Deskconn

A split operating system where the runtime lives on your computer, the interface lives on any device, and applications can execute locally or in the cloud.

It lets you control Linux desktops remotely (run shells, transfer files, forward ports and more) from any device on your account. Connections are routed through the Deskconn cloud router and can transparently upgrade to direct WebRTC P2P links for lower latency.

Components

The Deskconn ecosystem consists of five pieces. This repository contains the two that run on the managed desktop:

Component	Role
deskconnd	Desktop daemon. Registers and exposes desktop APIs over WAMP. Runs as a systemd user service.
deskconn	Control CLI. Attach desktops, manage files, open shells, forward ports, and more.
deskconn-router	Cloud WAMP router. The central hub — every component (CLI, daemon, account service, web app, mobile app) connects through it.
deskconn-account-service	Manages user accounts, organizations, and per-device CryptoSign principals.
deskconn-web-app / deskconn-mobile-app	Web and mobile interfaces.

How a command reaches your desktop

deskconn CLI
    │  (Unix socket — ~/.deskconn/deskconn.sock)
    ▼
deskconnd (local proxy)
    │  (WebSocket — wss://api.deskconn.com/ws or WebRTC P2P)
    ▼
deskconnd (target device)

The local deskconnd maintains a persistent session to the cloud router per target device. The shell command starts over the routed path and migrates transparently to a direct WebRTC connection in the background once the P2P handshake completes.

Authentication

All cloud connections use CryptoSign (Ed25519). deskconn login generates a keypair, registers the public key with the account service, and stores the private key in ~/.deskconn/id_ed25519.

Installation

curl -fsSL https://get.deskconn.com | sh

This installs deskconn and deskconnd to ~/.local/bin and registers deskconnd as a systemd user service that starts automatically.

Getting started

1. Create an account

Sign up at deskconn.com or via the mobile app.

2. Attach the desktop to the cloud

deskconn attach --username <email> --password <password>
# or read the password from stdin
echo "$PASSWORD" | deskconn attach --username <email> --password-stdin

This creates a realm for the desktop under your account and writes credentials to ~/.deskconn/credentials.json. The daemon picks these up automatically and connects to the cloud router.

3. Log in from the CLI

deskconn login --username <email> --password <password>

Generates an Ed25519 keypair, registers it with the account service, and stores it locally. You only need to do this once per machine; the key is valid for 30 days and is renewed on the next login.

4. List your devices

deskconn ls
deskconn ls --refresh    # fetch the current list from the cloud
deskconn ls --detailed   # show realm, ID, and organisation

5. Open a shell

deskconn shell <device>
deskconn shell <device> --mode p2p      # force WebRTC
deskconn shell <device> --mode routed   # force cloud router

CLI reference

Account

deskconn login    [--username] [--password] [--password-stdin]
deskconn logout
deskconn whoami
deskconn attach   [--name] [--username] [--password] [--password-stdin]
deskconn detach   [--username] [--password] [--password-stdin]

Devices

deskconn ls [--refresh] [--detailed]
deskconn ping <device> [--count N]

Shell & exec

deskconn shell <device> [--mode p2p|routed]
deskconn exec  <device> <command...> [--p2p]

File operations

All file commands accept device:path for remote paths and a bare /path for local paths.

deskconn file ls  <device:path> [--mode p2p|routed]
deskconn file mv  <src> <dst>   [--mode p2p|routed]
deskconn file cp  <src> <dst>   [-r] [--mode p2p|routed]
deskconn file rm  <target>      [--mode p2p|routed]
deskconn file cat <device:path> [--mode p2p|routed]

Port forwarding

# Forward local:remote — traffic on localhost:LOCAL goes to REMOTE on the device
deskconn port forward <device> [-l LOCAL] [-r REMOTE] [--p2p]

# Reverse — the device listens on REMOTE and forwards to localhost:LOCAL
deskconn port reverse <device> [-r REMOTE] [-l LOCAL] [--p2p]

Printing

deskconn print --enable [--host-printers]   # allow this desktop to receive print jobs
deskconn print --disable
deskconn print --status
deskconn print --ls <device>                # list printers on a device
deskconn print <device:printer> <file>      # send a print job

Configuration

deskconn config show
deskconn config set <device> alias <value>
deskconn config unset <device> alias
deskconn config edit

Self-update

deskconn self version
deskconn self update

Development

Build

make build-deskconnd   # builds ./deskconnd
make build-deskconn    # builds ./deskconn

Override the cloud endpoint for local development:

export DESKCONN_CLOUD_URI=ws://localhost:8080/ws

Test

make test

Credential files

All credentials and configuration are stored under ~/.deskconn/:

File	Contents
credentials.json	Device attach credentials (realm, authid, keypair) used by deskconnd
id_ed25519	CLI private key, username, and key expiry
id_ed25519.pub	CLI public key, username, and account name
config.yml	Device list and aliases
principals.json	Local CryptoSign principals (used by the local WAMP router)
turn_credentials.json	Cached TURN server credentials for WebRTC
deskconn.sock	Unix socket for local CLI–daemon communication

License

See LICENSE.