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Other computers and SSH

There are two ways to use a second computer, such as a workstation or a Linux server: Solenta checks the other computer over SSH. If Solenta is not running there it starts it: on a Mac through open (someone must be logged in to the desktop), and on Linux without a window.

There are two ways to use a second computer, such as a workstation or a Linux server:

  • Connect to another computer opens the whole Solenta on that computer in its own window. Its projects, threads, agents and worktrees stay there.
  • A remote project keeps one repo from that computer in this window. Git and the agent CLIs run there over SSH. It is described further down.

Connect to another computer

  1. On a Mac, install Solenta in /Applications there. On a Linux server you can skip this: Connect offers Install Solenta on <host>, which downloads this version into ~/solenta over SSH and checks it against the release checksum (x86_64 only).
  2. Make sure ssh user@host works from a terminal on this computer without a password prompt, using an SSH key or agent, and that you have accepted the host key once.
  3. In Settings > Connections > Connect to another computer, enter the SSH host and press Connect. Leave Token blank.

Solenta checks the other computer over SSH. If Solenta is not running there it starts it: on a Mac through open (someone must be logged in to the desktop), and on Linux without a window. If it is open but Solenta Web is off, it turns Solenta Web on; a copy older than this release cannot be asked to, so Connect tells you to turn on Serve Solenta Web there yourself rather than start a second copy on the same data. It then reads the token over SSH, forwards the port through an SSH tunnel, and opens the window. The host key must match known_hosts, the tunnel reconnects if it drops, and a remembered token is encrypted with the system keychain.

After connecting, Connections shows which Solenta version the other computer runs and which agent CLIs it has and is signed in to. If a Linux host is older than this app, Update Solenta on <host> installs this version the same way; a copy running without a window is restarted on the next connect. If the install finds missing system libraries, it shows the sudo apt install line to run there. Agents sign in on the computer they run on: open Settings > Agents in the remote window and press Sign in.

Linux servers without a display

--headless runs Solenta without a window and implies --serve-web. It needs no X server or Wayland session, only the libraries Electron loads (on Ubuntu: libnss3 libgtk-3-0t64 libgbm1 libasound2t64). Use --no-sandbox unless chrome-sandbox is owned by root with mode 4755. 

~/solenta/solenta --headless --no-sandbox

Connect starts it this way for you, and the log goes to ~/.solenta-headless.log. To keep it running after logout and across reboots, use a systemd user service: 

# ~/.config/systemd/user/solenta.service
[Unit]
Description=Solenta (headless)

[Service]
ExecStart=%h/solenta/solenta --headless --no-sandbox
Restart=on-failure

[Install]
WantedBy=default.target
systemctl --user daemon-reload
systemctl --user enable --now solenta
sudo loginctl enable-linger "$USER"   # keep it running after you log out

The agent CLIs and their sign-ins live on the server. Install and log in to them there (claude, codex login, and so on) before you start threads.

If Connect fails

  • not in known_hosts yet: run ssh user@host in a terminal once and accept the host key.
  • SSH refused the login: Connect cannot type a password. Add your key with ssh-copy-id user@host or load it into your SSH agent.
  • Solenta is not installed: on Linux, press Install Solenta on <host>. On a Mac, install it in /Applications there.
  • Solenta did not start: on a Mac, log in to the desktop once. On Linux, read ~/.solenta-headless.log on the server. A missing library shows up there.
  • Nothing is listening on port: the other computer uses a different port. Set the same port in the form, or start it with --serve-web=PORT.
  • On Windows hosts, Solenta cannot be started or its token read over SSH. Start Solenta Web there and paste a device token from its Settings.

Remote projects

A project can also live on another machine while you stay in this window. Set remote host (user@host) and remote path when adding or editing the project, and every command Solenta would run locally is wrapped as: 

ssh -o BatchMode=yes -o ConnectTimeout=10 user@host 'cd /remote/path && claude ...'

The agent CLI executes on the remote and streams back over the pipe, so the UI looks exactly like a local run. Notes:

  • Auth is key-based only. BatchMode=yes never prompts for a password; a host you cannot key into fails fast.
  • The agent CLIs must be installed on the remote; local installs are not needed.
  • Worktree setup and pull are local-only in v1.