termi-host

Free and Open Source Web-Based Terminal Access

Access your VPS/server terminal from any browser, anywhere in the world

🚀 Live Demo | 📖 Documentation | 🔧 Troubleshooting | 🐛 Report Bug | ✨ Request Feature

🎯 What is termi-host?

termi-host is a free, open-source web-based terminal solution that lets you access your server terminal through any web browser. No SSH client installation needed. Perfect for:

📱 Accessing servers from mobile devices
📺 Using terminals on smart TVs
💻 Managing servers from public computers without SSH clients
🌍 Remote server administration from anywhere
🎓 Educational environments and coding tutorials
🏢 Team collaboration and pair programming

✨ Key Features

🌟 Core Features

🌐 Browser-Based Terminal: No SSH client needed - works in Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge
🔒 Optional Authentication: Built-in password protection (configurable)
⚡ Real-time Communication: WebSocket-based for instant command execution
🎨 Modern UI: Beautiful terminal interface powered by xterm.js
📱 Fully Responsive: Works seamlessly on desktop, tablet, and mobile
🚀 Lightweight: Minimal resource footprint (~50MB RAM)
🔧 Easy Configuration: JSON-based config with environment variable support
🐚 Multi-Shell Support: Works with bash, zsh, sh, and more
🎯 Zero Dependencies: Just Node.js - no database or additional services needed

🛠️ Technical Features

📦 Easy Deployment: Single command installation
🔄 Auto-Reconnect: Automatic reconnection on network issues
🖥️ PTY Support: Full pseudo-terminal with proper signal handling
🎨 Terminal Colors: Full ANSI color support
⌨️ Special Keys: All keyboard shortcuts work (Ctrl+C, Ctrl+Z, etc.)
📐 Dynamic Resize: Terminal auto-resizes with browser window
🔐 SELinux Compatible: Works with security-enhanced Linux
📊 Systemd Integration: Run as a system service with auto-restart

🚀 Quick Start

Automated Installation (Recommended)

The easiest way to get started is using our automated installation script:

# Clone and install with one command
git clone https://github.com/vpbgkt/termi-host.git && cd termi-host && bash install.sh

The script will:

✅ Check your Node.js version (and install Node.js 20 if needed)
✅ Install build tools required for node-pty
✅ Install all npm dependencies automatically
✅ Create default configuration file
✅ Generate secure session secret

Then start the server:

npm start

Manual Installation

If you prefer manual installation:

# 1. Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/vpbgkt/termi-host.git
cd termi-host

# 2. Run the installation script
bash install.sh

# 3. Start the server
npm start

That's it! Open your browser to:

Local: http://localhost:3000
Remote: http://YOUR_SERVER_IP:3000

Default Login:

Username: admin
Password: admin (⚠️ CHANGE THIS!)

📦 Installation

Automated Installation Script

The easiest and recommended method:

# Clone and run installation script
git clone https://github.com/vpbgkt/termi-host.git
cd termi-host
bash install.sh

The install.sh script will:

✅ Detect your operating system
✅ Check Node.js version (requires >= 18.0.0)
✅ Offer to install Node.js 20 LTS if needed
✅ Install build tools (gcc, make, python3) if missing
✅ Install all npm dependencies
✅ Create default configuration with secure session secret
✅ Display next steps and access information

Supported Operating Systems:

Ubuntu/Debian
CentOS/RHEL/AlmaLinux/Rocky Linux
Fedora
Other Linux distributions (with manual Node.js installation)

Manual Installation

If you already have Node.js >= 18.0.0 and build tools installed:

# Clone repository
git clone https://github.com/vpbgkt/termi-host.git
cd termi-host

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Create configuration (optional, will use defaults)
cp config/local.json.example config/local.json

# Start server
npm start

Prerequisites (Manual Setup)

Node.js 18.0.0 or higher (Download)
npm (comes with Node.js)
Operating System: Linux, macOS, or Windows with WSL
Build tools (for node-pty compilation):
- Linux: build-essential python3 make gcc g++
- macOS: Xcode Command Line Tools
- Windows: Visual Studio Build Tools

Install Build Tools Manually

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y build-essential python3 make g++

# CentOS/RHEL/AlmaLinux
sudo yum groupinstall -y "Development Tools"
sudo yum install -y python3 make gcc gcc-c++

# Fedora
sudo dnf groupinstall -y "Development Tools"
sudo dnf install -y python3 make gcc gcc-c++

Install as System Service (Linux)

Using the installation script (recommended):

sudo bash install.sh --service

This will automatically:

Create systemd service file
Enable service to start on boot
Start the service immediately
Display service status and management commands

Manual service installation:

# Create systemd service
sudo tee /etc/systemd/system/termi-host.service > /dev/null <<EOF
[Unit]
Description=termi-host Web Terminal
Documentation=https://github.com/vpbgkt/termi-host
After=network.target

[Service]
Type=simple
User=root
WorkingDirectory=$(pwd)
ExecStart=$(which node) $(pwd)/src/server.js
Restart=always
RestartSec=10
StandardOutput=journal
StandardError=journal

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF

# Enable and start service
sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable termi-host
sudo systemctl start termi-host

# Check status
sudo systemctl status termi-host

Service Management Commands:

# Start service
sudo systemctl start termi-host

# Stop service
sudo systemctl stop termi-host

# Restart service
sudo systemctl restart termi-host

# Check status
sudo systemctl status termi-host

# View logs
sudo journalctl -u termi-host -f

⚙️ Configuration

termi-host can be configured via JSON files or environment variables.

Basic Configuration

Create a local configuration file:

cp config/local.json.example config/local.json

Edit config/local.json:

{
  "server": {
    "port": 3000,
    "host": "0.0.0.0"
  },
  "terminal": {
    "shell": "bash",
    "cols": 80,
    "rows": 24
  },
  "authentication": {
    "enabled": false,
    "username": "admin",
    "password": "admin"
  }
}

Environment Variables

PORT=8080 AUTH_ENABLED=true AUTH_PASSWORD=secret npm start

See Configuration Guide for detailed options.

❓ Troubleshooting

Having issues? Check our Troubleshooting Guide for:

Node.js version problems
Build tool errors
Module not found errors
Connection issues
And more...

Common quick fixes:

# Reinstall dependencies
rm -rf node_modules package-lock.json
npm install

# Use automated installer
bash install.sh

# Check logs (if running as service)
sudo journalctl -u termi-host -f

🔒 Security

⚠️ Authentication is now ENABLED by default!

Default credentials (CHANGE THESE!):

Username: admin
Password: admin

To change credentials:

Create config/local.json:

{
  "authentication": {
    "enabled": true,
    "username": "your-username",
    "password": "your-strong-password",
    "sessionSecret": "generate-random-string-here"
  }
}

Restart the server:

npm start
# OR if using systemd:
sudo systemctl restart termi-host

Generate a secure session secret:

node -e "console.log(require('crypto').randomBytes(32).toString('hex'))"

Example: Secure Setup with nginx

server {
    listen 443 ssl;
    server_name terminal.example.com;
    
    ssl_certificate /path/to/cert.pem;
    ssl_certificate_key /path/to/key.pem;
    
    location / {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:3000;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection "upgrade";
    }
}

🛠️ Development

# Clone the repo
git clone https://github.com/vpbgkt/termi-host.git
cd termi-host

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Run in development mode
npm run dev

📖 Documentation

🤝 Contributing

Contributions are welcome! This project aims to have implementations in multiple languages (Python, Go, Rust, etc.).

See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines (Coming Soon).

🗺️ Roadmap

🌟 Use Cases

Remote Server Management: Access your VPS from anywhere
DevOps & SysAdmin: Quick server access without SSH client
Education: Teaching Linux/command-line to students
IoT & Embedded: Access Raspberry Pi and embedded devices
Emergency Access: When you don't have your SSH keys
Mobile Administration: Manage servers from your phone
Team Collaboration: Share terminal access with team members
Customer Support: Help users debug issues remotely

🔍 Keywords

web terminal, browser terminal, online terminal, web ssh, browser ssh, remote terminal access, web-based terminal, online ssh client, terminal emulator, xterm.js, node-pty, websocket terminal, cloud terminal, vps terminal, server terminal, linux terminal browser, terminal web interface, ssh web client, web console, remote shell access

📊 Comparison

Feature	termi-host	ttyd	wetty	shellinabox
Installation	⭐ Easy	Medium	Medium	Medium
Dependencies	Node.js only	C/libwebsockets	Node.js	C/OpenSSL
Authentication	✅ Optional	✅ Yes	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
Configuration	✅ JSON/Env	Command-line	Command-line	Command-line
WebSocket	✅ Yes	✅ Yes	✅ Yes	No
Mobile Support	✅ Excellent	Good	Good	Fair
Active Development	✅ Active	Active	Active	Inactive

🤝 Contributing

Contributions are welcome! We're planning implementations in multiple languages.

See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.

Roadmap:

📄 License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

Free and open source forever! ❤️

👥 Author & Contributors

Created with ❤️ by @vpbgkt

Want to contribute? Check out CONTRIBUTING.md!

🔗 Links & Resources

🏠 GitHub Repository
🐛 Report Issues
💬 Discussions
📦 npm Package (Coming Soon)
🎥 Video Tutorial (Coming Soon)

⭐ Show Your Support

If you find termi-host useful, please consider:

⭐ Star this repository on GitHub
🐛 Report bugs to help improve
💡 Suggest features you'd like to see
📢 Share with others who might find it useful
🤝 Contribute code or documentation

🌟 Acknowledgments

xterm.js - Terminal emulator
node-pty - PTY bindings for Node.js
Express - Web framework
ws - WebSocket library

⚡ Built with ❤️ for developers who need terminal access anywhere

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 21 Commits
config		config
docs		docs
public		public
src		src
.gitignore		.gitignore
CONTRIBUTING.md		CONTRIBUTING.md
HACKATHON.md		HACKATHON.md
HOW_TO_LOGIN.md		HOW_TO_LOGIN.md
IMPROVEMENTS.md		IMPROVEMENTS.md
LICENSE		LICENSE
README.md		README.md
ROADMAP.md		ROADMAP.md
SECURITY.md		SECURITY.md
install.sh		install.sh
package-lock.json		package-lock.json
package.json		package.json

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termi-host

🎯 What is termi-host?

✨ Key Features

🌟 Core Features

🛠️ Technical Features

🚀 Quick Start

Automated Installation (Recommended)

Manual Installation

📦 Installation

Automated Installation Script

Manual Installation

Prerequisites (Manual Setup)

Install Build Tools Manually

Install as System Service (Linux)

⚙️ Configuration

Basic Configuration

Environment Variables

❓ Troubleshooting

🔒 Security

Example: Secure Setup with nginx

🛠️ Development

📖 Documentation

🤝 Contributing

🗺️ Roadmap

🌟 Use Cases

🔍 Keywords

📊 Comparison

🤝 Contributing

📄 License

👥 Author & Contributors

🔗 Links & Resources

⭐ Show Your Support

🌟 Acknowledgments

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