Copy and paste is one of those ScreenConnect features you barely notice until it stops working. A remote session can be perfectly responsive, the keyboard and mouse can work normally, yet text copied on your Mac refuses to appear on the remote computer.
The important thing is to identify which part of the clipboard path has failed before changing macOS permissions or reinstalling ScreenConnect.
Start with a small plain-text test. Copy one short sentence in TextEdit on the Mac and try to paste it into a simple text field on the remote machine. Then test the opposite direction.
That tells you whether clipboard sharing is completely broken, failing in only one direction, or struggling only with certain applications or content.
First, Check What Is Actually Failing
ScreenConnect normally synchronizes clipboard content during a remote session. According to ConnectWise, clipboard synchronization is enabled by default.
Before troubleshooting further, run these four quick tests:
- Copy plain text from the Mac and paste it on the remote computer.
- Copy plain text from the remote computer and paste it into TextEdit on the Mac.
- Try the same test in a different application.
- Disconnect and start a fresh ScreenConnect session.
| What happens | Most likely area to investigate |
|---|---|
| Clipboard fails in both directions | ScreenConnect session, clipboard sharing, client issue |
| Mac to remote fails only | Mac host/client side or destination application |
| Remote to Mac fails only | Mac clipboard/client side |
| Plain text works but other content fails | Content type or application limitation |
| Copy/paste fails only in one app | Application-specific behavior |
| A new session fixes it | Stale ScreenConnect session |
Do not begin by resetting macOS privacy settings if ordinary remote control works and only clipboard synchronization is failing.
If the remote Windows computer cannot copy and paste even outside ScreenConnect, troubleshoot that separately with How to Fix Copy and Paste Not Working in Windows 11. A broken local Windows clipboard can look like a ScreenConnect transfer problem when it is not.
Reconnect the ScreenConnect Session
A stale remote session is the first thing I would eliminate.
Disconnect completely from the affected machine, close the ScreenConnect host client, reopen it, and reconnect.
Then repeat the plain-text test.
If clipboard sharing starts working immediately, there is little value in changing Mac settings or reinstalling anything.
When the problem returns repeatedly after several sessions, continue with the checks below.
Make Sure Clipboard Sharing Has Not Been Disabled
ScreenConnect supports clipboard synchronization between machines in a session, but administrators can change how clipboard sharing is handled.
If you manage the ScreenConnect instance, check whether clipboard functionality has been disabled or restricted through your configuration.
This becomes especially important when:
- clipboard sharing used to work
- several technicians suddenly have the same problem
- the problem affects multiple remote machines
- a ScreenConnect configuration or security change was recently made
If only your Mac is affected while other hosts can copy and paste in the same session, the problem is more likely local to your Mac client or session.
ConnectWise explains the normal clipboard behavior in its clipboard sharing documentation.
Try Send Clipboard Keystrokes
ScreenConnect has another feature that is easy to confuse with normal clipboard synchronization.
Send Clipboard Keystrokes takes text already on your clipboard and sends it to the remote machine as keyboard input. That makes it a useful diagnostic tool.
Copy a short line of plain text on your Mac. In the ScreenConnect session, open the Essentials menu and look for Send Clipboard Keystrokes.
Place the cursor in a simple text field on the remote computer and send the text.
Send Clipboard Keystrokes works
ScreenConnect can transmit the text to the remote machine, but normal clipboard synchronization is not behaving correctly.
You can use Send Clipboard Keystrokes as a temporary workaround for short text while you investigate the clipboard-sync problem.
Send Clipboard Keystrokes also fails
The issue may extend beyond clipboard synchronization.
Check whether ordinary keyboard input works in the remote session. If normal typing is also broken, investigate the Mac ScreenConnect permissions and client rather than treating this as a clipboard-only failure.
When the remote machine is Windows and several keyboard commands are also failing, Ctrl Alt Delete Not Working? How to Fix It can help distinguish a remote-session input issue from a failed physical key or Windows problem.
Do not use Send Clipboard Keystrokes casually for large scripts or sensitive information. It behaves differently from ordinary clipboard synchronization and may not suit every field or application.
Test Plain Text Before Passwords, Files, or Formatted Content
Clipboard troubleshooting becomes confusing when the first test is a password manager, image, file, spreadsheet cell, or rich-text document.
Use plain text first.
Open TextEdit on the Mac and create a simple line such as:
ScreenConnect clipboard test 123
Copy it and paste it into Notepad or another basic text editor on the remote machine. Then reverse the test.
If plain text works, ScreenConnect’s basic clipboard path is functioning. The remaining problem is more likely related to the content or application you were originally using.
Check Whether the Problem Happens in One Application
Some applications handle clipboard content differently.
If copying from TextEdit to Notepad works but copying into a particular browser, terminal, password field, remote application, or administrative window does not, test another destination before blaming ScreenConnect.
Also check whether the problem changes when you:
- paste into a normal text editor
- use the application’s Edit > Paste command
- use the keyboard shortcut
- copy a shorter piece of text
- remove formatting by pasting as plain text
A ScreenConnect clipboard problem should normally reproduce across more than one ordinary application.
On a Windows remote computer, you can also test Windows + V. When the copied item appears in Clipboard History but Ctrl + V fails, Windows has received the clipboard item and the problem is more likely at the paste/input stage. The Windows 11 copy and paste troubleshooting guide explains that distinction in more detail.
Check macOS ScreenConnect Permissions When Input Is Also Affected
macOS protects screen recording and remote input behind Privacy & Security permissions.
ConnectWise currently requires Screen Recording and Accessibility access for normal control of a Mac session.
Open:
System Settings > Privacy & Security
Check the relevant areas for ScreenConnect, particularly:
- Screen & System Audio Recording or Screen Recording
- Accessibility
The wording varies between macOS releases.
If ScreenConnect is missing required access, enable it and follow any prompt to quit or restart the client. Then reconnect and test again.
This check is especially important when clipboard trouble appears alongside:
- remote keystrokes not working correctly
- mouse control problems
- ScreenConnect recently being reinstalled
- macOS recently being upgraded
- the ScreenConnect agent being replaced or updated
ConnectWise’s current Mac access-agent instructions explain the required macOS access process.
However, I would not repeatedly toggle privacy permissions when keyboard and mouse control already work perfectly and only clipboard synchronization is affected.
Also Check Screen Recording Permission
ScreenConnect also needs the appropriate screen-recording permission to display and control a Mac correctly.
Return to:
System Settings > Privacy & Security
Open Screen & System Audio Recording or Screen Recording, depending on the macOS version.
Make sure the ScreenConnect client or agent has the required access.
After changing either permission, quit and reopen ScreenConnect if macOS requests it, then start a new remote session.
Restart the ScreenConnect Client on the Mac
Close the active session and quit the ScreenConnect client completely.
Open it again and reconnect.
If you are using an installed access agent on the Mac being controlled, restarting the Mac can also help reload the agent and macOS services cleanly.
Test clipboard sharing before opening lots of other applications.
A restart is particularly worthwhile after:
- a ScreenConnect update
- a macOS update
- changing Privacy & Security permissions
- a long-running remote session
- repeated connect/disconnect cycles
Check Your ScreenConnect Version
Clipboard problems are not always caused by the Mac.
ScreenConnect has had clipboard-related bugs in past releases, including problems involving copy and paste across sessions. ConnectWise has also shipped fixes for clipboard crashes and other clipboard behavior.
That makes the exact ScreenConnect version relevant when a previously reliable clipboard suddenly stops working.
Check the version used by your ScreenConnect instance and clients.
If the problem started immediately after an update, review the release notes for that build before changing unrelated Mac settings.
Likewise, if you are several releases behind, review the current stable version and relevant release notes.
Do not assume that updating will fix every clipboard problem. The goal is to determine whether your behavior matches a known client issue or an already-fixed bug.
Check Whether Multiple Host Sessions Trigger the Problem
This is worth testing if you regularly control several computers at once.
Disconnect the other ScreenConnect sessions and leave only the affected remote machine open. Then test plain-text copy and paste again.
ScreenConnect has previously documented clipboard issues involving multiple host sessions, so a problem that appears only while several sessions are open deserves different treatment from a Mac clipboard that fails all the time.
If clipboard sharing works reliably with one session but becomes unstable with several, record:
- ScreenConnect version
- Mac model
- macOS version
- number of sessions open
- which direction copy/paste fails
- whether Send Clipboard Keystrokes still works
That information is much more useful for support than simply reporting that copy and paste does not work.
Check Whether the Clipboard Is Failing in Only One Direction
Do not treat one-way clipboard failure as complete clipboard failure.
Mac to remote does not work
Copy plain text in TextEdit and try several remote applications.
If Send Clipboard Keystrokes works but normal paste does not, the problem is specifically around clipboard synchronization or the receiving application.
Remote to Mac does not work
Copy a simple line from Notepad on the remote machine and paste it into TextEdit.
If Mac-to-remote works but the reverse direction does not, focus on the host client’s clipboard reception rather than reinstalling the remote agent immediately.
Neither direction works
Reconnect the session, verify clipboard sharing has not been disabled, restart the client, check the ScreenConnect version, and test with only one active session.
This simple directional test makes the troubleshooting much more precise.
Do Not Reinstall ScreenConnect Too Early
Reinstallation is reasonable when the Mac client or agent appears damaged, but it should not be the first response to a clipboard-only problem.
Before reinstalling, confirm that you have already tested:
- a fresh session
- plain text
- both clipboard directions
- another application
- Send Clipboard Keystrokes
- ScreenConnect permissions where relevant
- the current ScreenConnect version
If you reinstall a ScreenConnect access agent on macOS, remember that macOS may require you to grant Screen Recording and Accessibility permissions again.
A reinstall that leaves those permissions incomplete can create a second problem without solving the first one.
When the Problem Is Probably ScreenConnect Rather Than macOS
I would suspect ScreenConnect itself when:
- the Mac clipboard works normally outside ScreenConnect
- keyboard and mouse remote control work
- the failure reproduces in several ordinary applications
- reconnecting temporarily restores clipboard sync
- the problem started after a ScreenConnect update
- it happens only with multiple ScreenConnect sessions
- Send Clipboard Keystrokes works while normal synchronization does not
By contrast, when remote keyboard or mouse control is also failing after a macOS or agent update, checking Privacy & Security permissions becomes much more important.
The key is to troubleshoot the failed layer rather than resetting everything.
A ScreenConnect clipboard problem on Mac is usually easier to isolate when you stop treating copy and paste as one feature. Test the direction, content type, application, session, and Send Clipboard Keystrokes separately. Once you know which of those fails, the next step becomes much clearer.
