Do I need to be on the same network?

No. On the same Wi-Fi, Servey uses a direct, high-performance stream for the sharpest possible picture. On different networks it automatically switches to a private connection between your own devices. Either way it just works.

Is it secure and private?

Yes. Servey pairs only your Mac with your own iPhone or iPad, scoped to your account. On the remote path your screen stays private and end-to-end encrypted between your devices - it hardly touches our servers.

Does it work over cellular?

Yes. Servey is built to connect reliably even on strict mobile and carrier networks where most tools give up, and it tunes quality to your connection automatically so the picture stays smooth.

Which devices are supported?

A Mac as the host, controlled from an iPhone or iPad. Servey is built natively for the Apple ecosystem - not an Electron or Java port - so it feels fast and right at home on your devices.

Do I need a VPN or port forwarding?

No. There's no VPN to configure and no ports to forward. Sign in with Google on both devices and your Mac appears - that's the entire setup.

When is it launching and how much will it cost?

Servey is a simple monthly subscription. The Terminal plan is ₹99/month in India and $1.99/month internationally; Full access - screen mirroring plus terminal - is ₹299/month in India and $4.49/month internationally. Join the waitlist and we'll email you the moment it's ready. You're never charged until launch.

What should I change before running a Mac mini headless?

Enable automatic login so a reboot does not stop at the login window, prevent automatic sleeping when the display is off, turn on restart after a power failure, and test your remote access while a monitor is still attached. Note that automatic login cannot be used with FileVault.

Does the Mac mini need a monitor or a dummy plug?

No. Servey streams the Mac's screen whether or not a display is attached, so you do not need a dummy HDMI adapter to keep it usable.

What happens after the mini reboots?

The host app starts with the Mac and registers it to your account again, so it reappears on your iPhone or iPad without anyone touching the machine.

Do I need to forward a port to reach it from outside?

No. There is no port forwarding, no VPN and no static IP. Servey opens a private connection between your own devices instead.

Can I get a terminal as well as the screen?

Yes. Both are in the app and both work on the local and remote paths, so you can use a shell for most things and switch to the screen when a dialog is in the way.

Will this recover a Mac that will not boot?

No. Servey depends on its host app running, so it cannot help before macOS has started. It is for a machine that is up but out of reach, not one that is down.

Headless Mac mini setup and remote access

A Mac mini with no display is an excellent little server right up to the moment something goes wrong and you need to see the screen.

See how it works

Screen and shell, not just shell
SSH is fine until the problem is a dialog box. Servey gives you the Mac's actual screen with a trackpad and keyboard, alongside a real terminal.
Survives a reboot
The host app starts with the Mac and re-registers itself, so the mini comes back on its own without someone walking over with a monitor.
No router configuration
No port forward to your mini, no VPN to maintain, and no static IP. It reaches you through a private path between your own devices.
Useful without a display attached
Servey streams the Mac's screen whether or not a monitor is plugged in, so you are not buying a dummy HDMI plug to keep it usable.

What people actually run on a headless Mac mini

A mini tucked on a shelf makes a very good always-on server: a build agent, a media server, a backup target, a place to leave long jobs running, or simply a second Mac that is always awake. It is quiet, it sips power, and macOS-only tooling - Xcode, iOS automation, Apple media workflows - runs on it natively in a way no Linux box can match.

The catch is access. A Mac mini server is only as useful as your ability to reach it, and the moment it has no monitor, every problem becomes harder than it should be.

How do you set up a headless Mac mini?

Do the first-boot setup with a display attached, then change four settings before you take the monitor away. The order matters, because a couple of them are much harder to fix once the mini is already headless.

Turn on automatic login in Users and Groups, or a restart leaves the machine sitting at the login window where nothing is running yet. Note the honest trade-off: automatic login and FileVault are mutually exclusive, so an encrypted mini will always stop after a reboot until someone unlocks it. In Energy settings, prevent automatic sleeping when the display is off and enable restart after a power failure. Then install whatever remote access you plan to use and confirm it works while the display is still attached, because verifying it afterwards means finding a monitor again.

Automatic login on, or accept that FileVault will block unattended reboots.
Prevent automatic sleeping when the display is off.
Start up automatically after a power failure.
Test remote access before the monitor comes off, not after.

Does macOS have a headless mode?

No. Unlike Linux, macOS has no server or headless mode to switch into - it always runs its full graphical session whether or not a display is plugged in. macOS Server as a product was discontinued years ago, and what remains is ordinary macOS with the sharing services built into System Settings.

That has a practical consequence worth understanding. A headless Mac mini is not a stripped-down machine; it is a completely normal Mac whose screen nobody is looking at. Every GUI-only prompt, login window, update dialog and modal still appears exactly as it would on a monitor. They are all still there, still blocking whatever sits behind them - you simply cannot see them. This is why a shell alone eventually runs out of road on a headless Mac, and why being able to pull up the actual screen matters more here than on a Linux server.

Why SSH alone is not enough

A shell handles most of it. What it does not handle is the class of problem that lives in the GUI: a permission prompt macOS raises the first time something runs, a login window after an update, an app that has hung with a modal open, or a system dialog that is quietly blocking everything behind it.

That is the moment people go and find a monitor. Being able to see the screen turns a twenty-minute interruption into a ten-second one.

Permission and security prompts that only appear on screen.
The login window after an unattended restart.
GUI apps that have stopped responding for reasons the logs do not show.

Reaching it from outside your home

The traditional answers are a port forward to VNC or SSH, a VPN back into the house, or an overlay network installed on every device. They all work and they all add something to maintain, and a port forward in particular means exposing a service on your home network to the internet.

Servey pairs the mini to your account instead. From your phone it appears in a list; tapping it opens a session over whichever path is available. On your own network that is a direct connection, and elsewhere it is a private encrypted path between your devices.

What to know before relying on it

Servey needs its host app running on the mini, so it is not a rescue tool for a machine that will not boot. It is not a replacement for hardware-level remote management, and it does not do wake-on-LAN.

It is also pre-launch and unproven. If a headless mini is doing something you genuinely cannot afford to lose access to, keep whatever fallback you already trust.

Frequently asked questions

Does macOS have a headless mode?: No. macOS has no headless or server mode to switch into; it always runs its full graphical session whether or not a display is attached. A headless Mac mini is just a normal Mac with nobody looking at its screen, which is why GUI prompts still appear and still block things.
What should I change before running a Mac mini headless?: Enable automatic login so a reboot does not stop at the login window, prevent automatic sleeping when the display is off, turn on restart after a power failure, and test your remote access while a monitor is still attached. Note that automatic login cannot be used with FileVault.
Does the Mac mini need a monitor or a dummy plug?: No. Servey streams the Mac's screen whether or not a display is attached, so you do not need a dummy HDMI adapter to keep it usable.
What happens after the mini reboots?: The host app starts with the Mac and registers it to your account again, so it reappears on your iPhone or iPad without anyone touching the machine.
Do I need to forward a port to reach it from outside?: No. There is no port forwarding, no VPN and no static IP. Servey opens a private connection between your own devices instead.
Can I get a terminal as well as the screen?: Yes. Both are in the app and both work on the local and remote paths, so you can use a shell for most things and switch to the screen when a dialog is in the way.
Will this recover a Mac that will not boot?: No. Servey depends on its host app running, so it cannot help before macOS has started. It is for a machine that is up but out of reach, not one that is down.

Servey puts your Mac in your pocket. Launching soon.