githuganswered from live GitHub & Hugging Face data
What is the best modern alternative to TeamViewer for remote desktop applications — rustdesk/rustdesk or another solution?
Termix-SSH/Termixno license
MaintActive · today
Stars15k
Releaserelease-2.7.1-tag5d ago
Contrib11
Issues0 open
Ylianst/MeshCentralApache-2.0
MaintActive · 15d ago
Stars7.1k
Release1.2.515d ago
Contrib178
Issues163 open
kunkundi/crossdeskGPL-3.0
MaintActive · yesterday
Stars4.3k
Releasev1.4.3-20260827yesterday
Contrib3
Issues13 open
In the quest for a modern alternative to TeamViewer for remote desktop solutions, RustDesk outshines the competition with its impressive open-source credentials and overwhelming adoption rate.
Here's how the top contenders stack up:
| Project | Stars | Maintenance | Language | License | Last Push | Open Issues |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rustdesk/rustdesk | 122,000 | ✅ Actively maintained | Rust | AGPL-3.0 | 0 days ago | 143 |
| FreeRDP/FreeRDP | 13,606 | ✅ Actively maintained | C | Apache-2.0 | 0 days ago | 165 |
| Termix-SSH/Termix | 14,935 | ✅ Actively maintained | TypeScript | NOASSERTION | 0 days ago | 0 |
| Ylianst/MeshCentral | 7,115 | ✅ Actively maintained | HTML | Apache-2.0 | 15 days ago | 163 |
| kunkundi/crossdesk | 4,260 | ✅ Actively maintained | C++ | GPL-3.0 | 1 day ago | 13 |
In-Depth Overview
RustDesk:
- Stars: 122,000 — Clearly a favorite in the community.
- License: AGPL-3.0 means it's free for personal and commercial use as long as you keep the code open.
- Maintenance: Recent push shows it was updated just today. With 476 contributors, it has a robust support network.
- Pros: Easy self-host setup, complete control over your data, no concerns about security (uses Flutter for UI).
- Cons: Some open issues, currently at 143, which reflects ongoing development challenges.
FreeRDP:
- Stars: 13,606 and also actively maintained; the latest push was today.
- License: Apache-2.0, good for flexible commercial use.
- Pros: Versatile library for RDP integration, strong community support with 622 contributors.
- Cons: Focuses more on providing a protocol library rather than a full remote desktop application.
Termix:
- Stars: 14,935 — It’s gaining traction quickly.
- License: NOASSERTION, which raises some flags about how freely it can be used.
- Pros: Offers a broad set of features including SSH, RDP, and VNC all in one management portal.
- Cons: Limited contributor count at 11, which may affect future support.
MeshCentral:
- Stars: 7,115 and presented an update 15 days ago.
- License: Apache-2.0 provides commercial flexibility.
- Pros: Full web-based management, including remote file and terminal management.
- Cons: Open issues at 163 indicate potential stability or feature concerns.
CrossDesk:
- Stars: 4,260 and its last update was just 1 day ago.
- License: GPL-3.0 ensures freedom but can complicate usage for commercial applications.
- Pros: Lightweight and has a strong focus on cross-platform functionality.
- Cons: Fewer contributors (3) could indicate less community support.
Recommendation:
Choose RustDesk if you want a powerful, well-supported, and modern remote desktop solution that's easy to self-host and use. It's clearly leading in adoption and community support. Consider alternatives like FreeRDP or Termix for specific use cases where protocol libraries or comprehensive server management are required.