Networked copy/paste between two Macs?

[JtheLemur]

Hey y'all. I'm looking for something specific to get content from Mac A onto Mac B and vice versa.

Constraints:

- Needs to be networked, either LAN or over the internet.
- Cannot use iCloud.
- Don't care if it's free or paid.
- Needs to support both text and images.


Ideal case:

- I'm able to copy text or images to the clipboard on Mac A, and anything copied will sync to Mac B. (Think an app like Maccy or another clipboard manager, but networked.) Ideally runs as a service so that I don't have to have a dedicated application open at all times taking up screen real estate.


Alternative case(s):

- I can copy and paste text or images into an application on Mac A, and have them easily available on Mac B. (This is kind of what I'm doing now. Sometimes I use Figma, sometimes I use Jumpshare. Both are not super efficient for easily transferring info.)


Anyone have some suggestions? Thanks!

 

[MarkC426]

You can just 'drag and drop' via screen sharing....

 

[Chuckeee]

How physically close are they? Can you just Airdrop?

 

[arw]

Too bad iCloud is completely off the table.
Because I think you are exactly describing 'Universal Clipboard', that is part of macOS' Continuity/Handoff feature:

Use Universal Clipboard to copy and paste between your Apple devices - Apple Support

With Universal Clipboard, you can copy content such as text, images, photos, and videos on one Apple device, then paste the content on another Apple device.

support.apple.com

Perhaps anyone has already tried KDE Connect in a Mac-Mac setup.

KDE Connect is Now Available for macOS (Updated) - OMG! Ubuntu

KDE Connect, the open source smartphone companion, is coming to macOS as part of Google Summer of Code 2019. A test build is available to download.

www.omgubuntu.co.uk

 

[MarkC426]

Suppose it depends on what Mac's the OP has.....

The requirements for Universal Clipboard work with most of my devices, but not my Mac Pro.

 

[bzgnyc2]

I use Apple Notes over IMAP. It's basically copy/paste into Notes on MacA and copy/paste from Notes on MacB. Works for text and images. Across Macs and iDevices. Tested with MacOS up through Monterey and iOS up through 15.

I'm guessing Universal Clipboard is 1 or 2 clicks less friction but this works for me...

Careful if everyone finds out how easy this is out without iCloud, Apple might remove IMAP support from Notes.

 

[philipma1957]

Hey y'all. I'm looking for something specific to get content from Mac A onto Mac B and vice versa.

Constraints:

- Needs to be networked, either LAN or over the internet.
- Cannot use iCloud.
- Don't care if it's free or paid.
- Needs to support both text and images.


Ideal case:

- I'm able to copy text or images to the clipboard on Mac A, and anything copied will sync to Mac B. (Think an app like Maccy or another clipboard manager, but networked.) Ideally runs as a service so that I don't have to have a dedicated application open at all times taking up screen real estate.


Alternative case(s):

- I can copy and paste text or images into an application on Mac A, and have them easily available on Mac B. (This is kind of what I'm doing now. Sometimes I use Figma, sometimes I use Jumpshare. Both are not super efficient for easily transferring info.)


Anyone have some suggestions? Thanks!

the software anydesk allows that. it even allows mac to windows and windows to mac.

it is a remote service so you need a good password. but I routinely move about my macs and pcs . all in the same home. and even from city to city.

 

[JtheLemur]

Thanks for the suggestions!

@bzgnyc2 Notes over IMAP sounds interesting, assume it’s just adding an IMAP account and enabling Notes for it? (Am not in front of my Mac at the moment to check!)

@philipma1957 I’ll check out Anydesk. Tricky part is one of the Macs has a lot of ports locked down but will give it a go.

 

[tonmischa]

Not sure if this fits your use case, but I am a big fan of Resilio Sync.
It works just like Dropbox, but without a cloud.

 

[bzgnyc2]

Thanks for the suggestions!

@bzgnyc2 Notes over IMAP sounds interesting, assume it’s just adding an IMAP account and enabling Notes for it? (Am not in front of my Mac at the moment to check!)

Yes, if don't already have an IMAP account setup and connected to the system, you should just be able to use 'Add Other Account...' -> 'Mail account' (from Notes->Accounts / System Preferences->Internet Accounts) to connect your system to one and then just leave Notes not Mail enabled under "Use With" assuming you don't want Apple Mail to start sync'ing all the mail from your IMAP to these systems.

If you are already using Apple Mail with an IMAP account, it may just be a matter to checking the box for Notes under "Use With".

If you use Apple Mail/etc but with Gmail, it may also be possible to connect Apple Notes to it in a similar way. I just never used/tested that approach to say it is reliable. Since I already had an IMAP service, I had no need for my copy/paste and other notes to flow through their servers...