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Rename a device

A display name is a label you set for a paired Mac that overrides the hostname the Mac reports. It’s purely a label — renaming changes nothing on the Mac itself, and the original hostname is kept, so clearing the name reverts to it. A display name can be up to 100 characters.

This is handy when your Macs report cryptic hostnames (Adrians-MacBook-Pro-7) and you’d rather see Work laptop or Studio mini everywhere you look.

Rename from the dashboard (works now)

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The web dashboard is where you rename a device today:

  1. Open https://app.commandlatch.app and tap the Mac you want to rename.
  2. Tap the pencil / name in the device header.
  3. Type a name and save — it’s saved instantly.

To go back to the hostname, clear the field (leave it blank) and save. The Mac falls back to its reported hostname.

Renaming is per-account. It only affects how the device is labelled in CommandLatch; it doesn’t rename the Mac, change pairing, or touch any settings on the machine.

Where the name shows up

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Once set, the display name is used in place of the hostname across CommandLatch:

  • Your device list and the device header.
  • Activity log device chips.
  • Shortcut device chips.
  • The CLI: commandlatch status shows the display name when one is set, otherwise the hostname.

From the menu-bar app and iPhone

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  • The menu-bar app shows the resolved display name (kept separate from the raw hostname) in an upcoming build.
  • The iPhone app — coming soon — will let you rename a Mac by tapping its title.

Until those builds ship, rename on the dashboard — it’s the live place to do it today, and the new name flows to the CLI and activity log right away.

See also

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