# Best open source remote desktop tools (AnyDesk and TeamViewer alternatives) > To reach your computers remotely, the best self-hosted picks are MeshCentral for remote desktop and support, Termix for SSH from the browser and Warpgate for secure access to servers. Each pick was chosen by hand for its job from apps whose own description or topics match it, and is shown with GitHub data from October 2026. ## Key facts | Fact | Value | |---|---| | Question | What is the best open source alternative to AnyDesk and TeamViewer? | | Picks | 8 | | Top pick | MeshCentral (7,345 stars) | | Data as of | Oct 7, 2026 | | Canonical URL | https://appsgit.com/best/remote-desktop | Two apps in the catalog are full remote desktop tools: MeshCentral manages and controls computers through your own web server, and Guacamole is a clientless gateway for VNC and RDP in the browser. The other sections cover browser SSH terminals and secure access gateways for servers. ## Remote desktop and remote support - [MeshCentral](https://appsgit.com/apps/meshcentral) (7,345 stars, Apache-2.0, HTML): MeshCentral has 7,345 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license and had 455 commits in the last year; it replaces TeamViewer and AnyDesk. - [Guacamole](https://appsgit.com/apps/guacamole) (3,998 stars, Apache-2.0, C): Guacamole has 3,998 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license and had 222 commits in the last year; it replaces TeamViewer and AnyDesk. ## Browser-based SSH and terminals - [Termix](https://appsgit.com/apps/termix) (15,340 stars, Apache-2.0, TypeScript, Docker): Termix has 15,340 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 186 commits in the last year. - [Sshwifty](https://appsgit.com/apps/sshwifty) (3,129 stars, AGPL-3.0, JavaScript, Docker): Sshwifty has 3,129 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 49 commits in the last year. - [ShellHub](https://appsgit.com/apps/shellhub) (2,066 stars, Apache-2.0, TypeScript, Docker): ShellHub has 2,066 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 2,625 commits in the last year. ## Secure access gateways - [Warpgate](https://appsgit.com/apps/warpgate) (8,013 stars, Apache-2.0, Rust, Docker): Warpgate has 8,013 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 884 commits in the last year; it replaces TeamViewer and AnyDesk. - [Firezone](https://appsgit.com/apps/firezone) (9,108 stars, Apache-2.0, Elixir, Docker): Firezone has 9,108 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 3,510 commits in the last year; it replaces Tailscale. - [Pangolin](https://appsgit.com/apps/pangolin) (23,015 stars, AGPL-3.0, TypeScript, Docker): Pangolin has 23,015 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 5,364 commits in the last year; it replaces ngrok and Tailscale. ## How this list was made - Apps were picked by hand from the appsgit catalog for each job, then checked against the snapshot: unknown or archived projects and projects with no commit in two years are dropped automatically. - Inside each section the curated order is kept, most broadly useful first; an app appears only once on the page. - Stars, license, Docker and activity facts come from the GitHub API as of October 2026. ## FAQ ### Is there a self-hosted TeamViewer or AnyDesk alternative? MeshCentral describes itself as running your own web server to remotely manage and control computers, and Guacamole is a clientless remote desktop gateway for VNC and RDP. Both run on your own server, so sessions do not go through a vendor's relay. ### Is it safe to expose remote desktop to the internet? Only behind strong authentication and current patches. Put the gateway behind HTTPS with multi-factor login, or reach it through a VPN or access gateway such as Firezone or Pangolin rather than opening RDP or VNC ports directly. ### Is MeshCentral free? Yes. MeshCentral is open-source software released under the Apache-2.0 license, so you can self-host it at no cost. You only pay for the server it runs on, and some projects also offer an optional paid cloud plan. ### Can I run this stack with Docker? 6 of the 8 apps here publish Docker images, including Termix, Sshwifty and ShellHub, so most of the stack can run side by side with Docker Compose on one server. Size the server for the heaviest app and add off-site backups. ## Related questions - [What is the best open source alternative to Microsoft Visio?](https://appsgit.com/best/diagram-and-flowchart-tools) - [What is the best open source alternative to Excel and Access?](https://appsgit.com/best/spreadsheet-and-database-apps) - [What is the best open source OCR software?](https://appsgit.com/best/ocr-tools) - [What is the best open source software?](https://appsgit.com/best/open-source-software) - [What are the most popular self-hosted apps on GitHub?](https://appsgit.com/best/most-starred-self-hosted-apps) - [Which open source self-hosted projects are growing the fastest?](https://appsgit.com/best/fastest-growing-open-source-projects) - [What are the best new self-hosted apps?](https://appsgit.com/best/newest-self-hosted-apps) - [What are the best self-hosted apps?](https://appsgit.com/best/self-hosted-apps) ## See also - [All remote access apps](https://appsgit.com/categories/remote-access) - [All web servers & reverse proxies apps](https://appsgit.com/categories/web-servers) - [Open-source alternatives to TeamViewer](https://appsgit.com/alternatives/teamviewer) - [Open-source alternatives to AnyDesk](https://appsgit.com/alternatives/anydesk) - [Open-source alternatives to Tailscale](https://appsgit.com/alternatives/tailscale) - [Open-source alternatives to ngrok](https://appsgit.com/alternatives/ngrok) --- Canonical page: https://appsgit.com/best/remote-desktop Source: appsgit (https://appsgit.com), the app store for github. Data from the GitHub API, refreshed nightly. Machine access: JSON API https://appsgit.com/api/v1/apps (OpenAPI: https://appsgit.com/openapi.json), MCP server https://mcp.appsgit.com/mcp, full index https://appsgit.com/llms-full.txt.