Remote Access
Remote access lets one Genexy IDE work inside another one. The machine that holds the project keeps running it; the device in your hand gets its files, terminals, Git and AI agents. Nothing is copied and nothing is uploaded; you are looking at the original workspace on the original disk.
A connection goes either directly to an IP address and port (Free), or peer-to-peer over WebRTC (PRO): the devices first try a direct peer-to-peer connection and, when that fails, Genexy services relay the encrypted data between them, so it also works behind NAT. This page describes the direct connection, where the host needs a public IP address or a forwarded port. See Data and Privacy for what each way sends.
Turn it on, on the machine that holds the work
Open Settings → Remote Access. Hosting is meant for the desktop application; when the current build has no remote bindings the panel says so instead of offering the toggle.
- Set a passwordAt least 8 characters, entered twice. The listener will not open without one; the toggle stays disabled.
- Check the portThe default is 37543. It can only be changed while remote access is off.
- Turn the toggle onGenexy then lists the addresses this machine can be reached on. Use one of them on the other device.
The panel also shows the machine’s SHA-256 certificate fingerprint, with buttons to copy it and to issue a new certificate. Keep it visible for the next step: it is what proves the other device is talking to this machine and not to something in between.
Connect from the other device
Use the device selector in the status bar; it shows the machine you are currently working on. Open it and choose Connect to an IP address….
- Address, port and an optional nameFor example 192.168.1.42 and port 37543. The name is only a label, so a saved connection reads "Home PC" rather than an address.
- Confirm the fingerprintOn a first connection Genexy shows the host, its label and its fingerprint. Compare it with the one in Remote Access settings on the other machine. If they differ, stop and do not continue.
- Enter the remote access passwordOptionally let Genexy remember it for this connection.
- WorkGenexy authenticates, loads the remote interface, and the status bar switches to the remote machine.
Before anything secret is sent, Genexy probes the address and compares protocol versions. If one side is older, it says which installation to update rather than failing mid-connection. A fingerprint you already trusted is remembered, so later connections to the same machine skip straight to the password.
Saved connections appear in the device selector under Remote, marked direct, with the address underneath and a
button to forget them.
The device selector is part of the native builds: desktop, Android and iOS. From a browser, open the Web IDE instead: it takes the same address and port and opens the interface the host serves itself. You confirm the certificate in the browser’s warning and enter the password on the host’s page.
While a session is running
Only one client may be connected at a time. The host is not shared or mirrored: for as long as the session lasts, that machine replaces its whole IDE with a screen stating that another machine is in control, showing how long the session has been running and offering to end it. The local IDE stays loaded behind it, so when the session ends the machine is exactly where it was left.
On the host side, Remote Access settings name the connected client and its address and can disconnect it. The device selector on the host also carries a small counter while someone is connected.
What the other side can actually do
Anyone who knows the password can read and write the files of the open project on that machine, run Git operations in it, and open terminals, which means running programs as you. Treat the remote access password as a login password for the whole machine, not as a document password.
What protects the session:
- the connection is encrypted;
- the password is mandatory and at least 8 characters long;
- the certificate fingerprint has to be confirmed on the first connection, and comparing it is what rules out a machine in the middle;
- only one client at a time;
- the host cannot be used silently, because it shows the session screen the whole time;
- the host can end the session at any moment, and regenerating the certificate forces every client to confirm the new fingerprint before it can connect again.
Reaching the machine
On the same network (home, office, the same Wi-Fi) the listed address works directly. From outside that network you need a route to the machine, either a VPN into it or a forwarded port on the router. Exposing the port straight to the internet means the password and the certificate are the only things standing in front of your machine, so prefer a VPN.
Turn remote access off when you no longer need it. It is a listener on your machine, and there is no reason to leave it open between the days you actually use it.