Get Help: ID and temporary code — **Get Help**: the computer's ID and the one-time code, to give to the person helping.

Albatross connects two computers, Mac or Windows PC, wherever they are. The person who needs help opens the app and gives you their ID and a one-time code; you then see their screen and use their mouse and keyboard as if you were sitting in front of it. Nothing to set up, no account, no router to open: the connection goes through a relay, and it is end-to-end encrypted. Albatross is free.

What Albatross does

Get help

For the person who needs help: open the app, read two codes, accept.

A 9-digit ID unique to your computer, which never changes, and a 6-character temporary code.
The code only works once: after each session, a new one replaces it. A button gets a new one at any time, and it changes on its own after five wrong attempts.
Every request must be accepted on your computer, with the name of the person making it; without an answer, it is declined after one minute.
You see everything that happens and you can end the session in one click.
Albatross opens with your session and stays discreetly in the menu bar (Mac) or the notification area (Windows): a green dot shows your computer can be reached, orange when someone is controlling it, red if something is wrong.

Take control

For the person helping: the other computer's screen in a window, and its controls at your fingertips.

The remote screen live, encoded in low-latency H.264, up to 30 frames per second.
Mouse and keyboard: clicks, double-click, right-click, drag and drop, trackpad or wheel scrolling, and every shortcut (⌘C, ⌘V, ⌘Q…) sent to the other computer.
A window you can enlarge or shrink at will; when zoomed, the image fills it. Closing it ends the session.
If the other computer hasn't allowed control yet, its screen still shows, and control turns on as soon as permission is given.
Zoom into part of the screen (buttons, or pinch on the trackpad): the other computer then sends only that area, at full resolution — a 49-inch screen reads perfectly well from a 13-inch laptop.
Mac and PC both ways: a Mac helps a PC, a PC helps a Mac; shortcuts keep their meaning (⌘ ⇄ Ctrl).

Chat and devices

Talk during the session, and find the computers you help in one click.

Chat: your messages appear instantly on the controlled computer, and the person replies in the same window.
History of every session, received and given, with its chat.
Saved devices: a name and an ID kept, a green dot when the computer can be reached, the Apple or Windows logo; you only need to enter the code.

Invite by email

Albatross isn't installed on the other person's computer yet? They get everything they need.

Enter their address: they receive a download link and the steps to follow, with your name and address.
Their reply comes straight to you, and you receive a copy of the invitation.
The invitation reminds them never to let a stranger take control of their computer.

Security

What passes between the two computers is nobody else's business.

End-to-end encrypted connection (X25519, ChaCha20-Poly1305): the relay passes on bytes it cannot read.
The temporary code is never sent: it is used to check that the two computers are really talking to each other.
Connection attempts are limited per ID and per address.
On a Mac being helped, macOS asks for two permissions: Screen Recording to be seen, Accessibility to be controlled. On a PC, nothing to allow.

In pictures

Remote control request — **Nothing without your consent**: each request shows the person's name, to accept or decline.

**Saved devices**: Mac or PC, a green dot when they can be reached; you only need to enter the code.

Session history — **History**: every session, received or given, with its duration and chat.

**Take Control**: the other computer's ID and code, and off you go.

**Invite by email**: a link to download Albatross and the steps to follow, sent to the person who needs help.

A coffee for what's next

Albatross is free, ad-free, and will stay that way. I develop it in my spare time: every coffee helps fund the next versions, fixes and new features, and tells me the app is useful to you.

Buy Me a Coffee

Installation

On Mac

Download the .zip fileIt unzips on its own in the Downloads folder.
Drag Albatross to ApplicationsIn the Finder, into your Mac's Applications folder.
Open AlbatrossThe app is signed and notarized by Apple: it opens without a warning.

On a Windows PC

Download the .msi fileIt lands in the Downloads folder.
Open itIf Windows shows “Windows protected your PC”, click “More info”, then “Run anyway”.
Albatross installsNo administrator rights needed; open it from the Start menu or the desktop shortcut.

Requirements

Free, no account or subscription.
Mac: macOS 14 Sonoma or later, Apple or Intel chip.
PC: Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit; installs without administrator rights.
Albatross open on both computers, with an Internet connection.
On a Mac being helped: the Screen Recording and Accessibility permissions, to give once.