I’m looking for the best remote access solution that works for me

Submitted ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩ by ⁨SanPe_@lemmy.world⁩ to ⁨selfhosted@lemmy.world⁩

Hello,

I stopped using TeamViewer a very long time ago. Since then, I’ve been using DWService and I’m quite happy with it. I like the fact that I can access to the terminal without launching any graphical component on the machine (which is handy for my headless servers, and allows me not to open SSH port). I also like the fact that it works even if my VPN server is down, as I can access remote servers that aren’t accessible via the web when they’re no longer reachable through my VPN.

However, there are a few issues that are bothering me more and more. I’ve switched my mum’s computer to Fedora and, whilst it worked perfectly under Windows, remote control is very buggy under fedora because the connection isn’t great. Furthermore, it’s impossible to access the screen if the computer isn’t unlocked.

So, I’d really like to find a solution that meets my criteria:

Accessible via a web browser
Ideally open-source
Free
Ideally self-hostable, but I’m worried that if, for example, my reverse proxy or VPN crashes, I won’t be able to access my machines to debug them?
Allows access to servers without a monitor
Allows access to computers running Fedora without the need for prior unlocking

Thanks!

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Comments

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7EP6vuI@feddit.org ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
why don’t you want to open an ssh port? what’s wrong with that?

just disable password authentication, and maybe get fail2ban. am i missing something?

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- neidu4@piefed.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Optional extra, which I do: Change the SSH port to something non-standard. It’s not more secure, but it does cut down on the logspam.
  
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  - nibbler@discuss.tchncs.de ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    I’d argue it’s even more secure, as it reduces the amount of attacks you are exposed to. For targeted attacks it changes absolutely nothing. But it keeps you our of a few DBs and spares some brute force attacks.
    
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- SanPe_@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Essentially, log spam… But also an irrational fear of a security breach.
  
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  - lntl@lemmy.ml ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    IMO ssh is the tool you’re describing. My ssh server is exposed to the WAN and is configured like this:
    
    set to a random port to reduce spam (completely eliminated it for me)
    
    set PasswordAuthentication no
    
    set PermitRootLogin no
    
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  - Guiorgy@lemmy.ml ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    You could spin a publicly exposed WireGuard daemon firewalled to allow peers access to the non-public SSH port only, which would result in double encryption, but would give you the peace of mind that an attacker would have to compromise both at the same time, which is very unlikely. Plus, WireGuard is very cheap to deploy and produces no logs. We use that model in my office to access our server.
    
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Cerothen@lemmy.ca ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
For remote access I use two solutions that both have the features your looking for.

The first one which I have used for longer than I can remember is MeshCentral github.com/Ylianst/MeshCentral

This one works great, is web based, let’s you access a shell, or you can make port tunnels been agents, access RDP or vnc in the web UI, the file system etc.

it’s a really great one stop shop that more than covers what you’re looking for.

The second is RustDesk github.com/rustdesk/rustdesk with the betterdesk server and web UI github.com/UNITRONIX/BetterDesk

This one scratched my TeamViewer itch and weekend pretty well. It’s newer than MeshCentral and not as easy to setup however on top of the web client it’s got apps which in my opinion provide a better experience for remote desktop access than MeshCentrals novnc client especially around copy paste.

All in all, of your looking for something ultra easy I recommend MeshCentral, it’s minor quirks around novnc are so easy to overlook since it just works so well.

If you want a modern TeamViewer then go with RustDesk/betterdesk but it’s newer and needs some extra work to get going.

All these projects are open source, free, self hostable, has headless file and terminal access, and have web clients.

For using Linux on any remote solution you pretty much have to run the desktop on x11 instead of Wayland. I don’t know if any software has found a great Wayland solution yet.

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- CodandChips@lemmy.ml ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Rustdesk seconded here, I found it fairly straightforward to setup on Mint. I previously had used TeamViewer and AnyDesk
  
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NutinButNet@hilariouschaos.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Two tools I have been using to replace TeamViewer that check some of your boxes, but not all are:

Tailscale

RustDesk

Both free and widely used in the community for many of the purposes you’re looking for.

Both operate slightly different from each other. But to give you insight into how I use them:

I use Tailscale as a VPN into my house for stuff like Jellyfin remote viewing on my iPhone or laptop when not at home, SSH/RDP/SMB remote access into my home network and between my devices. I replaced my Docker VPN that was becoming tedious to manage with this and it’s been a lot better and easier to manage.

I use RustDesk for my family and friends who want my help like out of state relatives. It works just like TeamViewer but without the greed or stupid nags or limitations to force you to pay. It just works.

There’s some others like RustDesk others may recommend too. There’s a few others out there I’ve tried, but RustDesk has been great for me.

Haven’t used TeamViewer in over 5 years because of these and other similar services.
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mbirth@lemmy.ml ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
A buddy just shipped a pre-configured Comet Q to their parents.

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- SanPe_@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Waw. That’s a bit expensive. But for my mom’s computer that would be a nice solution.
  
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Decronym@lemmy.decronym.xyz [bot] ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

Acronyms, initialisms, abbreviations, contractions, and other phrases which expand to something larger, that I’ve seen in this thread:

Fewer Letters	More Letters
LXC	Linux Containers
SMB	Server Message Block protocol for file and printer sharing; Windows-native
SSH	Secure Shell for remote terminal access
VPN	Virtual Private Network

[Thread #132 for this comm, first seen 16th Oct 2026, 18:50] [FAQ] [Full list] [Contact] [Source code]

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sj_zero@lotide.fbxl.net ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Apache guacamole is really nice. Became a game changer for me.

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valkyre09@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
I had similar requirements and fell upon mesh central. To keep it secure on web I have it hidden behind cloudflare tunnel and an access policy.

Bonus points it even supports mobile devices if you need to help your mum with those too.

Another one I was a fan of was level RMM if you can stay below the 10 device limit it’s completely free - all hosted on their cloud. I have too many children so had to switch from level.

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anzo@programming.dev ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
Don’t worry about vpn failures. I have used headscale for a long uninterrupted time. Yes, eventually you may need physical access. That event is as frequent as having a broken boot partition :p be careful to read changelogs when applying updates or have some other means to access of you will… Just saying that for me it has worked perfectly fine.

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