Tired of TeamViewer? SplashTop? Discover MeshCentral!

The good old days of TeamViewer… free

Do you remember the time when TeamViewer was really free for personal use? We launched the application, gave grandma the ID and password, and boom: we fixed her printer from the couch. It was beautiful. It was simple. It was free.

Spoiler alert: that time is over. And if you are here, it’s probably because you have experienced the same descent into hell as I have.

When TeamViewer decides you are a business…

One fine day, TeamViewer displayed the infamous message:

Five minutes. To troubleshoot someone remotely. Let’s just say you have time to say hello, click on Start, and… it’s over. Disconnected. Thank you, goodbye.

I tried the reset procedure, the forms to prove that I am not a business (well, not for that), the ID changes… Nothing worked. TeamViewer decided that I was a multinational, and it won’t budge.

The search for the alternative: an obstacle course

AnyDesk: the false hope

AnyDesk is a bit like TeamViewer's cousin who says “I’m cool, come to my place”. Except that after a few weeks, here we go again: same limitations, same restrictions. The interface is decent, but you quickly encounter the same frustrations. In short, thanks but no thanks.

Windows Remote Desktop (RDP): in theory, yes

The good old Windows Remote Desktop. Free, integrated, efficient. On paper, it’s perfect. In practice? You have to open port 3389 on the router.

If you are at home, why not (even if exposing RDP on the Internet is like leaving the front door open with a sign saying “Come in, help yourself”). But in a business? Good luck convincing the IT department to open that port. It’s like asking for the nuclear codes.

SplashTop: a good solution… for a price

I then discovered SplashTop. And honestly, it’s a good product. The web interface is convenient, the connection is fast and stable. But here’s the catch:

• About 150 € per year for 10 machines
• Beyond that, you have to switch to a higher plan
• It’s a subscription — you never really own it

For occasional professional use, it’s defensible. But when you manage about twenty machines (personal + family + a few friends who think you are their official tech support), the bill adds up quickly.

And then one day… MeshCentral 🎉

While browsing forums and Reddit, I stumbled upon MeshCentral. At first, I was skeptical. Free, open-source, unlimited machines? It smelled like a trap or a project abandoned since 2014.

Well, no. MeshCentral was created by Ylian Saint-Hilaire, a developer who worked at Intel. The project is solid, actively maintained, and supported by a real open-source community. The code is on GitHub, updates are regular, and the documentation is complete.

In summary: it’s serious.

Why MeshCentral is a game-changer

Well, the only small downside is that the design is very ugly. But I prefer ugly that works very well to very beautiful but paid software that doesn't offer more.

Installation guide: step by step

Well, enough talking. Let's get serious. Here’s how to set up your own MeshCentral server. I promise, it's less complicated than assembling IKEA furniture (and there won't be any extra screws at the end).

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_20.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt install -y nodejs

mkdir ~/meshcentral && cd ~/meshcentral
npm install meshcentral

cd ~/meshcentral && node node_modules/meshcentral

{
  "settings": {
    "cert": "your-domain.com",
    "port": 443,
    "aliasPort": 443,
    "redirPort": 80,
    "allowLoginToken": true,
    "allowFraming": false,
    "newAccountsRights": [],
    "agentPing": 60
  },
  "domains": {
    "": {
      "title": "My MeshCentral",
      "title2": "Remote Management",
      "newAccounts": false
    }
  },
  "letsencrypt": {
    "email": "your-email@example.com",
    "names": "your-domain.com",
    "production": true
  }
}

sudo cat > /etc/systemd/system/meshcentral.service << 'EOF'
[Unit]
Description=MeshCentral Server
After=network.target

[Service]
Type=simple
LimitNOFILE=1000000
ExecStart=/usr/bin/node /home/your-user/meshcentral/node_modules/meshcentral
WorkingDirectory=/home/your-user/meshcentral
Environment=NODE_ENV=production
User=your-user
Group=your-user
Restart=always
RestartSec=10

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF

sudo systemctl enable meshcentral
sudo systemctl start meshcentral

curl -fsSL https://tailscale.com/install.sh | sh
sudo tailscale up

⚠️ Important note : antivirus and exclusions

• The agent installation folder : C:\Program Files\Open Source\MeshAgent\
• The executable : MeshAgent.exe
• If you are using Windows Defender, add these exclusions in Windows Security > Virus Protection > Exclusions

Without these exclusions, the agent may be silently removed with each signature update. And you will find yourself wondering why Aunt Jacqueline's machine has disappeared from the dashboard… again.

In summary

If you are tired of :

• ❌ TeamViewer treating you like a CAC 40 company
• ❌ Paying subscriptions to access your own machines
• ❌ Opening dubious ports on your router
• ❌ Being limited in the number of machines

Then MeshCentral is for you :

• ✅ Open-source and free
• ✅ Unlimited machines
• ✅ Multi-platform
• ✅ Native HTTPS on port 443
• ✅ Active community and regular development
• ✅ You keep total control of your data

MeshCentral is an open-source project under the Apache 2.0 license.
Official site : meshcentral.com — Source code : GitHub