Best Self Hosted Alternatives to RealVNC Viewer

Sunshine is a self-hosted game streaming host that lets you stream games and your desktop to Moonlight clients over the network. It focuses on low-latency streaming and supports hardware encoding on AMD, Intel, and NVIDIA GPUs, with software encoding available as a fallback.

Key Features

• Compatible with Moonlight clients across many devices and platforms
• Low-latency streaming designed for responsive gameplay
• Hardware-accelerated encoding support (AMD, Intel Quick Sync, NVIDIA NVENC) plus software encoding
• Web UI for configuration and client pairing
• Virtual gamepad/controller emulation (platform support varies)
• Runs on multiple operating systems including Linux, Windows, macOS, and FreeBSD

Use Cases

• Stream PC games from a powerful host to low-power devices (TV box, handheld, laptop)
• Remote play from another room or across a fast network with a Moonlight client
• Use a browser-based interface to manage streaming settings and pair devices

Limitations and Considerations

• Feature support differs by OS (for example, gamepad emulation is not supported on macOS)
• Some capture/encoding backends have partial or platform-specific support depending on GPU and display server

Sunshine is a practical alternative for running your own GameStream-style host while keeping control of the hardware and configuration. If you already use Moonlight, it provides a flexible server with broad GPU encoding support and convenient web-based management.

Neko is a self-hosted virtual browser and shared desktop environment streamed to users over WebRTC. It typically runs inside Docker, letting you access a full browser (or other Linux apps/desktops) remotely with low latency and synchronized audio.

Key Features

• WebRTC-based ultra low-latency video streaming with audio
• Multi-participant rooms with shared control and host-controlled permissions
• Runs browsers or other Linux applications/desktops inside a containerized environment
• Persistent sessions for long-running work, monitoring, downloads, or uploads
• Ephemeral “throwaway” sessions to reduce local traces and isolate risk
• API-driven room provisioning when paired with external room managers
• Optional live broadcasting via RTMP for streaming room output

Use Cases

• Watch parties and synchronized media playback with shared control
• Interactive presentations, remote teaching, and collaborative debugging
• Secure “jump host” access to internal web tools without exposing client-side data

Limitations and Considerations

• Interactive performance depends on network quality and WebRTC compatibility
• Running full desktops/browsers in containers can be resource-intensive (CPU/RAM)

Neko is well-suited for teams and individuals who want a fast, shareable remote browser or desktop session with real-time interactivity. It combines container isolation with WebRTC streaming to enable collaborative browsing and remote workflows.

XPipe is a desktop connection hub and remote file manager that centralizes access to SSH hosts, containers, virtual machines and Kubernetes clusters from a single local application. It integrates with your existing command-line tools and editors, provides a terminal launcher and a file browser, and can synchronize connection data across systems via a git repository.

Key Features

• Centralized connection hub for SSH, container runtimes (Docker/Podman/LXD/incus), VMs (Proxmox, KVM, Hyper-V, VMware) and Kubernetes resources
• Remote file browser with tabbed multitasking, on-demand sudo elevation, and ability to open remote files in local editors
• Terminal launcher that boots directly into preferred terminal emulators and shells, with automated prompt/password handling and multiplexer support
• Versatile scripting and shell-environment system for reusable init scripts, templates and remote actions
• Secure local vault for storing connection data and secrets with optional additional passphrase protection and git-backed synchronization
• Integrations for RDP/VNC remote desktops and tools such as Tailscale/Netbird/Teleport for network access
• HTTP API (local-only server) and an official Python client for automation and bulk imports
• Cross-platform packaging and installers, plus a containerized "Webtop" image to run a browser-accessible desktop environment with XPipe

Use Cases

• Centralize administration of large fleets: quickly locate and open shells or file browsers across many servers and clusters
• Developer workflows: open remote directories in local editors, run scripts or start shells in configured environments with one click
• Team synchronization: share and sync connection definitions and identities across multiple machines via a private git repository

Limitations and Considerations

• The project follows an open-core model; some advanced features and certain extensions are closed-source and available only in paid plans
• There is no native multi-tenant web UI shipped; browser access is provided via a containerized Webtop environment rather than a hosted SaaS interface
• The HTTP API listens on localhost only (no built-in HTTPS) and some automation scenarios require additional configuration for remote access
• XPipe relies on locally installed CLI tools (ssh, docker, kubectl, etc.); behavior and supported features depend on those tools and platform-specific integrations

XPipe is intended for users who want a single, extensible desktop hub for connecting to and managing diverse remote systems while keeping all sensitive data under local control. It focuses on integrating existing tools and workflows rather than replacing them.

MeshCentral is a self-hosted, open-source remote device management web server built on Node.js with compiled agents for multiple platforms. It provides web-based remote desktop, terminal, file access, KVM/Intel AMT integration and real-time device management for multi-user deployments. (meshcentral.com)

Key Features

• Web-based remote desktop, terminal and file manager (browser-accessible, real-time UI).
• Multi-OS agents (compiled C agents for Windows, Linux, macOS, FreeBSD and multiple CPU architectures).
• WebRTC-enabled text/video chat and session relay/recording support for audits.
• Intel AMT KVM and out-of-band management where supported.
• Multi-database backend support (default embedded DB historically, plus MongoDB, MariaDB/MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQLite3 and AceBase options) and many server configuration options (TLS, Let's Encrypt, MPS/relay, peering, mesh routers).

(meshcentral.com)

Use Cases

• Remote IT support and helpdesk sessions via browser-based remote desktop and chat.
• Fleet monitoring and management for mixed OS environments (agents collect inventory, logs, power controls, Wake-on-LAN).
• Remote maintenance and out-of-band tasks using Intel AMT / KVM and scripted agent operations.

(meshcentral.com)

Limitations and Considerations

• The historical embedded default (NeDB) is unmaintained and recommended only for small/test installs; production deployments should use MongoDB, MariaDB/Postgres or SQLite/AceBase. Migration and DB version compatibility have been discussed in the project community. (github.com)

• Large-scale session/relay traffic can incur significant bandwidth/costs on public instances (project previously ran a public server but community/self-hosting is encouraged). (github.com)

MeshCentral is a feature-rich, community-driven remote management platform suitable for administrators who want a self-hosted, extensible solution for remote support, device inventory and out-of-band management. Its flexible DB/back-end options and broad agent support make it adaptable to small labs up to larger corporate deployments.

Apache Guacamole is a clientless remote desktop gateway that lets you access remote desktops from a browser using VNC, RDP, and SSH. It requires no client installation on the target machines; connectivity is mediated by a server component called guacd, and the web UI runs in a Java servlet container.

Key Features

• Clientless HTML5 web application; no plugins or client software required
• Supports VNC, RDP, and SSH through the guacd proxy
• Web UI (Java) with a pluggable API and guacd as the translation proxy
• Extensible APIs for adding protocol support and authentication extensions
• Open source under the Apache License 2.0 with active community support
• Deployable behind firewalls; desktops can be accessed securely via the gateway

Use Cases

• Remote administration: access on-premises desktops/servers from any device with a browser
• Cloud or VM access: connect to cloud-hosted desktops without exposing target machines
• Integrations: embed Guacamole in custom portals or secure access workflows via its core APIs

Conclusion

Apache Guacamole provides browser-based remote desktop access without client software, backed by a modular, open-source stack. It is designed for flexible deployments across on-premises and cloud environments, with extensible APIs and active community support.

Steam Headless is a containerized, headless Steam client environment designed to run on a Linux host and stream games remotely. It provides a full desktop session and multiple streaming options, enabling you to play your Steam library from other devices without a dedicated physical display.

Key Features

• Steam client preconfigured for Linux gaming with Proton
• Browser-accessible desktop via noVNC, including audio support
• Compatibility with Steam Link and Steam Remote Play
• Moonlight-compatible streaming server support (commonly used with Sunshine)
• GPU acceleration support for NVIDIA, AMD, and Intel
• Controller support for streamed gameplay
• Optional installation of additional launchers and tools (for example via Flatpak/AppImage)
• Startup scripting via user-provided init scripts for customization

Use Cases

• Turn a home server into a remote Steam gaming host for laptops, TVs, and handhelds
• Provide a disposable, reproducible Steam environment for homelabs and shared machines
• Run a browser-accessible Linux desktop with Steam for remote game management and launching

Limitations and Considerations

• Persistent data must be stored in the home directory or mounted volumes; other paths may be lost on updates
• For optimal Steam Remote Play behavior on local networks, network configuration may require a dedicated container IP

Steam Headless is best suited for users who want a flexible, container-based Steam host with remote desktop access and GPU acceleration. It combines a ready-to-run Steam setup with practical streaming options for playing from multiple clients and devices.