> Do Any Of You Trevs Have A Headless Mac Mini In A Rack?

plug in a dummy

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ntm1iTQdCzE



I’ve had to do this on a server before with a fake hdmi dongle that tricks it into thinking there is a monitor

Spanky wrote:

That's a lot of work for my shaky hands.

I wonder if a wireless keyboard dongle would work.

should. get a logitech unifying receiver and plug it in.

Spanky wrote:

Like every fourth time I reboot it demands I hook up a physical keyboard and mouse and log in physically instead of remotely through ARD.

What can I do to prevent this idiocy?

Could be it wants a permission for the activity it's performing that requires admin login beyond the use level.

It could be set to require a password when waking, or has a login item thats wonky.

You can run an Intel Mac mini headless 24/7 without needing a keyboard or display to log in—but you have to line up a few macOS settings. Here’s the clean, reliable way to do it.

⸻

*⃣ Enable Automatic Login (this is the big one)

If macOS is stopping at the login screen, headless access won’t work.

System Settings → Users & Groups
    •    Click Login Options
    •    Set Automatic login to your user
    •    Enter your password to confirm

* FileVault must be OFF for automatic login to work.

⸻

*⃣ Disable FileVault (required for headless boot)

System Settings → Privacy & Security → FileVault
    •    Turn FileVault OFF
    •    Let the disk decrypt fully (can take a while)

Why this matters:
    •    FileVault requires a physical keyboard/display at boot
    •    No workaround exists for headless + FileVault on Intel Macs

⸻

*⃣ Prevent sleep & display-related lockups

GUI method

System Settings → Energy Saver
    •    Turn “Prevent computer from sleeping automatically when the display is off” ON
    •    Disable Put hard disks to sleep
    •    Set Turn display off to something short (or doesn’t matter)

Rock-solid terminal method (recommended)

Run once:

sudo pmset -a sleep 0 disksleep 0 displaysleep 0 hibernatemode 0

This ensures:
    •    No system sleep
    •    No disk sleep
    •    No display dependency
    •    No hibernation surprises

⸻

*⃣ Enable remote access (pick at least one)

Screen Sharing (VNC)

System Settings → General → Sharing
    •    Enable Screen Sharing
    •    Allow your user

Connect via:
    •    macOS Screen Sharing
    •    VNC clients
    •    vnc://hostname

SSH (best for true headless admin)

Enable Remote Login in Sharing
Then connect via:

ssh user@macmini

This works even if the GUI hasn’t fully loaded.

⸻

*⃣ Disable “Require password after sleep / screen saver”

System Settings → Lock Screen
    •    Set Require password after screen saver begins → Never
    •    Or a long delay

This avoids surprise lockouts after display sleep.

⸻

*⃣ (Optional but useful) Fake a display

Some Intel Minis behave better with a “display” present.

Options:
    •    Cheap HDMI dummy plug ($5–$10)
    •    Helps prevent:
    •    Low GPU mode
    •    Window server glitches
    •    Weird Screen Sharing resolutions

Not strictly required, but recommended for 24/7 servers.

⸻

*⃣ Test the full headless boot (important)
    1.    Shut down the Mac mini
    2.    Disconnect keyboard, mouse, display
    3.    Power it on
    4.    Wait 1–2 minutes
    5.    Try:
    •    ssh
    •    Screen Sharing

If it connects → you’re done ✅

⸻

🔒 Security reality check

Running headless + auto-login means:
    •    Anyone with physical access can log in
    •    Mitigate with:
    •    Strong macOS password
    •    Firewall ON
    •    SSH key-only login
    •    Network isolation (VLAN, firewall rules)

⸻

TL;DR (the must-do list)

✔ Disable FileVault
✔ Enable Automatic Login
✔ Prevent sleep (pmset)
✔ Enable SSH / Screen Sharing
✔ (Optional) HDMI dummy plug

If you want, tell me:
    •    macOS version
    •    What you use it for (Plex, backups, CI, dev box, etc.)

I can tune the pmset, networking, and security settings exactly for that role.

wrote:

Somehow, MacStadium does it.

I am not MacStadium.

wrote:

should. get a logitech unifying receiver and plug it in.

I have like five Logitech receivers since they're shipped with every mouse I've bought - but honestly at this point I just pair via bluetooth - so basically useless.

Logitech MX Anywhere mouse is one of the greatest peripherals ever. Can sync with three devices and you can switch with the click of a button.

., wrote:

Apple Remote Desktop app is a paid app? Free on Windows - doesn't make me physically login. Always considered that one of the most useful and distinct features of Windows.

just use vnc.

., wrote:

Apple Remote Desktop app is a paid app? Free on Windows - doesn't make me physically login. Always considered that one of the most useful and distinct features of Windows.

I use ARD from Devolutions' Remote Desktop Manager (RDM). It's amazing they offer RDM for free. It's a great tool. And it has been free for the entire time (10+ years) that I have used it.

Spanky wrote:

It's an M2 Mac Mini, not Intel.

Ask Claude or ChatGPT how to fix headless booting on Apple Silicon.

wrote:

Ask Claude or ChatGPT how to fix headless booting on Apple Silicon.

I did that days before asking here. I was looking for real world experience.

Just go eat a big bag of chips.

wrote:

I'm replying to you from a Mac.  I've never had to setup a headless Mac. 

Looking at the chatGPT information, what is being spit back seems reasonable.

Have you asked on r/macOS  or AskDifferent?

Thanks. As mentioned earlier I had previously received a set of similar results from ChatGPT. Once I got back in after the latest ordeal, I went ahead and implemented (or already had implemented) all of the suggested steps after I shoved the dongle in the hole.

Since it is a Mac, it does no meaningful work. Therefore I am comfortable with the security risks.