TargetBridge Intel Sender

TargetBridge Intel Sender is an independent x86_64 Sender fork of TargetBridge, maintained by AndyStuardo. It lets an Intel Mac create a virtual display and present it on another Mac running the TargetBridge Receiver, with Thunderbolt Bridge as the preferred transport.

The fork began with a specific setup: reuse a 21.5-inch 4K Intel iMac running macOS Monterey as an extended display for a 27-inch 5K Intel iMac from 2020 running macOS Sequoia. The work remains useful outside that pair, but only the configurations listed in Compatibility should be treated as verified.

Status: 3.3.0-intel.1 prerelease candidate. The Intel Sender is usable on the validated hardware, but the downloadable package is not yet signed with a Developer ID or notarized by Apple.

Why this fork exists

The upstream Sender was documented and packaged for Apple Silicon. This fork keeps the protocol and the original Receiver intact while adding a separately packaged Intel Sender and the diagnostics needed to tell whether an Intel Mac can capture and encode the selected display reliably.

The application is deliberately isolated from the original installation:

• application name: TargetBridge Intel Sender.app
• architecture: thin x86_64
• bundle identifier: com.targetbridge.intel-sender
• URL scheme: targetbridge-intel
• preferences, logs and Application Support data owned by the Intel variant
• safe uninstall.sh which targets only those Intel-variant files

It does not replace or remove TargetBridge Receiver, AirDisplay, Thunderbolt Bridge settings, Wi-Fi configuration or the upstream TargetBridge app.

Intel fork additions and adaptations

• Intel-native Sender build and packaging.
• 4K-oriented Work 4K profile plus logical HiDPI modes 2048 x 1152 and 2304 x 1296.
• Hardware VideoToolbox probing and live telemetry for codec, encoder, hardware status, fallback, FPS, bitrate, resolution and errors.
• H.264 and HEVC operation verified on the 2020 Intel iMac.
• Optional RAW NV12 transport when both ends advertise support. This remains experimental because its uncompressed bandwidth and memory-copy cost can be greater than its codec-latency saving.
• Better Thunderbolt Bridge recognition without changing network services or disabling Wi-Fi.
• Intel-specific menu-bar presentation for quick access to displays, Receivers, inherited modes and profiles, codec state and brightness.
• Spanish localization, automatic language selection and English fallback.
• Optional launch at login and login-only reconnection. Opening the app manually does not trigger automatic connection.
• Attached settings and telemetry panels, improved first-use connection action, and user-facing Display/Pantalla terminology while the protocol continues to use session internally.
• A distinct petroleum-blue x86 application icon. The functional menu-bar icon remains unchanged.

Inherited TargetBridge capabilities

The following capabilities are retained from upstream TargetBridge. They are included in this fork because they remain part of the Sender workflow, but are not presented as original Intel-fork development:

• Cable Test throughput measurement and guided connection diagnostics.
• Work 5K, Low Latency and Presentation quick profiles.
• Duplicate and Extended Desktop streaming modes.
• Thunderbolt Bridge transport, experimental Network Link, and multi-Receiver sessions.
• Audio Relay, Input Dockstation, remote brightness, translations and the shared Sender/Receiver protocol.

The Intel fork adapts the presentation, terminology, packaging and compatibility reporting around these features where necessary. Detailed upstream authorship remains available in the Git history and original project.

Verified setup and results

Role	Hardware and software
Sender	iMac Retina 5K 27-inch (2020), Intel Core i5 3.3 GHz, Radeon Pro 5300, macOS Sequoia 15.7.7
Receiver	iMac Retina 4K 21.5-inch, Intel, macOS Monterey, unchanged upstream Receiver
Link	Thunderbolt Bridge, 10.0.0.1 to 10.0.0.2 through bridge0
Toolchain	Xcode 26.3 (17C529)

The minimal Debug build, Release package and unit-test suite all complete as x86_64. The VideoToolbox probe created hardware-required H.264 GVA and HEVC AVE compression sessions at both prioritized logical resolutions. A real end-to-end session subsequently reached a 4096 x 2304 HEVC stream at 30 delivered FPS.

See Intel Sender audit for the exact findings and machine-readable VideoToolbox evidence for the probe output.

Install and connect

The Receiver is not repackaged by this fork. Install the suitable Receiver from the original TargetBridge releases on the destination Mac, then follow:

• Quick start — Español
• Quick start — English

To build the Intel Sender locally:

TargetBridge-Sender/scripts/build_intel_sender_app.sh

The result is build-intel/TargetBridge Intel Sender.app. Copy it to /Applications without replacing the original TargetBridge installation.

Compatibility direction

Sender and Receiver are roles, not fixed hardware directions. An Intel Mac can send to an Apple Silicon Mac if the latter runs a compatible arm64 Receiver. The shared protocol does not prohibit that arrangement, but it has not yet been verified by this fork. Conversely, the upstream Apple Silicon Sender can use an Intel Receiver; that remains an upstream workflow.

The Intel Sender is currently a thin x86_64 application. It may launch on Apple Silicon through Rosetta 2, but that is not the same as native arm64 support. Planned M1 tests are tracked in Compatibility and must be completed before making broader claims.

Documentation

• Documentation map
• Features and controls
• Hardware and Thunderbolt Bridge
• Compatibility and test matrix
• Testing and reporting results
• Audit and viability report
• Release and packaging process
• Automation
• Add-ons
• Translations
• Safe uninstall script

The inherited guides are maintained where the underlying feature still exists. They may be corrected and extended for this fork; they do not need to remain word-for-word copies of upstream documentation. When behavior applies only to the upstream Apple Silicon Sender or only to the Intel fork, the page should say so explicitly.

Security, privacy and network behavior

TargetBridge Intel Sender requests Screen Recording because it must capture the display it sends. Input or audio add-ons can require additional macOS permissions. The app does not store Receiver login credentials and does not bypass the Lock Screen or FileVault.

It reads available network interfaces and binds the selected local address. It does not assign IP addresses, change subnet masks or routers, reorder network services, disable Wi-Fi, or combine multiple Thunderbolt cables into one stream.

License and attribution

TargetBridge Intel Sender is based on the MIT-licensed TargetBridge project by Marco Caciotti (swellweb) and its open-source community. The Intel fork is developed and maintained by AndyStuardo. The original copyright and license notice in LICENSE are preserved.

The x86 badge is this fork's compatibility marker. It does not use the Intel corporate logo and does not imply sponsorship or endorsement by Intel.