--- title: "remotepairingd and CoreDeviceService on Mac: network use explained · Kilobat Guides" url: "https://kilobat.app/guides/what-is-remotepairingd.html" description: "remotepairingd and CoreDeviceService connect a Mac to paired iPhones and iPads. See what is documented, what can be observed, and how to reduce it." --- macOS processes # What is remotepairingd on Mac? `remotepairingd` connects the Mac to paired Apple devices. Apple does not document it. `CoreDeviceService` belongs to Xcode's device support. Process: `remotepairingd` · Process: `CoreDeviceService` · Process: `usbmuxd` · Applies to: macOS with Xcode or its device support installed. Seen on macOS 27.2. · Checked: 29 October 2026 ## Where you see it - `remotepairingd` is in the list in Activity Monitor › Network, in `nettop` or in Kilobat. - A firewall or network monitor asks if `remotepairingd` can connect. - `CoreDeviceServi` appears in `nettop` or Kilobat with a lot of traffic. - The traffic goes to an address on your local network. ## What it is Apple publishes no man page for remotepairingd. Its path shows that it is part of the RemotePairing framework. `CoreDeviceService` is in `/Library/Developer/PrivateFrameworks/CoreDevice.framework`. This folder holds the developer device support that Xcode uses. Apple's Xcode documentation says that Xcode can pair an iPhone or iPad wirelessly when it is on the same Wi-Fi network as the Mac. The `usbmuxd` man page says that it manages communication with iOS devices over USB and Wi-Fi. ## Why it uses the network - **A paired device on the network.** On this Mac, `lsof` showed remotepairingd connected to an iPhone on the local network. - **Xcode work with devices.** Installing and debugging apps on a paired device moves data to it. - **What was observed.** On a developer's Mac with a paired iPhone, Kilobat recorded several gigabytes for each process in one week. ## Is it normal? Yes, if you use Xcode with a device, or another feature that pairs devices. The traffic goes to the device on the local network. Apple does not document what else uses remotepairingd. Treat larger traffic as the work of the device that you paired. ## See how much it uses 1. Open Activity Monitor from Applications > Utilities. Click Network. 2. Type `remotepairingd` in the search field. The Sent Bytes and Rcvd Bytes columns show what it moved. 3. In Terminal, watch only this process. Press d to show the change per second, and q to quit. ``` nettop -p remotepairingd -P ``` 4. Show its connections. A local address is the paired device. ``` lsof -nP -i -a -c remotepair ``` 5. Do the same for CoreDeviceService. In `nettop`, use its short name. ``` nettop -p CoreDeviceServi -P ``` ## Reduce or pause it safely 1. Connect the device with a cable when you install or debug apps. 2. In Xcode, open Device Hub. Remove devices that you do not use any more. 3. Do not quit `remotepairingd` in Activity Monitor. It is part of macOS, and other features depend on it. ## With Kilobat 1. Open the Kilobat app list and search for `remotepairingd`. Its row shows the live rate and the bytes it moved. 2. Kilobat shows local network traffic apart. Traffic to a device on your network does not count as Internet data. 3. In Terminal, see the same live list. Press / and type the name to search. ``` kilobat status --watch ``` 4. Show its traffic over one day. Names match `kilobat report --summary`. ``` kilobat bandwidth remotepairingd day ``` 5. Through MCP, an AI agent gets the same history with `get_app_bandwidth` and the name `remotepairingd`. 6. The live view is free. History in the app needs Pro. Kilobat records history only while the app runs. ## Questions **Does remotepairingd use my internet data?** On this Mac, its connections went to a device on the local network. Apple does not document all its connections. **Why is CoreDeviceService shown as CoreDeviceServi?** `nettop` and Kilobat show at most 15 characters of a process name. ## Sources - [Apple Developer: Managing your simulated and physical devices in Device Hub](https://developer.apple.com/documentation/xcode/managing-your-simulated-and-physical-devices-in-device-hub) - usbmuxd(8), man page installed with macOS 27.2 - lsof(8), man page installed with macOS 27.2 - nettop(1), man page installed with macOS 27.2 Sources checked on 29 October 2026. Man pages are the ones installed with macOS; open one with `man ` in Terminal. ## Related guides - [What is rapportd on Mac?](https://kilobat.app/guides/what-is-rapportd.html): rapportd lets your Mac talk to your other Apple devices. - [An app cannot find devices on the local network](https://kilobat.app/guides/local-network-permission.html): macOS 15 Sequoia and later ask before an app connects to devices on your local network. - [Find the devices on your local network from a Mac](https://kilobat.app/guides/find-devices-on-network.html): macOS has two built-in ways to see other devices: the ARP table and Bonjour. - [Find which app uses your bandwidth on a Mac](https://kilobat.app/guides/which-app-uses-bandwidth.html): Activity Monitor and nettop show which processes send and receive data.