explaingit

uniloop/cross-copy

Analysis updated 2026-05-18

0PythonAudience · generalComplexity · 2/5Setup · easy

TLDR

A cross platform network clipboard that lets you copy files, folders, or text on one computer and paste them on another over the local network.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((Cross Copy))
    What it does
      Network clipboard
      Copy files and text
    Interfaces
      CLI ccp
      Web UI
      Tray widget
      File manager actions
    Commands
      copy and paste
      move
      send and accept
    Platforms
      Windows
      macOS
      Linux

Code map

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What do people build with it?

USE CASE 1

Copy a file or folder on one computer and paste it on another over the same local network.

USE CASE 2

Send text between computers by piping it through ccp copy and ccp paste.

USE CASE 3

Share files with a specific computer using ccp send and have them accept or decline the offer.

USE CASE 4

Drag and drop files between computers using the local web interface.

What is it built with?

PythonPowerShellBash

How does it compare?

uniloop/cross-copy0xallam/my-recipe0xhassaan/nn-from-scratch
Stars00
LanguagePythonPythonPython
Last pushed2022-11-22
MaintenanceDormant
Setup difficultyeasymoderatemoderate
Complexity2/52/54/5
Audiencegeneralgeneraldeveloper

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you get it running?

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 5min

Trusts the local network with no pairing, authentication, or encryption yet, so use only on a trusted network.

In plain English

Cross Copy is a network clipboard that works across Windows, macOS, and Linux. It lets someone copy a file, a folder, or a block of text on one computer and paste it on another computer on the same local network, with no cloud service, account, or remote storage involved in the transfer. Setup starts with installing Cross Copy on every computer that should be able to send or receive. On Windows, a PowerShell command downloads and runs an installer that adds a command line tool called ccp to the user's path and sets the background service to start automatically at sign in. On macOS and Linux, a shell script installer does the same thing, preferring a tool called pipx when it is available and otherwise creating its own self contained environment. Both installers can also be skipped in favor of running from a cloned copy of the repository, and both offer a flag to skip starting the background service automatically. Once installed on two or more computers, running ccp status confirms the local background service is active, and ccp devices lists any other computers that have been discovered on the network. From there, a basic transfer is just ccp copy on the sending computer and ccp paste on the receiving one, with support for copying whole folders, plain text through a --text flag, and piping data in and out like any other command line tool. A related command, ccp move, works the same way but deletes the source files once the receiving computer has successfully completed the paste. Beyond the command line, Cross Copy adds right click menu actions in the file manager on each supported operating system, a small web interface reachable at a local address for dragging and dropping files, and a tray or menu bar widget for quick access. The project is upfront that it currently trusts anything on the local network, without pairing, authentication, or encryption, so it recommends using it only on networks the user trusts.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1
Help me install Cross Copy on my Mac and my Linux machine so they can share a clipboard.
Prompt 2
Show me how to send a file to one specific computer instead of sharing it with all devices.
Prompt 3
Walk me through using the Cross Copy web interface to share a file by dragging it in.
Prompt 4
Explain what ccp move does differently from ccp copy.

Frequently asked questions

What is cross-copy?

A cross platform network clipboard that lets you copy files, folders, or text on one computer and paste them on another over the local network.

What language is cross-copy written in?

Mainly Python. The stack also includes Python, PowerShell, Bash.

How hard is cross-copy to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated easy, with roughly 5min to a first successful run.

Who is cross-copy for?

Mainly general.

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