--- title: "tmate is Dead, Long Live tmate" date: 2025-11-21 created: 2025-11-21T00:00:00Z type: blog status: settled tags: [cli] publish: [ddrscott] source: import description: "When your favorite terminal sharing tool stops working on your phone, it's time to find something new. A pragmatic guide to browser-based alternatives." image: /images/2025/cat-phone-terminal.webp prompt: "Import from blog post: 2025/tmate-is-dead-long-live-tmate.md" --- # tmate is Dead, Long Live tmate A cat staring at a phone displaying terminal output I've been a `tmate` loyalist for years. SSH into a shared tmux session? Chef's kiss. But here's the thing nobody tells you: try pulling that off on your phone while waiting at the DMV and you'll understand why I'm writing this post. ## The Problem Picture this: I'm debugging a production issue from my kid's tennis match. I've got my phone, a spotty 4G connection, and a terminal sharing link from a colleague. The SSH client on my phone? It's... fine. The tiny keyboard? Torture. The inability to pinch-zoom on terminal output? Criminal. Wouldn't it be great if I could just open a link in my phone's browser and see the terminal? You know, like how every other modern collaboration tool works? ## The Research Rabbit Hole I did what any reasonable developer would do: I spent way too long researching alternatives. Here's what I found that actually works for Mac-to-phone terminal sharing via browser. | Tool | Stars | Language | Last Release | Browser Access | Install | Key Feature | |------|-------|----------|--------------|----------------|---------|-------------| | [sshx] | 6,300+ | Rust | Feb 2025 | Shareable URLs | `brew install sshx` | E2E encrypted, infinite canvas | | [ttyd] | 9,900+ | C | Mar 2024 | localhost:7681 | `brew install ttyd` | Fast, ZMODEM file transfer | | [tty-share] | 857 | Go | Jan 2025 | Public URLs | `brew install tty-share` | Zero dependencies | | [upterm] | 988 | Go | Nov 2025 | SSH over WebSocket | `brew install --cask upterm` | GitHub auth integration | | [gotty] | 19,000+ | Go | Aug 2017 | localhost:8080 | `brew install gotty` | **Abandoned** | | [wetty] | ~5,000 | TypeScript | Sep 2023 | SSH in browser | `npm -g i wetty` | Requires Node.js | | [Warp] | 25,300+ | Rust | Weekly | Cloud-based | `brew install --cask warp` | AI Agent Mode (commercial) | [sshx]: https://github.com/ekzhang/sshx [ttyd]: https://github.com/tsl0922/ttyd [tty-share]: https://github.com/nicusor/tty-share [upterm]: https://github.com/owenthereal/upterm [gotty]: https://github.com/yudai/gotty [wetty]: https://github.com/butlerx/wetty [Warp]: https://www.warp.dev/ ### The Top 3 (That I'd Actually Use) **1. sshx - The Winner (It's Rust!)** ```sh brew install sshx sshx ``` One command. Shareable URL. Done. No ngrok, no port forwarding, no fuss. The URL has your encryption key embedded in the fragment (the part after `#`), so the server never sees your plaintext. End-to-end encryption without thinking about it. The "infinite canvas" UI is wild - you can have multiple terminals floating around like some kind of terminal mood board. Live cursors show where other people are looking. There's even a chat. It's like Figma had a baby with tmux. Why I chose it: - **Written in Rust** - I try to support the Rust ecosystem when I can - End-to-end encrypted (paranoid developers rejoice) - One command to shareable URL - Active development (Feb 2025 release) - That infinite canvas thing is actually useful for pair programming **2. ttyd - The Battle-Tested Alternative** If you want something more established: ```sh brew install ttyd ttyd bash ``` Open `http://localhost:7681` in any browser. For remote access, pair it with ngrok: ```sh ttyd -p 7681 bash # In another terminal: ngrok http 7681 ``` Why it's solid: - Written in C, so it's blazing fast - Read-only by default (won't accidentally `rm -rf /` from your phone) - ZMODEM file transfer if you're into that sort of thing - 9,900+ GitHub stars means someone else debugged the hard stuff **3. tty-share - The Lightweight One** ```sh brew install tty-share tty-share ``` Generates a public URL. Zero dependencies - it's a static Go binary. This is what you want on a Raspberry Pi or any resource-constrained environment. Why I like it: - Smallest footprint - Works anywhere Go compiles - January 2025 release, so it's not abandoned ### The One I'm Watching **Warp Terminal** is doing interesting things with AI and collaboration, but it's commercial software and cloud-dependent. If your threat model allows it and you've got $20/month burning a hole in your pocket, it's worth a look. Their "Agent Mode" that accepts natural language commands is genuinely impressive. But I'm a POSIX curmudgeon, so YMMV. ### The Ones to Avoid **gotty** - 19,000 stars but abandoned since 2017. There's an active fork by sorenisanerd, but why start with technical debt? **wetty** - Last release September 2023. Requires Node.js. I have enough JavaScript in my life, thank you. ## My Actual Setup Here's what I ended up with: ```sh # ~/.zshrc or ~/.bashrc alias share='sshx' alias share-readonly='ttyd -R bash' ``` `sshx` for when I'm pair programming with someone I trust. `ttyd -R` for when I want to show my phone something without risking accidental keystrokes. ## The Security Bit Look, sharing a terminal to your phone over the internet is inherently risky. Some ground rules: 1. **Read-only by default** - Both ttyd and tty-share support this 2. **Encrypted transport** - sshx does end-to-end, others use TLS 3. **Don't share production servers** - Obvious, but worth saying 4. **Kill the session when done** - `Ctrl+C` is your friend ## Conclusion Browser-based terminal sharing has gotten good enough that I don't miss the SSH-based workflow on my phone. The tools are mature, actively maintained, and respect the Unix philosophy of doing one thing well. **sshx is my pick.** It's Rust, it's encrypted, it's actively maintained, and it just works. I like supporting the Rust ecosystem when I can - the language attracts developers who care about correctness and performance, and it shows in the tooling. If Rust isn't your thing, **ttyd** is the safe bet with years of battle-testing behind it. What are you using? I'm curious if I missed anything good. Hit me up in the comments or on the socials.