what miniWOL is

miniWOL is a lightweight, cross-platform software utility designed to remotely power on network devices using the Wake-on-LAN (WOL) protocol. Created by developer Hans from ⁠Tweaking4All, it acts as a user-friendly interface for sending “magic packets” across a local network to wake up sleeping or powered-down computers, servers, printers, and Network Attached Storage (NAS) devices. Core Functionality

System Integration: It runs silently in the background, anchoring itself directly to the Windows System Tray or the macOS and Linux Menu Bars.

One-Click Waking: Users can trigger a wake signal instantly by right-clicking the tray/menu bar icon and selecting a configured target device from a quick-access menu.

Device Discovery: It features built-in helpers that let users select from known network IP addresses, automatically attempting to detect the corresponding hardware MAC address to minimize manual typing. Key Features

Automation Hooks: It can automatically send WOL signals upon system startup or when the host computer wakes from its own sleep cycle.

Post-Wake Scripting: Users can configure the application to launch specific software or execute custom command scripts immediately after a target device successfully wakes up.

Self-Closing: It includes an option to automatically quit and close the application once its primary waking task is complete.

Custom Configurations: It supports modifying individual broadcast masks and custom UDP ports (the default is port 9) for advanced network environments. Network Scope & Constraints

As a standard WOL utility, miniWOL is explicitly designed for local network (LAN) operations. It will effectively wake devices inside the same home or office network by default. Attempting to wake a device over the broader Internet (WAN) requires advanced external network configurations, such as setting up port forwarding or configuring a VPN tunnel on the local router.

Are you planning to use miniWOL to manage home lab servers, wake up a work computer, or manage multimedia storage? Knowing your goals can help me guide you through the setup process. miniWOL – App Store – Apple