When something is off, here is what to check.

LIKELY CAUSE

The two devices are on different Wi-Fi networks, the host is missing Screen Recording or Local Network permission, or a firewall is silently dropping the discovery packets.

FIX

1. Confirm both devices are on the same Wi-Fi network — guest networks and 5 GHz / 2.4 GHz radios on some routers count as separate networks.
2. Check the Remio icon is showing in the Mac menu bar. If not, launch the host.
3. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Screen Recording, confirm Remio Host is enabled, then quit and relaunch the host.
4. On iOS, open Settings → Remio → Local Network and make sure it is on.
5. If a firewall like Little Snitch is running, allow Remio Host to accept incoming connections.

Remio can also reach hosts over the internet via relay. As long as both devices are signed in, the connection is routed automatically when local discovery fails.

LIKELY CAUSE

The Mac is going to sleep, the client is roaming between access points, or a VPN is breaking the peer-to-peer path mid-session.

FIX

1. Open System Settings → Energy on the host and enable Prevent automatic sleeping while the display is off.
2. If you are using a VPN, disconnect it during pairing — VPNs commonly interfere with the direct path.
3. Stay near a single access point while connected. Hand-offs between routers will close the session.
4. In Remio settings, try switching between direct and relay mode to see which is more stable on your network.
5. Where possible, connect the Mac by Ethernet for the most reliable session.

Remio prefers a direct peer-to-peer connection on the local network for lowest latency. When the direct path fails, the session transparently falls back to an encrypted relay.

LIKELY CAUSE

The network path between the two devices is the bottleneck — weak Wi-Fi signal, a 2.4 GHz radio, a saturated link, or a forced relay are all common reasons.

FIX

1. Move closer to the router and prefer the 5 GHz band on both devices — 2.4 GHz simply does not have the headroom for a remote desktop session.
2. Lower the streaming quality in Remio settings. Drop from 4K to 1080p, or from 60 fps to 30 fps, until the stream stabilises.
3. Close bandwidth-heavy apps in the background — video streaming, large downloads, and live calls all compete.
4. For the best stability, connect the host by Ethernet. A wired host alone resolves the majority of laggy sessions.
5. Confirm both devices are on the same local network so Remio uses the direct P2P path, not the relay.

Plan for at least 5 Mbps for 1080p and 20 Mbps for 4K. Below those bands the encoder will keep up but the network cannot.

LIKELY CAUSE

The host connected successfully but cannot read pixels from the display. This is almost always the Screen Recording permission, especially after a macOS update.

FIX

1. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Screen Recording.
2. Confirm Remio Host is in the list and enabled. If it is not in the list, drag the Remio Host app in from /Applications.
3. If it is already enabled, toggle it off and on — recent macOS updates can quietly invalidate the grant.
4. Quit the host fully from the menu bar and relaunch it.
5. If the screen is still black, remove Remio from the Screen Recording list, re-add it, and relaunch.

Screen Recording is the only macOS permission Remio cannot work around. Without it the host can pair but has nothing to send.

LIKELY CAUSE

The Mac is muted, the client is on silent mode, the audio output device is misrouted, or the host has not received audio capture permission.

FIX

1. Check the Mac is not muted and the volume is turned up.
2. Confirm the Mac's output is going to the speakers you expect — open System Settings → Sound → Output and pick the right device.
3. On iOS, flip the silent mode switch and raise the device volume.
4. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security on the Mac and confirm Remio Host has permission to capture audio.
5. If audio still does not arrive, quit and relaunch the host so it re-initialises the capture tap.

Some DRM-protected apps deliberately block their audio from being captured. This is by design and not a Remio bug.

LIKELY CAUSE

The Accessibility permission has not been granted to Remio Host, or it was revoked after a macOS update.

FIX

1. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility.
2. Confirm Remio Host is listed and the toggle is on.
3. If it is already on, toggle it off and back on to re-arm the permission.
4. After a macOS update, remove Remio from the list with the minus button, re-add it from /Applications, and relaunch the host.
5. Restart Remio Host whenever you change the permission.

Accessibility is what lets Remio translate taps and keystrokes from the client into real mouse and keyboard events on the Mac. Without it, the picture comes through but you cannot interact.