I love my home server setup, but daily use involves some friction, context switching, and mental overhead that I prefer to avoid. For instance, I may need to remember an IP, open a terminal, or use a different tool to edit a file. I learned to live with this, but trying XPipe made me rethink this choic.

It’s an open-source tool that puts SSH, Docker, Proxmox, and my remote files in one place, and it has successfully removed a lot of the little detours.

Using my existing setup

XPipe worked from my setup instead of asking me to start over

After adding my existing SSH host to XPipe, I ran Connection Search, its feature for scanning a connected host. The list populated with Docker containers and their Compose projects. To get started, I didn’t have to install an XPipe agent or make any changes to the server.

Without needing its own agent, XPipe runs the tools your server already has and puts its interface on top of them. XPipe can only discover what the server’s existing tools, configuration, and permissions allow it to access. XPipe could access my containers because Docker was in the remote user’s PATH; if Docker hadn’t been in PATH, XPipe might not have discovered them.

The experience was the same with Proxmox. Once I added the Proxmox host, the VMs and containers started populating XPipe’s connection list. Permissions are essential for managing them, so I ensured I had root access through Proxmox’s command-line tools. The way XPipe works means it can’t do what your login can’t already do.

I had my SSH host, its Docker containers and Compose projects, and my Proxmox host with its VMs and containers all in one connection hub. This was convenient because I no longer had to remember which command to use for each machine.

Host, container, VM

Following one service through every layer without changing tools

In the past, I needed to open a terminal, connect over SSH, and type a Docker command just to access a container on my Linux server. This new XPipe setup had the container listed just beneath its host. I could open one directly from the list.

All Compose projects were grouped together, with start and stop controls for each project. Refresh Services adds links that allow me to open the services running in containers with mapped ports in my browser. This small feature saves me from remembering which ports belong to which apps.

For Proxmox VMs, XPipe connects through the Proxmox host. This extra step means the guest’s SSH port doesn’t need to be exposed publicly. For this to work, the guests need an IP that’s reachable by the host and an installed and configured SSH server. XPipe can even start the SSH server if it isn’t running, provided the QEMU guest agent is working.

XPipe created a tunnel to the Proxmox dashboard, and I didn’t need to expose it to the internet to open it.

Remote files, handled

Editing a server’s config in my own editor, and what “remote” still means

When I edit a server’s configuration file in my local editor, XPipe downloads a copy, opens it on my computer, and uploads the changes when I save. It also asks for sudo for files when I need root privileges to write. I didn’t need to directly edit the server’s live file; XPipe updates the remote file with my local changes.

On my PC, I can move files between servers without interruption. The data simply passes from one host to the next without an intermediate locally stored copy. However, when I need to get a file onto my desktop, XPipe doesn’t allow me to drag it directly out of its window. It first goes to the download pane before I can drag it out.

In my experience, speed is the one drawback. Because the file browser works over a shell session, transfers seem slower than my connection should allow. For SSH connections, especially when big files are involved, I switch to SFTP.

The free version doesn’t cover everything

XPipe’s core is open-source under Apache 2.0, but the downloadable app also includes some proprietary extensions.

On the free community plan, you are limited to a single Docker context, one Proxmox node, and one active service tunnel at a time. This is usually enough to figure out if XPipe is for you, especially if you run just one Docker host and one Proxmox machine.

XPipe is primarily a desktop app, so it may feel different if you’re used to working with web dashboards that you access from any browser. Ideally, a terminal and an SSH config file will suffice if you have just a couple of SSH hosts, so XPipe may not be for everyone. I still open a plain terminal when I need quick one-off commands, but I no longer hunt for the right host, container, or VM before I start working. This has made it worth setting up on my home server with Docker and a Proxmox box.

OS

Cross platform

Price

Free

XPipe is a local desktop connection hub for managing remote servers, VMs, and containers.