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VNC Viewer

Built-in VNC client with VNC password, RSA-AES, VeNCrypt / X.509 and Apple Screen Sharing authentication. Mouse, keyboard, and clipboard.

SSHive's VNC viewer opens a remote desktop in a tab of the same Mac window as your SSH sessions. It connects straight to the VNC server's port, 5900 unless you changed it, with nothing to install on the server beyond the VNC server itself. The picture fits the window or shows at actual size, a View only switch keeps stray clicks off the remote desktop, and text copied there lands on your Mac's clipboard. VNC is a Pro feature. Whether a server lets you in depends on its authentication type, so here is the full list the Mac app completes: VNC password, RSA-AES (RealVNC Server, since SSHive 2.0.4 for Mac), VeNCrypt / X.509 (what wayvnc uses, since 2.0.5) and Apple Screen Sharing, to reach another Mac. A server that only offers something else refuses the handshake. On iPhone and iPad, the VNC client for iOS uses a different engine: it adds UltraVNC MS-Logon II but has no VeNCrypt, so a wayvnc host that requires it is reachable from the Mac only. A VNC server does not belong on the internet. The usual route is an SSH tunnel: forward local port 15900 to port 5900 on the server and point the VNC profile at localhost:15900. The port is 15900 rather than 5900 because a Mac with Screen Sharing turned on already listens on 5900; the VNC guide for Mac shows the tunnel step.

Where it runs and what it costs

Runs on
Mac, iPhone and iPad
Free
Not included: this feature needs Pro from the first use.
Pro
$12.99 once, for Mac, iPhone and iPad. VNC on the Mac, iPhone and iPad.
Compare Free and Pro

Key capabilities

Built-in VNC viewer inside SSHive, no external app needed

Authenticates with VNC password, RSA-AES, VeNCrypt / X.509 and Apple Screen Sharing

Mouse, keyboard, and clipboard integration

Mac, Linux and Raspberry Pi screens, each in a tab beside your SSH sessions

VNC on macOS, what you can do

A Raspberry Pi desktop without a monitor

Recent Raspberry Pi OS releases share the desktop through wayvnc, older X11 images through RealVNC Server, and SSHive on the Mac completes the authentication both of them ask for, so the Pi needs no screen or keyboard of its own. The Raspberry Pi use case covers the rest of the setup.

Virtual machine consoles

A QEMU or KVM guest started with a VNC display answers on port 5900 plus the display number. Open its console in one tab and an SSH session to the hypervisor in the next, and manage both from the same window.

Another Mac

Turn on Screen Sharing on the other Mac and SSHive signs in with that Mac's user name and password, the Apple Screen Sharing method. Handy for a Mac mini in a cupboard or a relative's machine you look after.

VNC, frequently asked questions

Is VNC included in the free version?+
No. VNC needs Pro from the first session, on the Mac and on iPhone and iPad alike. Pro is a single purchase of $12.99, shared by the Mac, iPhone and iPad through the App Store, and updates are included for as long as the app is maintained.
How is the VNC password stored?+
Like every password SSHive keeps on the Mac: encrypted with a key held in the macOS Keychain and stored in a file that only your user account can read, never in the profile itself. Each profile has its own entry.
Can I copy and paste between my Mac and the remote desktop?+
Text, yes. What you copy on the remote desktop lands on your Mac's clipboard automatically. To send your Mac's clipboard the other way, use the Paste button in the VNC toolbar. Files do not travel over VNC; SFTP is the tool for those.
What happens if a VNC server's key changes?+
With RSA-AES, SSHive records the server's key on the first connection. If a later connection presents a different key, it refuses and asks you, because that is what a machine in the middle would look like; the same question comes up if a known server suddenly falls back to plain password authentication. Settings keeps the list of trusted VNC servers, where you can remove one after reinstalling it.

Related SSHive features

Remote Desktop (RDP)

Embedded remote desktop

SSH Tunnels

Local, remote & SOCKS5 proxy

SSH Terminal

GPU-accelerated terminal

Common use cases

SSH into a Raspberry Pi from your Mac

Manage Proxmox VE from your Mac

Manage your home server from your Mac

Step-by-step guides

How to VNC from a Mac to a Raspberry Pi or Linux desktop

See also

Try VNC Viewer in SSHive

Download SSHiveSee all features