ClipCascade: Sync Clipboard Content Across Devices

Overview

ClipCascade keeps clipboard content in sync across connected Windows, macOS, Linux, and Android devices, so copying on one device makes content available on the others without manual transfer. It supports text, images, and files, and offers server-based sync as well as peer-to-peer communication.

It is suited to people who regularly move content between their own devices and want either a ready-to-use community server or control over a self-hosted deployment. The project includes desktop and mobile clients alongside a server and web dashboard.

Key Features

• Automatically synchronizes clipboard changes across connected devices.
• Supports text, images, and files.
• Offers centralized server-based and peer-to-peer sync modes.
• Provides clients for Windows, macOS, Linux, and Android.
• Includes end-to-end encryption options for clipboard data.
• Supports self-hosting with Docker or a Java server JAR.
• Provides multi-user accounts and a web dashboard for managing settings and viewing clipboard activity.

Use Cases

• Move copied text, images, or files between a work computer and a personal phone without sending them through a separate messaging app.
• Keep clipboard content available across a set of personal desktop devices used for development or everyday work.
• Run a private, self-hosted clipboard service when you want to manage the server and user accounts yourself.
• Use peer-to-peer mode where supported when direct device communication is preferable to routing clipboard updates through the server.

Getting Started

For a quick self-hosted Docker setup:

docker run -d --name clipcascade -p 8080:8080 -e CC_MAX_MESSAGE_SIZE_IN_MiB=1 -v ./cc_users:/database sathvikrao/clipcascade

Open http://localhost:8080 to access the server. Change the default admin credentials after logging in. For client downloads, other deployment options, and configuration details, see the README.

Considerations

• Self-hosting requires server setup. The bare-metal server JAR requires Java 21 or later; Docker is another documented option.
• The README lists default admin credentials, so they should be changed immediately after initial login. It also notes that allowing all web origins is not recommended for security-sensitive deployments.
• Peer-to-peer mode depends on network compatibility and may require direct network access between devices. The server remains involved in signaling and authentication.
• Linux setup varies by desktop environment and may require system clipboard, GTK, or Python dependencies. Android automatic clipboard monitoring requires additional ADB permissions.
• The repository is licensed under GPL-3.0. Review the license and deployment guidance when integrating it into other software or exposing a server publicly.