Using Mac Mini with an iMac as monitor

John B

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I have a mid 2011 iMac and thought that, rather than upgrade it I could use a Mac mini with it as a display. So far all good have a s/h Mini, connected thunderbolt ports together and pressed CMD+F2 and the screen recognises it, however I can't get further as the Mini doesn't ask to be connected to bluetooth keyboard/mouse. Am I correct in surmising that a wired keyboard/mouse would enable me to carry on setting up Mini and I could then set up my existing bluetooth stuff or does it only connect to one thing at a time:nenau...any thoughts gratefully received Cheers:beerjug:John B
 
You can connect more than one iten via bluetooth. However, if your imac is connected by thunderbolt I would not have thought you are using any bluetooth capacity.

Try this from the internet
If you’re using a Mac desktop with a bluetooth trackpad or mouse, you might have come across a chicken-and-egg issue: How do you enable Bluetooth when it’s turned off? Luckily, if you have keyboard access, there is a way to do it!

Hit Command-Space to open Spotlight
Type “Bluetooth File Exchange” to launch that application (you probably won’t have to type the whole thing before Spotlight suggests it…)
Bluetooth File Exchange will prompt to enable Bluetooth if it’s off, so just hit Enter/Return
Quit Bluetooth File Exchange by hitting Escape and then Command-Q
If your mouse or trackpad isn’t detected, open the Bluetooth System Preferences Pane by typing Command-Space and then typing Bluetooth

Your mouse or trackpad should now be detected and you should be back in business!
 
As OldCroc says: you need a wired keyboard to configure your Mac.

This is the same if your Mac boots into single user mode. Bluetooth devices won't be recognised.
One solution to this are Logitech keyboards that use the unifying device that the computer, essentially, see as USB keyboards.
 
Hi, Thanks for the responses, indeed the wireless keyboard/mouse will only pair with one Mac at a time, Think I need awired Mac keyboard/mouse as "generic" ones, whilst allowing typing won't do the F2 and other "hot" keys. Cheers, :beerjug:John B
 


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