ELXSoftware

Networking and remote access

ELX-VNetwork

Your own local network, across the internet

Machines in different cities, each behind its own router, see each other as if they stood in one room: shared folders, network neighbourhood, printers, remote desktop, SSH. Nothing has to be configured on the routers — no port forwarding, no public address.

v1.0.73 WindowsLinuxARM Free

As if they were in one room

Every machine gets a permanent address such as 10.77.0.5. Neighbours appear in the network neighbourhood and answer by name as well as by address — because this is real Ethernet, not a forwarded port.

It does not look like a VPN

From the outside it is an HTTPS connection to a web site on port 443. There is no distinctive VPN protocol for deep packet inspection to recognise, and nothing for a mobile operator to throttle first.

A terminal in the browser

SSH to any Linux machine straight from the panel. The machine itself asks for the username and password — no tunnel to set up by hand, no key to copy in advance.

Segments and invitations

Several independent networks on one server. A machine joins with an invitation code, and you decide whether to let it in. Nothing enters a segment because it guessed an address.

You can see what is happening

Who is online and for how long, the current speed in both directions, the traffic, and a log of the last two hundred sessions. Next to each machine: its operating system, memory in use and processor load.

It comes up at once

One connection and one path. No NAT traversal, no candidate gathering, no peer-to-peer negotiation that succeeds at the desk and fails on site. The network is up a couple of seconds after the client starts.

Screenshots

The control panel: segments on the left, machines in the table, invitation codes and joining instructions on one page
Administration: segments, settings and notifications
Segment members: addresses, versions, speed and traffic
Invitation codes and pending requests
The joining screen the new machine sees
The terminal: an ordinary SSH login, with the machine asking for the password
The built-in documentation, describing the version you actually have

What it actually is

Not “access to a server” but a genuine local network. The client creates a virtual Ethernet adapter, and from that moment the operating system treats the far-away machines as if they were plugged into the same switch: broadcasts arrive, neighbour discovery works, and any protocol that runs over Ethernet runs here without being told about it.

That is the difference from a tunnel to a single port. Shared folders, printers, remote desktop, SSH, database clients, industrial protocols that expect a flat network — all of them work without configuration, because nothing about them has changed.

What it consists of

Two programs. One runs on a server — the cheapest VPS is enough. The other goes on every machine that should join the network. Nothing else: no database, no message broker, no third-party service.

The server — elxvnet-server

Installed once on a machine with a fixed address and a domain name. One core and 512 MB of memory hold dozens of connected computers. A single 12 MB executable and a systemd unit; the database is SQLite in a file beside it.

The client — elxvnet

On Windows an installer sets up the service, the virtual adapter and a tray icon. On Linux it is a package for amd64, arm64 and armhf — no driver needed, the kernel has had one for years.

The server holds three things at once: the control panel, the accounts, segments and invitation codes, and the switch itself, through which frames travel between machines. Only port 443 faces outward.

Why your own server mattersThe keys, the list of machines and all of the traffic stay with you rather than in somebody else's cloud. That is not a preference — it is the point of running it yourself.

Compared with ZeroTier, Tailscale and Hamachi

The goal is the same: machines behind other people's routers end up on one network. The difference is in how it is delivered.

ELX-VNetworkThe usual alternatives
TransportHTTPS on 443, indistinguishable from a web siteTheir own protocols over UDP, easy for DPI to classify
PathOne connection through your server, up in secondsNAT traversal and peer-to-peer negotiation that can fail mid-session
AccountNone — the server is yoursAn account in someone else's cloud
Device limitNoneA free tier with a ceiling
Client sizeAbout 6 MB, one executableTens of megabytes, plus companion services
Network levelL2 — broadcasts and discovery workUsually L3 — routing only

The practical consequence is the one that matters on a mobile connection: a protocol an operator has never seen a reason to shape is a protocol that keeps working.

Installing takes two minutes

Linux — install and join
sudo dpkg -i elx-vnetwork_*.deb
sudo elxvnet join -server https://vnet.example.com -invite ELX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX
sudo systemctl start elxvnet
elxvnet status
Windows — silent install with the settings already in it
elxvnet-setup-1.0.73.exe /VERYSILENT /SUPPRESSMSGBOXES ^
  /SERVER=https://vnet.example.com /INVITE=ELX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX
Ten machines at onceThe silent installer takes the server address and the invitation code as arguments, so rolling out a site does not mean typing the same two lines ten times.

At a glance

Network level
L2 — real Ethernet, broadcasts included
Transport
WebSocket over TLS, port 443
Adapter
TAP-Windows6 on Windows, /dev/net/tun on Linux
Client systems
Windows 10 and 11 (64-bit), Debian, Ubuntu and relatives
Architectures
amd64, arm64, armhf
Server requirements
One core, 512 MB of memory, a domain name
Server storage
SQLite, one file
Notifications
Telegram, e-mail, or both

Frequently asked questions

What replaces ZeroTier or Hamachi when the provider blocks them?
This does the same job — it puts machines behind NAT on one local network — but over ordinary HTTPS on port 443. To the network outside it is a connection to a web site, not a VPN protocol, so there is nothing distinctive to detect and nothing to cut. No account in someone else's cloud, and no limit on the number of machines.
How do I reach a computer behind NAT without a public address?
Both machines connect outward to the server and meet there. No port forwarding, no static address and no router configuration — it works behind a mobile modem and behind carrier-grade NAT.
Is this the same as a remote-terminal tool?
It includes one — SSH from the browser to any Linux machine — but it is wider. Besides the console you get an actual local network: shared folders, network neighbourhood, printers, remote desktop and anything else that runs over Ethernet.
What do I need to run my own server?
The cheapest VPS with a domain name: one core and 512 MB of memory. The install script registers the service, configures nginx and obtains a Let's Encrypt certificate. The server is one file; the database is SQLite beside it.
Is it really free?
Entirely — the client, the server and every feature. No subscription, no device ceiling, no paid edition.
Which systems are supported?
Windows 10 and 11 (64-bit) and Linux — Debian, Ubuntu and relatives — for amd64, arm64 and armhf. That covers ordinary computers as well as single-board machines.

ELX-VNetwork

Your own local network, across the internet

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