Screen sharing in Yosemite Messages 10.10.1

Hello,
I am having a problem with screen sharing in Messages. When I request the to either share my screen, or view the other persons screen, the request goes through, but when we try to accept and initiate the screen share, a notification comes up saying the connect was denied. Even though we are accepting the screen share, it's still saying it is denied and not connecting. Both computers are on 10.10.1. I am just wondering if anyone has come across this, and knows if there is a setting or fix I can do to make it work? I did try to enable screen sharing in the system prefs>sharing menu, as well as allowing all users to connect. Any input is appreciated.

Do you get an error?
I've never done it, so be sure to follow the guide below for double-checking nothing was missed in setting up the connection.
http://osxdaily.com/2014/11/25/screen-sharing-messages-mac-os-x/
If the way in Messages doesn't work, I can recommend Teamviewer as an alternative.

Similar Messages

Auto Accept with Screen Sharing with Yosemite Messages App

I take care of many of my family and friend's Macs and I'm really excited that screen sharing with 10.10 Yosemite through iMessage. I'm wondering if anyone know of a way to enrol their Macs into auto-accepting me to control the screen without the need for them to accept it. I know there was a way to do this back in the days of iChat.

Hi,
In Any Finder window use the Go Menu whilst holding down the ALT key.
Select the Library that appears and the navigate to Application Scripts/com.apple.iChat
Double click the Auto Accept item to open in in the Script Editor (formerly AppleScript Editor)
You will note the Text section at the top is commented out by being between (* and then the text and then *) the stars and parentheses.
Later a single line is also commented out with a # symbol
In iChat the section for Auto Accepting Screen Sharing used to be commentated out (originally it was not even there)
You might decide to comment out the other lines leaving just the bits you want. (or Copy the AppleScript and alter the copy).
Then you can go to Messages > Preferences > General Section and select the AppleScript as the Messages Received item.
NOTE
I have had issue myself with the AppleScripts as they stand in Yosemite.
I have tried several of those that are Included and some that I have collected from iChat and all return and error messages about timing out at present.
Others have reported the same in various Threads here at the Apple Support Communities.
At present there does not seem to be a work around.
9:07 pm Tuesday; February 24, 2015
 iMac 2.5Ghz i5 2011 (Mavericks 10.9)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad

Screen sharing in yosemite not working

I cannot use screen sharing in messages with Yosemite. The screen sharing icon is light blue.

Do you get an error?
I've never done it, so be sure to follow the guide below for double-checking nothing was missed in setting up the connection.
http://osxdaily.com/2014/11/25/screen-sharing-messages-mac-os-x/
If the way in Messages doesn't work, I can recommend Teamviewer as an alternative.

Screen sharing icon in Messages dimmed out when it shouldn't be

Running OS X Yosemite 10.10.2 on 2009 27" iMac. I was attempting to share my screen with another person also running OS X Yosemite (also 10.10.2) via Messages and the screen sharing icon is dimmed out (while both FaceTime video and audio icons are NOT dimmed out). I went through creating and entering an app specific password for both Messages and FaceTime and my iCloud account is signed into both. Tried signing out and back in as well, but that did not resolve it. Tried rebooing as well, but the issue remains. The other person is able to screen share with other individuals running Yosemite so I assume it's something on my end, but I have no idea what.
Ideas?

Hi,
The App is Messages.
It can have an iMessages account is use.
This distinction is becoming more important as time goes on.
In Yosemite the Messages App can start a Video (or Audio and also Screen Sharing) two different ways. (it's related bear with me).
As the iChat app the AIM and Jabber accounts have been able to Video chat within the app since iChat 2 for AIM accounts and iChat 3 for Jabber when it was added. (Screen Sharing is added at iChat 4)
This needs the Video Menu > Enable the three items for Video, Audio and Screen Sharing.
In Yosemite the iMessages account can start a video from the Main window when a text Chat is going on using the Details option to right.
To start an AIM Video chat (same for Jabber and Bonjour) you need the Buddy list to be displayed, Highlight the Buddy and then use either the icon at the bottom of the Buddy List or the Buddies menu.
To Start an iMessages Video chat you need to first set up FaceTime with the same Apple ID account (it can be done with a different ID but this can cause confusing at the other end about who is calling).
Then you use the Details option having started a Text (iMessages) chat with them.
This in turn Invokes the FaceTime App and 'Calls' the ID your are iMessaging to. If you are using a different ID in FaceTime they see that and not the one in the iMessages account.
Screen Sharing
Screen Sharing is similar in that it (iMessages account) invokes an outside app to do the Screen Sharing.
You first need to go to System Preferences > Sharing and enable the Screen Sharing item.
Then in Messages in the Main window during a iMessages Chat/conversation with someone you need to use the Details option top right and select the Linked Squares for the Screen Sharing.
This invokes the Screen Sharing App (System/Library/Core Services/Applications) and connects the two computers with and Audio chat along side.
For the iChat type accounts (AIM, Jabber and Bonjour) you use the Buddy list like the Video chats.
NOTES.
If you have other Macs on your LAN and they appear in the Finder's Side bar as Shares you can select them and use the button in the Finder Window to Screen Share with those Macs.
This too invokes the Screen Sharing app.
Another way is to use the Go Menu in the Finder > Go to Server and enter VNC:// and the IP address instead of AFP or SMB (Or Browse instead)
In the System Preferences > Sharing you will also find Remote Management.
This cannot be on the same time as Screen Sharing. However in use from the Finder it allows the Screen Sharing described above.
All of these use the Client end of Apple Remote Desktop (ARD).
However the Finder methods described do not come wither Audio Chat described for the iMessages or AIM/Jabber/Bonjour way.
Also if you try to use the Details method with an AIM or Jabber of Bonjour Buddy it will not work as it tries to do this the iMessages way.
Basically "icons" and "Messages" is not enough to say where you are in the app to pin point this further.
9:49 pm Saturday; March 7, 2015
 iMac 2.5Ghz i5 2011 (Mavericks 10.9)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad

Screen sharing and yosemite

I have 2 iMacs running 10.10.1 not on the same LAN. Under Mavericks both screen sharing and file sharing worked fine on both computers
Since the upgrade to yosemite, i can access file and screen sharing on one computer but only file sharing on the other.
Both computers have back to my mac activated. Since screen sharing works fine on one computer, I must assume a setting somewhere is incorrect
Thanks
Jeff

Screensharing doesn't require a 'bonjour advertisement'. The advertisement causes other Macs to add it to the sidebar - but that is just to help cut out manual config.
You could try working out the IP address of the Mac see if Screensharing works that way. Find that in Network Prefernces for the interface that is on the same local network.
Insert the following into Safari…
vnc://YOUR-IP-OF-REMOTE-MAC
That will open the Screensharing app (which is buried in the System folder) and attempt to open the IP of the machine in question. If that works you know sharing is OK but mDNS a.k.a bonjour is failing somewhere. If that fails double check the local IP & retest. It indicates screensharing itself is failing etc.
You can also try the computer names like 'Macbook.local' instead of the IP address.

Is screen sharing through the Messages app encrypted?

The Messages app in Mavericks has the option to share your screen (Buddies > Share my screen...). Just learned about it today.
I've been wondering how secure it is to use over the internet.
Any thoughts as to if the screen sharing session is encrypted?
I'm using Mavericks, and haven't found anything that says if the sessions are encrypted or not.

Hi,
The Messages app can use different ID to use the different services.
It can use Apple IDs to use the iMessages service (Text Only) But you can invoke FaceTime from an existing conversation.
By default you also get the Bonjour Account.
If you have other Macs on your LAN (and they use iChat or Messages with Bonjour Enabled) you can Screen Share with them (in addition to Video Or Audio Only chats).
You can join the AIM service with some Apple IDs (ending in @me.com and @icloud.com in most cases and sometime @mac.com depending on your OS version) and of course with AIM or AOL registered Screen Names.
Mac to Mac (iChat or Messages) these can Screen Share over the internet.
Whilst the Login may be SSL (AIM almost insist on in nowadays) the Video chats, Audio Only chats and Screen Sharing are Peer-to Peer connections.
There are steps in the connection process to make sure you are not vulnerable to "Man-in-the-Middle" attacks.
They will only work AIM to AIM.
Jabber (Or XXMP) accounts can include GoogleTalk or Google Mail IDs in reality or Facebook chat IDs are valid Jabber IDs.
You can of course register for a Jabber ID on any other Jabber server you know about.
These will work Jabber to Jabber must be to a Mac using iChat or Messages and not other apps or web Browser logins (As you can do with both Facebook and Google).
The Yahoo account is text only.
8:55 pm Wednesday; July 16, 2014
 iMac 2.5Ghz i5 2011 (Mavericks 10.9)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad

Why is very long (about 30 seconds) to connect another distant computer using Screen Sharing under Yosemite ?

Hello,
Before Yosemite (under Mavericks and less), it was possible to connect immediately another distant computer (over internet) with Screen Sharing (using Command-K or on Finder Menu-Go and submenu Connect To The Server, and putting the address like vnc://name:password@address
Under Yosemite, it is possible to do the same things, but it takes about 30 seconds to get connection (is it the evolution of the celerity of the computing ?). And also, I have 2 windows during the waiting of connection : one is with icon of ScreenSharingApplication and 'Connecting to …com', and the second one is with icon of a BlueHardDiskwith3people and 'Connecting…'.
Under Yosemite, if I use Chicken of the VNC or JellysFastVNC, the connection is immediately.
Could you tell me how is it possible to have under Yosemite a quick connection (about 0 to 5 seconds) with a distant computer (over internet) using Screen Sharing (command-K for example) ?
Thanks.

William,
Eventually (after about 30 hours or so) it finished the encryption. I then forced TM do a backup to the external HDD (after adding a 1GB file to my internal HDD) just to measure how long it would take for TM to run a backup to the external disk -- and it was very fast. Looks like everything is working fine now.
Without your advice that 24+ hours wasn't unreasonable time for a first encryption of a drive that size, I probably would have kept restarting my iMac and repartioning the external HDD and gone around in circles.
Thank you very much.

Screen sharing in Yosemite - lots of weird graphical artifacts

I have Yosemite installed on both my MBP 2013 Retina and a brand-new Mac Mini (headless). I control the Mini from the MBP with standard built-in screen sharing. It works, but visually it's really bad! Often the remote menu bar goes black, and only repaints (in sections) if I hover the mouse over it. Often the toolbars of various windows take on the color of the desktop and do not display any of their widgets - again until I hover over them. Dragging windows sometimes leaves permanent "trails" and other graphical residue.
The Mini is pretty much running on default settings (although I did set it up by cloning the backup of my previous Mini). In particular, I've not activated any Accessibility options, nor am I using the "dark menu bar" general option.
Is anyone else seeing this? Or can someone suggest some troubleshooting?
MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Early 2013)
2.4 GHz Intel Core i7
8 GB 1600 MHz DDR3
Intel HD Graphics 4000 1024 MB
10.10 (14A389)
Mac mini (Late 2014)
2.6 GHz Intel Core i5
8 GB 1600 MHz DDR3
Intel Iris (null)
10.10 (14A389)

Yesterday, for the first time since before starting this thread, I restarted the Mac Mini. Suddenly, everything seems fine.
The reason I restarted the Mini was that I noticed (using Activity Monitor) that 6.5GB of my RAM was in use, and SystemUIServer itself was using 2GB. I've haven't been using the Mini for much of anything recently, so this made no sense. Restarting immediately brought back my menu bar (which had been black), and I don't see any artifacts using Screen Sharing.
*shrug* we'll see. If you have this problem and haven't restarted the remote machine, try that.

Screen sharing thru message app

Hi,
I just upgraded to Yosemite on my Macbook Air mid 2011. When I tried the screen sharing in the message, I found the the icon of it was greyed out so that I had to no way to invite or ask to share the screen. On my iMac 2012, this feature works without any problem.
Is this a bug or a setting issue?
Thanks.

I believe I resolved my issue. It turned out that the person I was attempting to share my scree with had a problem with his installation of Messages wherein his messages were not replicating to all of his devices. He called Apple support and they were able to fix that problem. We then re-tested screen sharing and I was then able to share my screen successfully with him.
The lesson learned, when this happens, is to first verify that Messages is working correctly for the person you are attempting to share screens with. I also have found that the sharing icon will appear grayed out if you attempt to share screens with a person connected via iPhone (4S in this case).

Screen sharing doesn't work in Yosemite

Screen sharing gives this message on my iMac :
Process:
Screen Sharing [46463]
Path:
/Volumes/*/Screen Sharing.app/Contents/MacOS/Screen Sharing
Identifier:
com.apple.ScreenSharing
Version:
Build Info:
RemoteDesktop-3009915~3
Code Type:
X86 (Native)
Parent Process:
??? [1]
Responsible:
Screen Sharing [46463]
User ID:
502
Date/Time:
2015-01-27 13:31:28.148 +0100
OS Version:
Mac OS X 10.10.1 (14B25)
Report Version:
11
Anonymous UUID:
7E87A766-A68F-42AB-5776-3EC4CEE0DBC9
Sleep/Wake UUID:
E9049456-0F35-432F-A16C-0C7313FDA6B0
Time Awake Since Boot: 1300000 seconds
Time Since Wake:
3100 seconds
Crashed Thread:
0
Exception Type:
EXC_BREAKPOINT (SIGTRAP)
Exception Codes:
0x0000000000000002, 0x0000000000000000
Application Specific Information:
dyld: launch, loading dependent libraries
Dyld Error Message:
Library not loaded: /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/ScreenSharing.framework/Versions/A/ScreenShar ing
Referenced from: /Volumes/*/Screen Sharing.app/Contents/MacOS/Screen Sharing
Reason: no suitable image found. Did find:
    /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/ScreenSharing.framework/Versions/A/ScreenShar ing: mach-o, but wrong architecture
Binary Images:
0x8fe0c000 - 0x8fe3fe03 dyld (353.2.1) <EBFF7998-58E8-32F5-BF0D-9690278EC792> /usr/lib/dyld
0x92b00000 - 0x92b00fff com.apple.Carbon (154 - 157) <5A078967-8437-3721-A6B1-70CC00461D7B> /System/Library/Frameworks/Carbon.framework/Versions/A/Carbon
0x9323b000 - 0x933ffff3 com.apple.QuartzCore (1.10 - 361.11) <9CED60CF-9B7F-3288-A7E9-3AE087F9E076> /System/Library/Frameworks/QuartzCore.framework/Versions/A/QuartzCore
0x9376c000 - 0x939e8ff3 com.apple.security (7.0 - 57031.1.35) <4721C22E-D6C2-3202-B80D-5E67169466D2> /System/Library/Frameworks/Security.framework/Versions/A/Security
And a similar message on my MacBook Pro

same here on a 2010 macbook pro. i routinely use screen sharing to access that MBP from a 2010 mac pro. but ever since installing lion on the MBP (now 10.7.1), i'm asked for my "Kerberos password" -- and i've never even heard of such a thing.
so far, googling this has not led to anything helpful.
i love my macs, but stuff like this that impedes our productivity is a monumental drag (to say the least).

I downloaded the beta of iMessage, replacing iChat. Now screen sharing does not seem to be available (shaded out.) Anyone have a suggestion?

I downloaded the beta of iMessage, replacing iChat. Now screen sharing does not seem to be available (shaded out.) Anyone have a suggestion?

Hi,
I am presuming you are looking in the Video Menu but are finding you do not have "permission" to enable Screen Sharing.
In Messages Menu > Preferences > Video section what speed setting is set in the Bandwidth Limit drop down ?
It should be no lower that 200kbps if you want to Video chat or Screen Share (the Min for both is 128kbps)
Even if it shows a speeds higher than this change it to something like 500kbps then close/Quit Messages and then restart it. (i.e change the setting anyway to give a bot of a jolt)
10:18 PM Thursday; May 17, 2012
Please, if posting Logs, do not post any Log info after the line "Binary Images for iChat"
 iMac 2.5Ghz 5i 2011 (Lion 10.7.4)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.7.4),
"Limit the Logs to the Bits above Binary Images."  No, Seriously

Problems connecting video and screen sharing

see the leopard iChat forum, I moved it to there. thanks, its called Another Video and screen sharing connection problem
Message was edited by: wishiwasmtbin

Hi,
Welcome to the  Discussions
IS this Linksys doing UPnP ?
This is set in the Administration page of the set up pages.
Also in the Security Page disable the Anonymous Ping Blocking.
If you set UPnP then make sure any Port Forwarding, Port Triggering and DMZ is disabled.
These last three use NAT more strongly than UPnP and NAT can be an Issue.
The Appleu3test accounts are effectively on Public IP address so Lees/no NAT
1:52 PM Sunday; December 9, 2007

Is screen sharing through Messages limited to third-party accounts in Yosemite like it is in Mavericks?

So I was told this by an Apple support member through the online chat, but everything else I've been reading seems contradictory. Every blog post I've read, and even Apple's own website makes it seems like you can screen share on Messages with any contact with an iMessage account (in Mavericks, it was limited to third-party accounts signed into Messages like Google, Jabber, AIM, etc...).
I was able to screen share through the iMessages account if the two computers were on the same network (both on wifi, or both tethered to the same phone), but not if they were on separate networks. Which seems almost next to useless. It'd be nice to just get a breakdown of what's possible with screen sharing through Messages.
So far it seems like:
1. Screen sharing is possible using a third-party account (as per in Mavericks).
2. Screen sharing is possible using an iMessages account only within the same network (added in Yosemite). <- if this is really all that was "added", they really should make that clear, rather than making it seem like iMessage accounts have the same utility as third-party ones.
Just want someone to confirm this. Thanks!

Hi,
Screen Sharing only works with an AIM Account (AOL) or a Jabber ID when the person at the other end is also using the same sort of Account and a Mac with iChat or Messages.
The Bonjour Account which is used for LAN based Mac to Mac Chats can also Screen Share.
The Yahoo account (if you have one) is Text only. It does not even do File Sharing. It does not do Video Chat, Audio Only ones or Screen Sharing.
The iMessages account does not do Video chats (or Audio Only)
What it does do is invoke the FaceTime App.
FaceTime does not Screen Share.
Links to the info you have read would be useful.
The Messages Help info.
Text (if the pic does not show)
Share your screen
You and a friend with Mac OS X v10.5 Leopard or later can share a screen, making it easy to collaborate on a project.
When you share a screen, you and your friend can do anything on the shared desktop, such as opening folders, creating documents, and copying files by dragging them from one desktop to another. Messages automatically starts an audio chat.
You can share screens using AIM, Jabber, Google Talk, and Bonjour. You can’t share screens using Yahoo! or iMessage.
Important: When you share your screen, your friend has the same access to your computer that you have. Share your screen only with people you trust, and be careful if you receive a request to share your screen from someone who isn’t in your buddy list. If the request comes from someone using Bonjour, remember that the name shown for the person in Bonjour does not necessarily match the person’s real name.
See the Line above the one where the word "important" is in bold text.
OS X 10.5 is the one with iChat 4.x.x with it.
To be clear:-
iChat 1 was an AIM client but also had the Bonjour account under it's previous name of Rendezvous
iChat 3 added Jabber capabilities
iChat 6 added Yahoo ones. (extremely limited)
Messages brings the Name change and the focus on the iMessages account with the associated window changes.
This means Messages can join 5 "services"
Opening Messages asks you for an Apple ID to register with iMessages.
It also has the Bonjour account present but not turned On.
You can add anything you used in iChat
Some Apple Issued ID are valid AIM Screen Names
GoogleTalk and Facebook Chat IDs works as Jabber IDs
Apple IDs
These can be considered in some ways to be separated into different functions or layers.
The first difference is between external emails and Apple Issued ones that end in @mac.com, @me.com and @icloud.com (Some people are using a small number of pre Email linked Apple IDs - about 15 years or older accounts.)
The Apple Issued ones can be used as AIM Screen Names.
You can also distinguish between iCloud Linked ones and plain Apple IDs
As Apple changed from MobileMe to iCloud they used and linked @me.com IDs to iCloud as people registered for iCloud.
Later they issued iCloud ending emails (you may have both)
This leaves you with "All iCloud IDs are Apple IDs, but not all Apple IDs are iCloud ID ones".
The short answer is if an Account in Messages can Video within the app (not invoke another app) then it can Screen Share.
10:05 pm Friday; November 14, 2014
 iMac 2.5Ghz i5 2011 (Mavericks 10.9)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad

Yosemite Messages Screen Sharing Router Type: Port Restricted

I want to do Screen Sharing via Messages as newly enabled in Yosemite (through Messages...not the Buddy List). Unfortunately, it fails. I run Connection Doctor under Video in Messages and see that I have an issue with the message "Router Type: Port Restricted". I would like to see "Full Cone".
What do I need to do?
I am on AT&T U-Verse running a Motorola NVG589 modem. I have the wireless disabled on the NVG589. The NVG589 is connected via ethernet to my Apple Airport Time Capsule (the tower model that is 802.11ac). The Airport Time Capsule is set up in Bridge Mode - so as not to create Double NAT but to offer 802.11ac wifi speeds and to provide Time Machine backups.
I have connected directly to the NVG589 modem and gotten the same "Router Type: Port Restricted" message. I assume I must open a port/ports on the NVG589. If so...what are those ports?
Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Hi,
The Messages app in all versions up to Mavericks only Screen Shares with AIM to AIM and Jabber to Jabber contacts as well as Bonjour connections on your LAN.
It is based on those accounts that do Video and Audio Chats within the app.
The iMessages invokes FaceTime to do Video and will not do Screen Sharing.
However as you say there is this info:-
Share a conversation —
and your screen.
Now you can share your screen with the person you’re chatting with. Then you can go from iMessage conversation to screen sharing with just a click. You can easily do things like collaborate on a presentation with a colleague, browse the web with a friend, or select airplane seats with your spouse. And Messages automatically initiates an audio chat when you start a screen sharing session, so you can talk things through while you’re at it.
On checking the icon to Screen Share does appear in iMessages conversation Details option
Notice the slightly diminished ("greyed out") quality to the Screen Sharing icon.
It appears it only works to other Macs.
The Buddies menu also has the option greyed out.
Routers
My Network Status looks like this.
The Bandwidth Limit is set in Messages > Preferences > Video/Audio pane > Bandwidth Limit.
Setting it to 500kbps is over what it needs to do 4 Way Video chat as Host.
When it is a really fast connection to a much slower Buddy it can help and also with higher speeds come higher variances which and cause havoc.
There are four main type of Router type as this refers to them.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_address_translation#Methods_of_port_transla tion
Port Restricted is just as effective as Full Cone.
I have had it show up this way on a Thompson-Alcatel 510v4 when I was first On line in iChat 2 and Netgear device I forget the number of, a Sagem Fast2504 from Sky my current internet provider when I had DLS and the current Fibre Hub that they supply.
I have UPnP set as the method to open the ports needed.
This allows the computer (apps) to tell the router which ports to open.
They will also close after periods on Non use.
Router that do UPnP advertise the fact.
You can reduce the number of devices that happens through (Hops). The default setting is normally 4. Router to computer counts as 1 Ethernet hubs don't count. But large LANs with more routers (Subnets to LANs) will count as more Hops.
Ports.
Most devices have the first 1024 port open (there are 65355 in total).
These lower numbered port handle things like Web Browsing on port 80.
FTP on port 21 and 22
Some Outgoing Mail servers on port 25
Secure web connection on port 443
and so on.
Messages and FaceTime Video chats use ports above this.
These are the one you tend to have to allow.
Video uses 5678 to send invites then moves to port 16402 (or one from a group of 10 ports below this)
10:02 PM Saturday; November 22, 2014
 iMac 2.5Ghz i5 2011 (Mavericks 10.9)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad

Why is Messages screen sharing icon grayed out?

Trying to do remote screen sharing with my mom's Mac using the new feature in Yosemite.
If you're not familiar with it, the new method does not require AIM, Jabber, etc and is independent of screen sharing settings in System Preferences (per Messages Help).
The procedure is:
In the main Messages window, select the name of the person you want to share with or, if you haven't previously exchanged messages, do so now.
Click 'details' on the right of the top bar of the main window.
In the menu that pops up, there are three icons: screen sharing, video chat, and audio chat/phone call. Click the screen sharing icon and send a request.
Today, my mom signed into her Messages account and we successfully exchanged iMessage messages (not SMS).
When I clicked 'details' the screen sharing and phone call icons were grayed out (or, more accurately, 'blued out' - they were a fainter shade of blue).
I clicked another name in the Conversations list and then clicked back to my mom's name. When I clicked 'details' this time, the screen sharing icon was no longer grayed out, so I sent a request to share her screen. She didn't receive the request, so I canceled it.
When I clicked on 'Details' again, the screen sharing icon was grayed out again. As far as I know, nothing had changed on my mom's end.
What could cause the screen sharing icon to be grayed out? And what could cause it to toggle back and forth between grayed out and normal?
Both computers are running the latest version of Yosemite, 10.10.3. Mine is a 2009 Mac Pro 8-core with 16 GB RAM, hers is a MacBook Pro from around 2012 or 2013.
Thanks!
Bob

Hi,
(He did say that he'd heard that due to changes in Google's system that their accounts no longer work with Messages.)
What he has heard and what are true are two different things
Logged in Google account
There are issues with Messages using SSL to login to the Google Talk server and Google saying SSL is Less Secure (there is a setting to Enable Less Secure apps like Mail that also uses SSL and Messages).
Some people find that 2 step Verification cannot be set at Google's Account settings if your want to use the Less Secure Apps setting.
1. I deleted my AIM account from Messages and had my mom do the same. The result is that we each only have two items in the Accounts window of Messages: an iMessage account (signed in with our Apple IDs) and a Bonjour account.
2. Clicking on the Details menu, the screen sharing icon was available for both of us. It was not grayed out.
This is using two different Methods of Screen Sharing in Messages (It is silly it has two but there we go)
For AIM use the Buddy List and the icons at the bottom or highlight the Buddy and use the Buddies Menu
DO NOT USE the Details option.
For iMessages start text chat then use the Detail Option an NOT THE BUDDIES Menu.
For the iMessages Method you have to Enable System Preferences > Sharing > Screen Sharing to allow the App to be Invoked.
(It is like FaceTime is invoked but only works to Macs)
As you mention the Connection Doctor only refers to the older "iChat Method for Aim and Jabber and Bonjour - if you can Video you should be able to Screen Share with that method.
9:49 pm Wednesday; April 29, 2015
 iMac 2.5Ghz i5 2011 (Mavericks 10.9)
 G4/1GhzDual MDD (Leopard 10.5.8)
 MacBookPro 2Gb (Snow Leopard 10.6.8)
 Mac OS X (10.6.8),
 Couple of iPhones and an iPad

Screen sharing in Yosemite Messages 10.10.1

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