Your iPhone or iPad can reach your Mac directly over the Local Network, or through Private Relay with Preen Plus. Private Relay is Preen’s end-to-end encrypted cloud connection. The Mac must be awake, running Preen, and online in the app for either route to work.
Choose a connection
| Route | What you need |
|---|---|
| Local Network | Both devices on a network that allows them to reach each other, with Local Network access allowed. No subscription or account required. |
| Private Relay | Internet access on both devices, the same signed-in Preen account, active Preen Plus access, and Private Relay enabled on both. The devices can be on different networks. |
For a local connection, the Mac can use Wi-Fi or Ethernet. Guest and public Wi-Fi sometimes prevent devices from communicating even when they share a network name. Private Relay can work in that situation too.
Pair your iPhone or iPad
- Open Preen on your Mac and show its pairing QR code.
- Open the scanner in Preen on your iPhone or iPad. Choose Local Network, Private Relay, or both, then scan the code.
- Name your display and finish setup.
With both routes selected, the phone tries the QR’s local address first and uses relay if it cannot reach the Mac. Selecting only Private Relay allows pairing without Local Network access or a prior local pairing. Keep the Mac’s QR visible while remote pairing finishes; starting the relay can take a few seconds.
If Preen says the code expired, scan the fresh code on the Mac. Codes are short-lived and can be used only once. A rejected code needs a new scan; switching networks will not make it valid.
When your network changes
The phone chooses the connection automatically from the routes you enabled. It normally prefers the local network. When the saved Mac address stops working, it looks for the Mac again and can fall back to Private Relay. A recently working relay connection, or a pairing with no saved local address, is tried through relay first to avoid waiting on an unavailable local route.
While connected through relay, Preen checks for a working local connection if Local Network is enabled. It can discover a changed Mac address or its first local address after remote pairing. Once verified, it switches back while keeping your current widget open. An unsuccessful local check leaves the relay connection running.
Turning Local Network off prevents local connection attempts, discovery, and wake requests. Turning Private Relay off keeps connections local. At least one usable route must be enabled. Moving to another network does not normally require pairing again.
If the Mac cannot be reached
- Check that the Mac is awake, Preen is running, and the hub is online.
- For local access, allow Local Network for Preen in iOS Settings and check that the network permits communication between devices. Also allow local access on the Mac if macOS asks.
- For remote access, check internet connectivity, Private Relay on both devices, and your Preen Plus access and display allowance.
- If Preen reports an expired pairing code, scan the fresh one. For an existing pairing, let automatic reconnection run before removing the device.
Preen may try to wake a Mac over the local network, but wake support depends on the Mac and network settings. Private Relay cannot wake an offline Mac.
Widget authors can read PREEN.viaRelay
to display the current route. The native app handles connection changes;
widgets continue to receive data through the same SDK.