ProPresenter NDI or Remote Not Working on Mac? The Local Network Fix

You set up an NDI output in ProPresenter and everything looks right. Then you walk to the other computer and there’s no NDI source anywhere. Or you try to bring NDI into ProPresenter and the source list is empty. Or the ProPresenter Remote app just spins and never connects.

Before you reinstall ProPresenter or blame the software, take a breath. Nine times out of ten this is one setting, and it isn’t even a ProPresenter setting. It’s a permission on your Mac that an update probably switched off without telling you.

Why One Mac Setting Breaks Three Things

NDI is video sent over your local network. Instead of traveling down an HDMI or SDI cable, the picture moves over Ethernet or Wi-Fi to another machine. It runs over proper networking gear: switches, routers and access points.

The ProPresenter Remote app finds ProPresenter over that same local network. So NDI in, NDI out, and the remote all depend on one thing.

ProPresenter has to be allowed to talk to your local network. That’s exactly the permission macOS likes to quietly turn off.

I’ve set up ProPresenter with NDI at a lot of churches, and I’ve started seeing this more and more. NDI is properly set up, but nothing on the network can see it. Sometimes it happens on a fresh install, sometimes after an update, and sometimes seemingly at random.

Fix #1: Turn On Local Network Access for ProPresenter

On the Mac running ProPresenter:

1. Click the Apple menu, then System Settings.
2. Go to Privacy & Security → Local Network.
3. Find ProPresenter and make sure its toggle is on.
4. Fully quit ProPresenter and reopen it so it picks up the permission.

Most of the time you’ll find that toggle off. Flip it on, relaunch, and NDI starts working. That one toggle is the difference between “NDI is broken” and “NDI works just fine.”

It isn’t only NDI, either. This permission affects all of ProPresenter’s network traffic.

While You’re There: Check the Microphone Permission

In the same Privacy & Security area there’s a Microphone permission. If ProPresenter is switched off there, it won’t get any audio in. If you’re chasing an audio problem too, check it.

Fix #2: The Remote App Has Its Own Permission

The same problem hits ProPresenter Remote, because iPhones and iPads have their own local network permission.

On the iPhone or iPad, go to Settings → Privacy & Security → Local Network and turn on ProPresenter Remote. On newer iOS versions, also check under Settings → Apps.

Here’s the trap. iOS asks for this permission exactly once, the first time the app launches. If a volunteer tapped Don’t Allow, iOS will never ask again. The app won’t see ProPresenter on any computer until someone flips that toggle by hand.

Confirm ProPresenter Is Actually Set Up

Once permissions are on, make sure the ProPresenter side is configured. These are the three places to look.

Sending NDI

Open Screen Configuration and set an output’s type to NDI. In the video, I send my streaming graphics output out over the network this way.

Receiving NDI

Go to Settings → Inputs, add a video input, and pick the NDI source. It should be named after the sending computer.

The Remote

Go to ProPresenter Settings → Network and enable the network. Turn on Remote Control and set a password.

A lot of “it won’t connect” problems come down to the network being switched off, or a password that was never set.

Network Problems That Look Like Permission Problems

If the permissions are on and ProPresenter is set up, look at the network itself.

Same Network, Same Subnet

Both machines must be on the same network, and really the same subnet. If one computer is on the guest Wi-Fi and the other is on wired Ethernet, that alone can break it.

Ideally, both the sending and receiving computers are on a wired connection.

Wi-Fi Is Usually the Weak Link

Full 1080p NDI is roughly 100+ megabits per second. That’s fine on wired gigabit Ethernet and rough on Wi-Fi. Once the link is working over Wi-Fi, consider lowering the resolution to 720p.

If a computer has Ethernet connected, turn off its Wi-Fi. I know AirDrop needs Wi-Fi, so that’s easier said than done. But very often, Wi-Fi is what’s causing these issues.

Turn Off the VPN

An active VPN on the computer will likely cause trouble reaching the local network. A VPN encrypts your traffic and routes it through a remote server. That isolates your device from the local network and keeps other devices from seeing it.

The Mac Firewall

Check the macOS firewall. Allow ProPresenter through it, or test with the firewall off. Most of the time it’s off unless you need it.

The Checklist, in Order

When NDI or the remote won’t connect, work these top to bottom:

1. Local Network permission for ProPresenter (and ProPresenter Remote on iOS). Quit and reopen afterward.
2. Same network and subnet on both machines. Wired if possible, Wi-Fi off when Ethernet is connected.
3. Mac firewall. Allow ProPresenter, or test with it off.
4. ProPresenter network enabled, with the remote turned on and a password set.
5. The NDI source is actually selected in the receiving input.
6. No VPN running on either computer.

Is It the Network or the Receiver? Test With NDI Tools

Here’s a bonus test that splits the problem in half. Install the free NDI Tools on the receiving machine. It includes a monitor app: Studio Monitor on Windows, Video Monitor on Mac.

Open the monitor app and look for the source:

• The source shows up in the monitor app but not in ProPresenter? The network is fine. The problem is in the receiver’s settings.
• The monitor app can’t see it either? It’s likely a network or permission issue.

The Hidden Access Manager Setting

If anyone ever played with the Access Manager app in NDI Tools, open it and look at Groups. If there’s anything in that box on either machine, it has to match on both ends.

Unless you set that up on purpose, clear it out. Blank means public, and public means everyone can see the source.

This setting lives on the computer, not in ProPresenter, and it sticks around even if you uninstall NDI Tools. So if a source shows up on one computer but not another, check Groups on the machine that can’t see it.

Why NDI Is Worth the Fight

ProPresenter’s NDI output carries transparency. Your lyrics and lower thirds can key straight over cameras in a software receiver like ProPresenter, OBS or vMix, with no chroma key needed. In the output settings you can switch between a chroma key output and an alpha key output.

I’ve seen churches run two ProPresenter computers with two operators every service, just to get lyrics onto the livestream. One well-built setup with a proper stream output avoids that. It’s one reason I built the ProPresenter Quick Start Template, which comes with Looks, Themes, Macros and outputs already built.

This is also a good argument for a dedicated production network. Keeping NDI, ProPresenter Remote and iPad console control separate from the public network gives you far more flexibility. I cover how that’s structured in Church Production Crashing? Your Network Architecture Is Wrong.

Watch the Video

I walk through every setting above on screen, from the Local Network toggle to the NDI Tools test:

Gear Mentioned in This Guide

Affiliate links — clicking them helps support what we do at no cost to you.

• uni USB-C to Gigabit Ethernet Adapter — gets a laptop with no Ethernet port onto a wired connection, so NDI isn’t fighting Wi-Fi. Buy →

Keep Going

• ProPresenter stream output: dedicated livestream graphics and audio
• ProPresenter screen setup for church
• Church AV troubleshooting 101
• ProPresenter for church: the complete training guide

More training is on the YouTube channel: youtube.com/@CrazyAmazingDesigns.