|
19 | 19 |
|
20 | 20 | --- |
21 | 21 |
|
22 | | -## What is this? |
| 22 | +# Control your Windows PC from your phone — LocalTV Remote |
23 | 23 |
|
24 | | -**LocalTV Remote** is a lightweight Windows daemon that turns your phone into a wireless remote — mouse, keyboard, scroll wheel, and volume control — over your local Wi-Fi. Your phone opens a PWA in the browser (no app store install). The PC runs a single Node process at ~25–40 MB RAM. |
| 24 | +**LocalTV Remote** is a **free, open-source** app that turns your phone into a **wireless mouse, keyboard, and volume remote** for any **Windows 10/11 PC or laptop** — over your local Wi-Fi. |
25 | 25 |
|
26 | | -> This is the **open-source, remote-only** sibling of LocalTV. It contains no Chromium, no DRM, and no TV/streaming mode — just the remote control daemon. |
| 26 | +**You only install it on the PC.** Your phone just opens a web page (a PWA in the browser), so there's **nothing to install on the phone — or on any other device** you use to control the PC. No app store, no second download. |
| 27 | + |
| 28 | +**Multiple people can control one PC at the same time**, each paired securely with a QR code and a 6-digit PIN — no shared "remote," no shared password. It's **LAN-only**: no cloud relay, no accounts, and your data never leaves your network. The PC runs a single Node process at ~25–40 MB RAM with **no bundled Chromium**. |
| 29 | + |
| 30 | +> LocalTV Remote is the **open-source, remote-only** companion to **LocalTV**. It contains no Chromium, no DRM, and no TV/streaming mode — just the remote-control daemon. |
| 31 | +
|
| 32 | +<!-- TODO: add a real demo at docs/demo.gif (phone moving the PC cursor over Wi-Fi) and uncomment below --> |
| 33 | +<!--  --> |
| 34 | + |
| 35 | +--- |
| 36 | + |
| 37 | +## Why LocalTV Remote? |
| 38 | + |
| 39 | +Looking for a **free, open-source alternative to Unified Remote or Remote Mouse**? Most phone-as-remote apps make you install a companion app on *both* your phone and your PC, lock features behind a paid tier, or route input through their cloud. LocalTV Remote doesn't. |
| 40 | + |
| 41 | +| | **LocalTV Remote** | Typical alternatives* | |
| 42 | +|---|---|---| |
| 43 | +| Price | ✅ Free & open-source (Apache 2.0) | 💰 Freemium / paid Pro | |
| 44 | +| App to install on your phone | ✅ None — opens in the browser (PWA) | 📲 Companion app required | |
| 45 | +| Control one PC from several phones at once | ✅ Yes | ⚠️ Usually one device / limited | |
| 46 | +| Secure pairing built in (QR + PIN) | ✅ Yes | ⚠️ Varies | |
| 47 | +| Cloud / account required | ✅ No — LAN-only, private | ☁️ Often cloud-assisted | |
| 48 | +| Footprint on the PC | ✅ ~27 MB, no Chromium | 📦 Often heavier | |
| 49 | +| Source code you can audit | ✅ Yes | ❌ Closed-source | |
| 50 | + |
| 51 | +<sub>*Reflects common free tiers of popular alternatives; their features may change. Compare for yourself.</sub> |
27 | 52 |
|
28 | 53 | --- |
29 | 54 |
|
30 | 55 | ## Features |
31 | 56 |
|
32 | 57 | | | | |
33 | 58 | |---|---| |
34 | | -| 🖱️ **Mouse control** | Move, click, right-click, scroll — with DPI-aware scaling | |
35 | | -| ⌨️ **Keyboard input** | Type text and send key combos from your phone | |
36 | | -| 🔊 **Volume control** | Accurate system volume via Windows Core Audio (COM) | |
37 | | -| 📱 **PWA — no install** | Phone opens a web page, installs as a home-screen app | |
38 | | -| 🔗 **QR pairing** | Scan once, token is remembered for future sessions | |
39 | | -| 🔒 **LAN-only** | No cloud relay, no accounts, no data leaves your network | |
| 59 | +| 🖱️ **Phone as a wireless mouse** | Move, click, right-click, scroll — a phone trackpad with DPI-aware scaling | |
| 60 | +| ⌨️ **Phone as a keyboard** | Type text and send key combos to your PC from your phone | |
| 61 | +| 🔊 **Volume remote** | Control Windows system volume from your phone via Core Audio (COM) | |
| 62 | +| 📱 **No app to install** | Phone opens a web page (PWA), installs as a home-screen app — no app store | |
| 63 | +| 👥 **Multi-user control** | Several phones can control one PC at once, each paired separately | |
| 64 | +| 🔗 **QR + PIN pairing** | Scan once, token is remembered for future sessions | |
| 65 | +| 🔒 **LAN-only & private** | No cloud relay, no accounts, no data leaves your network | |
40 | 66 | | 🪶 **Tiny footprint** | ~27 MB installer, ~25–40 MB RAM at idle, no Chromium | |
41 | 67 | | 🖥️ **System tray** | Sits in the tray; optional start-on-login toggle | |
42 | 68 | | 🔌 **Auto port** | Free-port fallback if 3000 is occupied — QR auto-updates | |
|
47 | 73 |
|
48 | 74 | ### Option 1 — Installer (recommended) |
49 | 75 |
|
50 | | -Download **[LocalTVRemote-Setup-0.1.0.exe](https://github.com/creationsofm7/localtv-remote/releases/latest)** from the latest release and run it. |
| 76 | +### ⬇️ [Download LocalTV Remote for Windows — Free](https://github.com/creationsofm7/localtv-remote/releases/download/v0.1.1/LocalTVRemote-Setup-0.1.1.exe) |
| 77 | + |
| 78 | +Latest release: **[v0.1.1](https://github.com/creationsofm7/localtv-remote/releases/latest)** · Windows 10/11 · ~27 MB. Download the installer, run it, and you're paired in under a minute. Already installed? Grab the link above to **update to the latest version**. |
51 | 79 |
|
52 | 80 | The setup wizard will: |
53 | 81 | - Install to `%ProgramFiles%\LocalTV Remote` |
54 | 82 | - Create a Start Menu shortcut |
55 | 83 | - Add a Windows Firewall inbound rule (so your phone can reach the daemon without a popup) |
56 | 84 | - Optionally create a desktop shortcut and enable start-on-login |
57 | 85 |
|
| 86 | +> First run shows a Windows SmartScreen "unknown publisher" notice (the installer isn't code-signed yet). Click **More info → Run anyway** to continue. |
| 87 | +
|
58 | 88 | ### Option 2 — winget *(coming soon)* |
59 | 89 |
|
60 | 90 | ``` |
@@ -176,6 +206,30 @@ Windows is the only supported target today. The input layer is abstracted behind |
176 | 206 |
|
177 | 207 | --- |
178 | 208 |
|
| 209 | +## FAQ |
| 210 | + |
| 211 | +### How do I control my laptop from my phone without installing an app? |
| 212 | + |
| 213 | +Install LocalTV Remote on your **Windows PC** (it's the only device that needs anything installed). Launch it, scan the QR code with your phone's camera, and your phone's browser opens a controller page — a trackpad, keyboard, and volume remote. Nothing to install on the phone, no app store, no account. |
| 214 | + |
| 215 | +### Can multiple people control one PC at the same time? |
| 216 | + |
| 217 | +Yes. LocalTV Remote accepts several connected phones at once, and each one pairs independently with its own QR code and 6-digit PIN. There's no single shared "remote" to hand around — handy for a shared screen, a meeting room, or a media PC. |
| 218 | + |
| 219 | +### Is there a free, open-source alternative to Unified Remote or Remote Mouse? |
| 220 | + |
| 221 | +LocalTV Remote is exactly that: free, Apache-2.0 open-source, with no companion app required on the phone and no paid tier. See the [comparison above](#why-localtv-remote). |
| 222 | + |
| 223 | +### Is controlling my PC from my phone over Wi-Fi safe? |
| 224 | + |
| 225 | +It's **LAN-only** — input never leaves your local network and there's no cloud relay or account. Pairing requires a 6-digit PIN derived from machine identity, WebSocket connections are origin-checked, traffic is rate-limited, and the pairing PIN is only served to the PC itself, never to other devices. See [Security](#security). |
| 226 | + |
| 227 | +### Does it work in games and full-screen apps? |
| 228 | + |
| 229 | +Yes. Input is injected OS-wide via Win32 `SendInput`, so it works in any app, including games and full-screen windows. |
| 230 | + |
| 231 | +--- |
| 232 | + |
179 | 233 | ## License |
180 | 234 |
|
181 | 235 | Apache 2.0 — see [LICENSE](LICENSE). |
|
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