Web Terminal

A lightweight, browser-based terminal application that provides access to a local terminal directly in your web browser. This project combines the power of xterm.js, Socket.IO, and node-pty to create a seamless terminal experience without requiring SSH.

Features

• Real-time Terminal Emulation: Full terminal emulation in the browser
• Responsive Design: Terminal automatically resizes to fit your browser window
• Cross-Platform: Works on Windows, macOS, and Linux
• Modern UI: Clean interface with customizable terminal settings
• Local Terminal Access: Direct access to your local system's terminal (bash/powershell)

Technologies Used

Backend

• Node.js: JavaScript runtime for the server
• Express: Web server framework
• Socket.IO: Real-time bidirectional communication
• node-pty: Pseudo-terminal implementation

Frontend

• Angular: Frontend framework
• xterm.js: Terminal emulator for the browser
• Socket.IO Client: Client-side real-time communication

Installation

Prerequisites

• Node.js (v18 or higher)
• npm (v6 or higher)

Setup

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/lesauf/web-terminal.git
   cd web-terminal
   

2. Install server dependencies:

   cd server
   npm install
   

3. Install client dependencies:

   cd ../client
   npm install
   

Usage

1. Start the server:

   cd server
   npm run dev
   

2. Start the client (in a new terminal window):

   cd ../client
   npm start
   

3. Open your browser and navigate to:

   http://localhost:8080
   

4. Start using the terminal directly in your browser!

Architecture

The application follows a client-server architecture:

• Server: A Node.js application that:

  • Creates a pseudo-terminal using node-pty
  • Establishes Socket.IO connections with clients
  • Forwards terminal input/output between the pseudo-terminal and clients

• Client: An Angular application that:

  • Renders a terminal interface using xterm.js
  • Connects to the server using Socket.IO
  • Sends user input to the server
  • Displays terminal output from the server

How It Works

1. When a user connects to the web application, the client establishes a Socket.IO connection with the server.
2. The server spawns a new pseudo-terminal process using node-pty.
3. User input from the browser is sent to the server via Socket.IO.
4. The server forwards this input to the pseudo-terminal.
5. Output from the pseudo-terminal is sent back to the client via Socket.IO.
6. The client renders this output in the xterm.js terminal.

License

This project is licensed under the ISC License.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.