Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Input Leap VS Barrier

Compare Input Leap VS Barrier and see what are their differences

Input Leap logo Input Leap

Open-source KVM software.

Barrier logo Barrier

Barrier is a cross-platform software for sharing your mouse and keyboard between multiple computers...
  • Input Leap Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-08
  • Barrier Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-11-07

Input Leap features and specs

  • Cross-Platform Support
    Input Leap allows for seamless interaction between multiple operating systems, such as Windows, macOS, and Linux, facilitating interoperability in mixed-OS environments.
  • Single Input Management
    With Input Leap, users can control multiple devices using one keyboard and mouse, reducing clutter and simplifying input management across devices.
  • Open Source
    Being open-source, Input Leap provides transparency, allowing users to inspect, modify, and contribute to the project's codebase, fostering community involvement and trust.
  • Active Community
    A diligent open-source community supports Input Leap, offering regular updates, bug fixes, and new features, thereby enhancing the software's reliability and performance.

Possible disadvantages of Input Leap

  • Setup Complexity
    Setting up Input Leap can be complex for users unfamiliar with networking and system configuration, potentially requiring additional time and effort for initial configuration.
  • Security Concerns
    As with any network-based application, there are inherent security risks in using Input Leap, especially if not properly configured with secure connections.
  • Performance Issues
    Depending on network conditions and hardware specifications, users may experience latency or performance issues, affecting smooth input transitions between devices.
  • Limited Features Compared to Alternatives
    Input Leap might lack some advanced features or integrations found in other proprietary software solutions, potentially limiting its functionality for power users.

Barrier features and specs

  • Cross-Platform Support
    Barrier works on various operating systems including Windows, macOS, Linux, and FreeBSD, making it versatile for users with multiple devices.
  • Open Source
    Being open source, users can review and modify the code, contributing to transparency and security while fostering a community-driven project.
  • Cost-Free
    Barrier is free to use, unlike some alternatives that require purchasing a license, making it accessible to a wider audience.
  • Unified Control
    Allows seamless control of multiple computers using a single keyboard and mouse, enhancing productivity and convenience.
  • Customizability
    Offers various customization options such as hotkeys, screen edges, and clipboard sharing, adapting to user-specific workflows.

Possible disadvantages of Barrier

  • Setup Complexity
    Initial setup can be complex for non-technical users, involving network configurations and firewall adjustments.
  • Compatibility Issues
    Occasional compatibility problems with certain versions of operating systems or hardware, potentially requiring troubleshooting.
  • Lag and Latency
    Users may experience slight lag or latency, especially over wireless networks, which can affect the fluidity of control.
  • Limited Technical Support
    As a community-driven project, it lacks the dedicated support of commercial alternatives, relying mostly on community forums for help.
  • Security Concerns
    Network-based connectivity might expose systems to security risks if not properly configured, necessitating careful network management.

Analysis of Barrier

Overall verdict

  • Barrier is generally considered a good option for individuals looking for an open-source solution to seamlessly share peripherals across multiple computers. It has a positive reception within the tech community, especially among those who value open-source projects for their flexibility and community-driven support.

Why this product is good

  • Barrier is an open-source software application that allows users to share a single keyboard and mouse setup across multiple computers, which can be particularly useful for those who use multiple machines for work or development. It is a fork of the earlier project Synergy and focuses on providing a simpler, streamlined setup process with improved stability. The software is lightweight, easy to configure, and supports cross-platform functionality (Windows, macOS, and Linux), making it versatile for different operating systems.

Recommended for

  • Users with multiple computers who want to use a single keyboard and mouse setup.
  • Cross-platform users who work with Windows, macOS, and Linux machines.
  • Developers and IT professionals seeking open-source tools for better control over their working environment.
  • Individuals who prefer community-driven projects and are comfortable with a more hands-on approach to software setup and troubleshooting.

Input Leap videos

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Barrier videos

Reviews In a Flash: Barrier

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Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Input Leap and Barrier)
Mouse Tools
13 13%
87% 87
Remote PC Access
10 10%
90% 90
Remote Desktop
18 18%
82% 82
Multi Monitor
3 3%
97% 97

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Input Leap and Barrier

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Barrier Reviews

Top spacedesk Alternatives & Similar Software (2020)
For Barrier to work, all that is needed is a network connection. You can also copy content from one clipboard to another between computers. Like all other software that let you work on multiple computers, Barrier too helps you control all of them with a single mouse or keyboard. Barrier is free to use and it’s an open-source software. As in the other software that we’ve...

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Barrier seems to be a lot more popular than Input Leap. While we know about 348 links to Barrier, we've tracked only 13 mentions of Input Leap. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Input Leap mentions (13)

  • Unlocking secret ThinkPad functionality for emulating USB devices
    x2x worked fine for input devices. Later, things like x2vnc made the idea more cross-platform (X on the local nix box, VNC on some other platform), but only with two machines. After that, Synergy became a thing, and supported many* machines, but then they eventually went to a model that tended to require payment. Later, Barrier forked from Senergy, and it allows much of the same functionality. It's still... - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Barrier: Open-Source KVM Software
    There is an actively developed fork https://github.com/input-leap/input-leap, however that fork is still undergoing heavy development and recommends sticking with Barrier until they're able to release v3.0.0 which they expect rather soon. - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Hrvach/Deskhop: Fast Desktop Switching Device
    Barrier is basically a dead project now. The active members of the project forked it and are going to release when ready but https://github.com/input-leap/input-leap Keep an eye on that for anything new. - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Hrvach/Deskhop: Fast Desktop Switching Device
    Prior to Synergy going to closed source, it was forked into Barrier[0], which then was forked into input-leap[1]. Both open source. [0] https://github.com/debauchee/barrier. - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • What do you think of Smart KVM as a feature on a monitor?
    I wonder if I would be better off just buying a LG monitor without the Smart KVM, and instead using Barrier (or, Input Leap, which seems to be maintained actively compared to Barrier https://github.com/input-leap/input-leap). Source: almost 2 years ago
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Barrier mentions (348)

  • So I made a WebRTC powered VNC client in Vue/Rust 🦀
    I used to and still do use and recommend Barrier for sharing a mouse and clipboard and keypresses across OS's. It works for Mac, Windows, and Linux. They have a fork input-leap... It doesn't work, and there is a paid on from the same original developers called Synergy that works well too. - Source: dev.to / 9 months ago
  • Hrvach/Deskhop: Fast Desktop Switching Device
    Barrier is a Cross-Plattform, open source Synergy fork that works quite well without any additional HW too [0] [0] https://github.com/debauchee/barrier. - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Hrvach/Deskhop: Fast Desktop Switching Device
    Synergy is open core, these portions are licensed as GPL: https://github.com/symless/synergy-core/#License-1-ov-file. - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Hrvach/Deskhop: Fast Desktop Switching Device
    Prior to Synergy going to closed source, it was forked into Barrier[0], which then was forked into input-leap[1]. Both open source. [0] https://github.com/debauchee/barrier. - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Wayland vs. X – Overview
    Libei looks useful. But IDK why libei is necessary to run Barrier with Wayland? For client systems, couldn't there just be a virtual /dev/inputXYZ that Barrier forwards events through And for host systems, it looks like xev only logs input events when the window is focused. Is xeyes still broken on Wayland, and how to fix it so that it would work with Barrier? With Barrier, when the mouse cursor reaches a screen... - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Input Leap and Barrier, you can also consider the following products

Synergy - Cross-platform software for sharing your mouse and keyboard between multiple computers

Input Director - Control multiple windows systems with one keyboard/mouse. Share a keyboard and mouse across multiple windows system.

ShareMouse - With its easy setup and high level of versatility, ShareMouse is a great tool if you're looking to use a single mouse and keyboard across multiple computers.

DisplayFusion - DisplayFusion will make your multi-monitor life much easier.

spacedesk - spacedesk expands the Windows desktop computer screen to other computers over the local area...

x2vnc (win2vnc) - x2vnc is an X program that will allow two machines to be controlled from the same keyboard and mouse. One machine must run X windows, the other can run X or Microsoft Windows