macOS Accessibility permission.
- View-only
- A connection that shows the screen but ignores input, because remote control was not granted or is switched off.
- Local Wi-Fi / local route
- Connecting over the network your router provides, when both devices are on it. See same network.
- Nearby Wi-Fi discovery / Bonjour
- How a phone finds a hosting Mac on the same Wi-Fi by name, without typing an address. Bonjour is Apple's name for the underlying mDNS protocol; the service is _pocketctrl._udp.
- Local Network permission
- The iOS and macOS permission that allows an app to talk to other devices on your Wi-Fi. Denying it on the phone breaks every local connection.
- Tailscale
- A separate, free-for-personal-use app that gives your devices a private network that works from anywhere. PocketCtrl uses it automatically when the local route is unavailable. See Tailscale troubleshooting.
- Tailnet
- Your private Tailscale network. Devices must be signed in to the same tailnet to reach each other.
- Tailscale address
- A device's private address inside the tailnet, starting with 100. The Mac's is shown in the Network section when Tailscale is on.
- Relay (DERP)
- A Tailscale server that forwards encrypted traffic when a direct path between devices is impossible. It cannot read the traffic. Slower than direct.
- Route
- Which path a connection is using: local Wi-Fi or Tailscale. Shown under More Info on the phone and in the Mac's connected-viewers list.
- Screen Recording
- The macOS permission that lets PocketCtrl capture the display. Required to host.
- Accessibility
- The macOS permission that lets PocketCtrl generate clicks and keystrokes. Required for remote control.
- Adaptive bitrate
- The host lowering video quality when the network drops packets and raising it when things recover.
- Detail / FPS
- The two quality sliders. Detail sets resolution and bitrate together; FPS sets frames per second (3 to 60).
- Wake-on-LAN
- A network packet that wakes a sleeping Mac. Works only on the same Wi-Fi with Wake for network access enabled on the Mac.
- CLI / pocketctrl command
- An optional command-line tool installed from the Mac app's Settings that controls hosting locally. Used by the agent skill and MCP server.
- MPL-2.0
- The Mozilla Public License 2.0, the open-source license PocketCtrl's code is released under.
Still stuck?
Email hello@talkupapp.com with your device models, OS versions, whether you are on the same Wi-Fi or using Tailscale, and the exact message PocketCtrl shows. Screenshots help. Never send pairing codes, QR images, or credentials.