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CloudShell VS HopToDesk

Compare CloudShell VS HopToDesk and see what are their differences

CloudShell

Cloud Shell is a free admin machine with browser-based command-line access for managing your infrastructure and applications on Google Cloud Platform.

Rating
0 reviews
Alternatives Is it good?
HopToDesk

Free, fast and secure remote desktop software. Screen sharing, remote control, file transfer and live chat, free for both personal and business use, with an optional dashboard for managing devices at scale.

Rating
0 reviews
Pricing
Open source Freemium Free trial $15 / Monthly (Pro (Dashboard); the apps stay free)
Alternatives Is it good?
Status.io
Status.io is a hosted status page platform for incident communication and uptime monitoring. Keep your customers informed with real-time status updates, maintenance alerts, and transparent system notifications. sponsored
Note: These products don't have any matching categories. If you think this is a mistake, please edit the details of one of the products and suggest appropriate categories.

Which is more popular?

Based on our record, CloudShell seems to be more popular. It has been mentioned 13 times since March 2021.

social mentions
13 vs 0
Text Editors popularity
100% vs 0%
alternatives listed
155 vs 39

Base details

Website, pricing, platforms and company facts side by side.

CloudShell
HopToDesk
Website docs.cloud.google.com hoptodesk.com
Pricing —
Open source Freemium Free trial $15 / Monthly (Pro (Dashboard); the apps stay free) Official pricing
Platforms —
Windows Mac OSX Linux Android iOS iPhone iPad Chrome OS +5
Company — Startup from the United States · 2022
Listed in
Text Editors IDE Programming Programming Tools +1
Remote Desktop Remote Support Remote PC Access Remote IT Management Monitoring Tools Help Desk +3

About CloudShell and HopToDesk

In their own words, as submitted to SaaSHub.

CloudShell
HopToDesk

No description of CloudShell yet.

HopToDesk is a free and open source remote desktop application for secure screen sharing, remote control, file transfer and chat between connected peers. It is free for both personal and business use with no time limits, and provides true end-to-end encryption for all peer communications, so...

Read more about HopToDesk

Features and specs

What each product offers, as listed by its team.

CloudShell 7 features
HopToDesk 24 features
  • Integrated Environment
    CloudShell provides a fully integrated development environment directly within your browser, including access to Google Cloud resources, pre-installed Google Cloud SDK, and other useful tools.
  • Convenience
    Because it's browser-based, there is no need to install or configure anything locally, which can save considerable setup time and eliminate environment inconsistencies.
  • Security
    Operating within Google's infrastructure can add layers of security, including secure connection to cloud resources and less risk of exposing local machines to vulnerabilities.
  • Access to Project Resources
    Directly connects to Google Cloud resources associated with your account, making it easy to manage and deploy applications within your cloud environment.
  • Scalability
    Seamlessly scalable environment that can handle different workloads without performance degradation.
  • Persistent Storage
    CloudShell offers persistent storage, allowing users to save their work and configurations, which are available in future sessions.
  • Pre-installed Tools
    Includes a range of pre-installed tools, such as git, gcloud SDK, and language libraries, enabling efficient development and deployment workflows.

Possible disadvantages

  • Resource Limits
    CloudShell has usage limits, including limited disk space and CPU, which may not be sufficient for all types of workloads, particularly resource-intensive tasks.
  • Inactive Use Timeouts
    Sessions that are inactive for a period of time may be automatically terminated, which can disrupt ongoing work.
  • Dependency on Internet Connection
    Being a cloud-based solution, a stable internet connection is required. Any disruption in connectivity can hamper development and deployment processes.
  • Latency Issues
    Depending on your geographical location, there may be latency issues which can affect performance and response times.
  • Limited Customization
    While CloudShell provides many pre-installed tools, users have limited control over the environment compared to a locally managed development setup.
  • Paid Subscription Needed for Extensive Use
    Beyond the free tier, extensive usage of CloudShell resources may incur additional costs, which can add up depending on the scale and nature of the tasks.
  • Learning Curve
    New users who are not familiar with Google Cloud's ecosystem may face an initial learning curve to fully leverage CloudShell's capabilities.
  • Screen sharing
  • Remote Control
  • File Transfer Control
  • Live Chat
  • End to End Data Encryption
  • Open source
  • TCP Tunneling
  • SOCKS5 Proxy Support
  • Direct IP Connection
  • 2FA
  • Wake On LAN
  • Privacy Mode
  • Multiple Sessions
  • Unattended Access
  • Session Recording
  • Multi-Monitor Support
  • Remote Printing
  • Clipboard Sync
  • Remote Reboot
  • Web client
  • Self-Hosted
  • Device Groups
    Dashboard
  • Help Desk & Ticketing
    Dashboard
  • Single Sign-On
    Dashboard

Analysis

An editorial look at what each product does well and who it suits.

CloudShell
HopToDesk

Overall verdict

  • Yes, CloudShell is a good tool, especially for those who are actively using Google Cloud Platform. It provides a user-friendly interface and a comprehensive set of tools to manage cloud resources effectively. Its convenience, combined with the power of GCP, makes it a valuable asset for cloud-based development and operations.

Why this product is good

  • CloudShell is a versatile tool offered by Google Cloud Platform (GCP) that provides a command-line environment directly in your web browser. It is particularly beneficial for developers and system administrators because it allows them to manage GCP resources easily without needing to install additional software on their local machines. CloudShell includes the Google Cloud SDK, along with other essential tools, making it a convenient and efficient option for cloud management tasks. Additionally, it offers persistent storage, allowing users to save their scripts and data between sessions. The integration with other GCP services enhances productivity by providing seamless access and control.

Recommended for

  • Developers who frequently work with Google Cloud Platform
  • System administrators managing GCP resources
  • New users of Google Cloud who need an easy introduction to command-line tools
  • Teams collaborating on GCP projects, as it supports session sharing

No analysis of HopToDesk yet.

Videos

Walkthroughs and reviews on video.

CloudShell 0 videos + Add
HopToDesk 1 video + Add

No CloudShell videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

HopToDesk

Category popularity

How often each product is chosen within a category, 0–100% relative to the other.

Score bands 0–20 21–40 41–50 51–60 61–100
CloudShell
HopToDesk
100% 100%
Text Editors
0% 0%
0% 0%
Remote Desktop
100% 100%
100% 100%
Development
0% 0%
0% 0%
Remote PC Access
100% 100%

Questions & Answers

As answered by people managing CloudShell and HopToDesk.

What makes your product unique?

HopToDesk's answer:

Two things.

First, the remote session itself is free, for personal and business use alike, with no time limit, no seat count and no account needed to connect. You share an ID and a password and you are in. Paying is only for the Dashboard, which is the fleet management layer on top, so the cost tracks how much you want to manage rather than how many people need to connect.

Second, sessions are end-to-end encrypted between the two devices, so session content is not readable by us, and the client is open source, so that claim can be checked rather than taken on trust.

HopToDesk was also the first remote desktop app to ship MCP support, which lets an AI agent drive a real session on Windows, Mac and Linux.

Why should a person choose your product over its competitors?

HopToDesk's answer:

Most remote desktop tools bill per technician or per seat, so the price climbs with the size of your team. HopToDesk does not charge per seat at all. The client is free and the Dashboard is priced on the plan, so adding people to the team costs nothing.

It also runs everywhere the work is. Native apps for Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS, Chromebook and Raspberry Pi, plus a browser client, and one app both gives and receives control rather than shipping a separate viewer and host.

Then there is the part most free tools stop short of. The Dashboard adds live device status with offline alerts, device groups and tags, session recording, session history with a full audit trail and CSV export, a built-in help desk with email intake and a branded customer portal, roles, invites and single sign-on, and custom-branded clients shipped under your own name and logo. Organizations that need everything on their own infrastructure can self-host.

How would you describe the primary audience of your product?

HopToDesk's answer:

Three groups, in order of size.

Individuals and small businesses who need to reach their own machines or help someone else, and who use the free client on its own.

IT teams supporting an internal fleet, who want unattended access, monitoring, reporting and a help desk in one place without a per-technician bill.

Managed service providers supporting many separate client estates, who need tenant separation, per-tenant branding, ticketing and volume pricing.

What's the story behind your product?

HopToDesk's answer:

HopToDesk started in 2022 from a common complaint. Remote desktop tools were either expensive, or free but limited, or free right up until something decided your usage looked commercial and cut you off in the middle of a session.

The first release did the opposite. A fast, encrypted remote desktop that is free for personal and business use, with no account required, no session timer and no usage policing. It spread by word of mouth among technicians who had been caught out by exactly that.

Since then it has grown into a platform. The free client stayed free, and the paid part became the Dashboard: monitoring, device groups, reporting, a help desk and branded clients for the teams and providers who manage real fleets. It is operated by Begonia Holdings LLC, a United States company.

Which are the primary technologies used for building your product?

HopToDesk's answer:

HopToDesk is built primarily in Rust. The desktop client is a native Rust application that ships as a single executable with no bundled runtime, which is why it starts quickly and can run in portable mode with nothing to install.

The peer rendezvous and relay network is Rust as well, hosted in ISO/IEC 27001 certified datacenters in the European Union and the United States.

The Dashboard is a TypeScript web application running on managed edge cloud infrastructure.

Remote sessions are end-to-end encrypted between the two devices.

User comments

Share your experience with using CloudShell and HopToDesk. For example, how are they different and which one is better?

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Social recommendations and mentions

Recommendations tracked on public social media and blogs since March 2021.

CloudShell 13 mentions
HopToDesk 0 mentions
  • GCP Fundamentals: Cloud Shell API
    The Google Cloud Shell API empowers organizations to automate cloud operations, accelerate software delivery, and improve efficiency. By providing a programmatic interface for managing Cloud Shell environments, the API unlocks new... - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • Intro to the YouTube APIs: searching for videos
    Command-line (gcloud) -- Those who prefer working in a terminal can enable APIs with a single command in the Cloud Shell or locally on your computer if you installed the Cloud SDK which includes the gcloud command-line tool (CLI) and... - Source: dev.to / about 2 years ago
  • Explore the world with Google Maps APIs
    Gcloud/command-line - Finally, for those more inclined to using the command-line, you can enable APIs with a single command in the Cloud Shell or locally on your computer if you installed the Cloud SDK (which includes the gcloud... - Source: dev.to / over 2 years ago

View more

Tracking HopToDesk since Apr 2022.

Alternatives to CloudShell and HopToDesk

When comparing CloudShell and HopToDesk, you can also consider the following products.

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