Getting started

Where Esper is today

What works, what is missing, and who it is for right now.

Esper is in active development and has not had a release yet. Everything on these pages describes what the code does today, built from source. If something is not written here, assume it is not built.

Works today

  • Pairing by short code, device keys, and per-device permissions.
  • Finding a host on your network, over Tailscale, WireGuard, ZeroTier or Nebula, at a remembered address, or through a broker you run.
  • Terminal sessions that survive a dropped link, and port forwarding in the ssh -L and ssh -W shapes.
  • Screen, video, audio and input from Linux hosts on X11.
  • File copy, clipboard, screenshots, lock, log off, reboot and wake.
  • The CLI, a local HTTP API, and a desktop window for pairing, activity and settings.

Not yet

  • A remote screen inside the desktop window. Today you view a screen with esper connect --present.
  • Windows and macOS hosts.
  • Screen capture on GNOME and KDE Wayland. wlroots compositors such as sway and Hyprland work.
  • Release builds and packages you can download.
Esper has not been independently audited. Read the security policy and threat model in the repository before relying on it.