Consider this instance. You are acquainted with every iPhone owner. You ultimately cave to peer pressure and buy a new MacBook in addition to an iPhone. The problem is that even when you spend the entire day working on a Windows 10 or Windows 11 tablet, you have to unlock your iPhone every two minutes due to incoming text messages.
All that phone lifting interrupts your regular workflow. We will show you how to text on Windows 10 using iMessage so that you can keep your eyes glued to your computer.
You’ll need a macOS device to do this. It involves using Chrome Remote Desktop. This configuration uses an iPhone X as the source messaging device, a MacBook Air as the host computer, and a Windows 10 laptop as the client computer. You can use Remote Desktop with this configuration to access iMessage on a Windows 10 PC.
Configuring Messages for iPhone
- Open the Settings app.
- Tap your Apple ID account.
- Tap iCloud.
- Make sure Messages are toggled on (green).
Now let’s talk about the macOS host machine. For our example, we used a MacBook Air running the macOS 10.14.4 beta.
Configuring Messages for macOS
- Launch the Messages app from the dock, Launchpad, or desktop.
- Sign in with your Apple ID and password. Enter a verification code if you have two-factor authentication activated.
- Navigate to the app’s Menu bar, click Messages, and select Preferences.
- Select the iMessage tab in the pop-up panel.
- Enable your account if needed.
- Enable Messages in iCloud if needed.
- Activate the phone number and email addresses where people can reach you.
- Select or de-select Send read receipts.
- Choose where you want new conversations to start (phone number or email address).
- Click the Sync Now button.
Setting up Chrome for macOS
After iMessage is operational, the next step is to download Google Chrome for macOS and the required parts. We made use of Chrome 72 for Mac in this article.
- Download Google Chrome.
- Sign in to Google Chrome with your Google account.
- Head over to the Chrome Remote Desktop web app.
- Click on the blue download button under Share this screen to download the Chrome Remote Desktop extension. You’ll need to click Add to Chrome to get the extension.
Make sure Chrome Remote Desktop is not running when the Mac goes to sleep. Make sure System Preferences > Energy Saver has the checkbox next to Prevent computer from sleeping automatically when the display is off. The Wake for Wi-Fi Network Access switch must also be activated.
The Windows 10 or 11 client PC that you’ll use to remotely access your macOS host machine is the subject of the following discussion.
Setting up Chrome Remote Desktop on Windows 10
- Install Google Chrome if you haven’t already.
- Sign in with your Google account.
- Install the Chrome Remote Desktop extension.
- After installation, open the Chrome Remote Desktop web app.
- You’ll then need to generate a code on your MacBook. Click on + Generate Code under the Share this screen tab in your MacBook’s Chrome Remote Desktop web app. You’ll get a code that’s valid for five minutes.
- Back on the web app on your Windows 10 machine, look for the Connect to another computer section. Under it, enter the access code generated on your MacBook and press Connect.
- Permit remote access on your MacBook if prompted.
You should now have a Windows 10 window streaming your Mac’s desktop. With a Stop sharing button, your desktop is currently shared with (your email address) in a small box at the bottom of your Mac’s screen. You may now remotely access the Messages app on your iPhone and send texts using iMessage on Windows 10.
You can essentially perform any action on your Mac remotely from a Windows 10 PC. The Mac and Windows 10/11 PC don’t have to be on the same network as long as they both have internet connection and you are signed into your Google account.