Skip to content
Thoughtful, detailed coverage of everything Apple for 33 years
and the TidBITS Content Network for Apple professionals

Leopard Screen Sharing Loses Hidden Features

For reasons known only to Apple, the mid-September release of Mac OS X 10.5.5 disabled extra toolbar items in the Screen Sharing program – for remote computer access and control – that required configuration via the command line in Terminal. Rob Griffiths of Macworld was the first to document the extra switches on 12-Dec-07, and was also the first to note their removal. Even if you’ve already enabled the toolbar options, they’re gone.

In this modified screen capture that appears in my book, “Take Control of Screen Sharing in Leopard,” you can see which features have been eliminated: the quality/color depth setting, screen capture, control/observe toggle, full screen mode, and keyboard/mouse control toggle.


Rob has a couple of pieces of advice on restoring the functions, although I’m not sure I favor either: installing the 10.5.4 version of Screen Sharing, or using Xcode to modify the version in 10.5.5.

But your only other option to get the missing features back, Rob notes, is to purchase the $300 10-user license of Apple Remote Desktop, which is overkill for a few buttons.

Subscribe today so you don’t miss any TidBITS articles!

Every week you’ll get tech tips, in-depth reviews, and insightful news analysis for discerning Apple users. For over 33 years, we’ve published professional, member-supported tech journalism that makes you smarter.

Registration confirmation will be emailed to you.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA. The Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.