Remote Access to Omarchy from iPad using wayvnc and Tailscale

10/22/2025 / 23 minutes to read / Tags: omarchy, hyprland, wayland, tailscale, ipad

Remote Access to Omarchy from iPad using wayvnc and Tailscale

I have been playing with Omarchy on my Lenovo Legion since a few weeks ago, while waiting for my Bee-Link SER8 to arrive. It has arrived finally yesterday and It was a breeze to swap SSDs and get everything up and running. So fast that actually I started to look around the flat, what else I could get involved in the Omarchy madness. Probably I will have zero use of it, but my eyes landed on the iPad. And some Claude-ing around and a few articles later I have a relatively secured connection and a comfortable resolution switch hotkey set up to connect from anywhere if needed. The process is tried and works so I hope you will appreciate it. The hardware is a 2019 or 2020 iPad Pro and a Bee-Link SER8.

I found a great article on acrogenesis.com that covers the Omarchy side, but needed some tweak for the wayland config to work.

Step 3 I totally ignored because authenticating with Tailscale at tailscale up already gave me everything and I was able to connect after as I already had the ip.

Why This Setup?

wayvnc is a VNC server specifically designed for Wayland compositors like Hyprland. Traditional VNC servers (like x11vnc) only work with X11, making wayvnc essential for Wayland environments.

Tailscale creates a secure, encrypted peer-to-peer VPN using WireGuard. This means:

• No need to open firewall ports
• End-to-end encryption
• Access your machine from anywhere
• Zero-trust security model
• Your desktop never exposed to the public internet

Prerequisites

• Omarchy (Hyprland on Arch) installed and running
• An iPad (any model will work)
• A Tailscale account (free for personal use)

Step 1: Install wayvnc and Tailscale

On your Omarchy machine, install the required packages:

yay -S wayvnc tailscale

For Tailscale, you can also use the Omarchy menu:

Menu: Install → Service → Tailscale

Enable and start Tailscale:

sudo systemctl enable --now tailscaled
sudo tailscale up

Tailscale will give you a secure private IP (something like 100.x.y.z) that works anywhere, without opening firewall ports.

Step 2: Configure wayvnc

This is the crucial step that many guides miss! By default, wayvnc only listens on 127.0.0.1 (localhost), which won’t accept connections from other devices.

Create the wayvnc config directory and file:

mkdir -p ~/.config/wayvnc
nano ~/.config/wayvnc/config

Add the following configuration:

address=0.0.0.0
port=5900
enable_auth=false

Note on security: We’re disabling authentication because Tailscale already provides strong encryption and authentication. Your VNC connection is only accessible through your private Tailscale network, not the public internet.

Save and exit (Ctrl+X, then Y, then Enter).

Step 3: Get Your Tailscale IP

On your Omarchy machine:

tailscale ip -4

This will output something like 100.115.92.30. Write this down—you’ll need it to connect from your iPad.

You can also find this IP in the Tailscale admin panel or by running:

tailscale status

Step 4: Find Your Monitor Configuration

To optimize the experience for iPad, you’ll want to know your monitor setup. Run:

hyprctl monitors

This will show your connected monitors, their names (e.g., HDMI-A-1, DP-2), and current resolutions.

For example:

Monitor HDMI-A-1 (ID 0):
  [email protected] at 0x0
  description: LG Electronics LG ULTRAWIDE

Note your monitor name and native resolution—you’ll need this for the resolution toggle script.

Step 5: Create a Resolution Toggle Script (Optional but Recommended)

If you have an ultrawide monitor (21:9 aspect ratio like 2560x1080 or 3440x1440), viewing it on an iPad’s 4:3 screen will make everything tiny and difficult to use. A resolution toggle script lets you switch to an iPad-friendly resolution when connecting remotely.

Create ~/toggle-resolution.sh:

#!/bin/bash
MONITOR="HDMI-A-1"  # Change this to match your monitor name

CURRENT=$(hyprctl monitors | awk -v mon="$MONITOR" '
    $2 == mon {getline; print $1}' )

if [[ "$CURRENT" == 2560x1080* ]]; then
    echo "Switching to iPad-friendly resolution (1920x1080@60)..."
    hyprctl keyword monitor "$MONITOR,1920x1080@60,0x0,1"
elif [[ "$CURRENT" == 1920x1080* ]]; then
    echo "Switching back to UltraWide (2560x1080@60)..."
    hyprctl keyword monitor "$MONITOR,2560x1080@60,0x0,1"
else
    echo "Current mode is $CURRENT — defaulting to UltraWide."
    hyprctl keyword monitor "$MONITOR,2560x1080@60,0x0,1"
fi

Make it executable:

chmod +x ~/toggle-resolution.sh

Add a Keyboard Shortcut (Optional)

Add this to ~/.config/hypr/bindings.conf:

bindd = SUPER SHIFT, R, Toggle Resolution, exec, ~/toggle-resolution.sh

Now you can press Super+Shift+R to toggle between your native ultrawide resolution and an iPad-friendly resolution.

Step 6: Start wayvnc

In a terminal on your Omarchy machine:

wayvnc --log-level=debug

You should see output similar to:

Info: Capturing output HDMI-A-1
Info: >> LG Electronics LG ULTRAWIDE (HDMI-A-1) 2560x1080+0x0
Info: Listening for connections on 0.0.0.0:5900

Important: Make sure it says 0.0.0.0:5900 and NOT 127.0.0.1:5900. If it says 127.0.0.1, double-check your config file from Step 2.

Auto-start wayvnc (Optional)

To have wayvnc start automatically, you can create a systemd user service:

mkdir -p ~/.config/systemd/user
nano ~/.config/systemd/user/wayvnc.service

Add:

[Unit]
Description=wayvnc VNC server
After=graphical-session.target

[Service]
Type=simple
ExecStart=/usr/bin/wayvnc
Restart=on-failure

[Install]
WantedBy=default.target

Enable and start:

systemctl --user enable --now wayvnc.service

Step 7: Set Up Your iPad

Install Tailscale

1. Download Tailscale from the App Store
2. Open it and sign in with the same account you used on your Omarchy machine
3. Both devices should now appear in your Tailscale network

Install a VNC Client

You have two main options (I went with the first):

OzRealVNC Viewer (Free)

• Simple and functional
• Good keyboard support
• Free to use

Option 2: Screens 5 (Paid)

• More polished interface
• Better gesture support
• Excellent keyboard and trackpad integration
• One-time purchase or subscription

Download your preferred VNC client from the App Store.

Step 8: Connect from iPad

On your Omarchy machine, switch to iPad-friendly resolution:

~/toggle-resolution.sh

Or press Super+Shift+R if you set up the keyboard shortcut.

Connect with RealVNC Viewer

1. Open RealVNC Viewer
2. Tap the + button to add a new connection
3. Enter your Tailscale IP: 100.x.y.z:5900 (use the IP from Step 3)
4. Give it a name like “Omarchy Desktop”
5. Tap Connect

Connect with Screens 5

1. Open Screens
2. Tap + to add a new screen
3. Choose “New Screen”
4. Enter your Tailscale IP: 100.x.y.z
5. Port: 5900
6. Name it “Omarchy”
7. Tap Connect

You should now see your Omarchy desktop on your iPad! If yes, Congratulations!

Using Your iPad as a Development Machine

With this setup, your iPad becomes a powerful remote terminal for your Omarchy machine. Here are some workflows:

Terminal Access via SSH

For command-line work (like using Claude Code), SSH over Tailscale is even more responsive than VNC:

1. Install Blink Shell or Termius on your iPad
2. Add your Tailscale IP as an SSH host
3. Connect with your username and password (or SSH keys)

Hybrid Workflow

• Use SSH for terminal work and coding
• Use VNC when you need the graphical desktop environment

With External Keyboard

If you have an iPad with Magic Keyboard or any Bluetooth keyboard, the experience becomes even better. The Super key (Windows key) will be passed through to Hyprland, giving you access to all your Omarchy shortcuts.

Troubleshooting

wayvnc hangs or shows no output

Run with debug logging:

wayvnc --log-level=debug

Check that it’s listening on 0.0.0.0:5900, not 127.0.0.1:5900.

Can’t connect from iPad

1. Verify both devices show up in Tailscale:

   tailscale status

2. Check wayvnc is running:

   ps aux | grep wayvnc

3. Verify the port is open:

   ss -tulpn | grep 5900

Connection is slow or laggy

• Try switching to a lower resolution with the toggle script
• Ensure both devices have good internet connections
• Tailscale usually provides direct peer-to-peer connections, but if it’s using relay servers (DERP), performance may vary

Screen resolution doesn’t look right

Run the toggle script before connecting, or manually set a resolution that works better for iPad:

hyprctl keyword monitor "HDMI-A-1,1920x1080@60,0x0,1"

Security Considerations

This setup is secure because:

1. Tailscale provides encryption: All traffic is encrypted with WireGuard
2. No exposed ports: Your VNC server is never exposed to the public internet
3. Zero-trust model: Only devices authenticated in your Tailscale network can connect
4. Private IP space: Tailscale uses the 100.x.y.z CGNAT address space

We disabled VNC authentication because Tailscale already handles authentication and encryption. If you prefer defense-in-depth, you can enable VNC authentication by removing enable_auth=false from the config and setting a password.

Conclusion

With Omarchy (Hyprland on Arch), wayvnc, and Tailscale, you have a secure, practical remote desktop setup that works from anywhere. The combination of a resolution toggle script and an iPad with keyboard gives you flexibility to use an ultrawide monitor at your desk while maintaining a laptop-friendly experience when connecting remotely.

Whether you’re using your iPad for quick administrative tasks, development work with Claude Code, or full desktop access on the go, this setup provides a professional-grade solution without the complexity or security risks of traditional VPN or port-forwarding setups.

Additional Resources

• wayvnc GitHub
• Tailscale Documentation
• Hyprland Wiki
• RealVNC Viewer
• Screens 5

Have questions or improvements? Feel free to reach out or leave a comment below!