There are multitude of tools available to share and receive files across network. Today, we are going to see one such network file sharing app named "Warpinator". Warpinator is a simple graphical network transfer tool developed by Linux mint team. Using this tool, we can easily and securely share files between Linux desktops in the local area network. Warpinator is free and open source application written in Python.
Table of Contents
Install Warpinator on Linux
Warpinator is available in the main repositories of Linux Mint 20 and LMDE (Linux Mint Debian Edition) 4 versions. If you're using the aforementioned versions, you can install Warpinator using the following command:
$ sudo apt install warpinator
On older Linux mint versions and other Linux distributions, you can install it using flatpak command line tool like below:
$ flatpak install flathub org.x.Warpinator
You must install Warpinator on all (local and remote) systems.
Share Files Between Linux Desktops With Warpinator
Launch Warpinator from application launcher or menu on your local and remote systems. You can also launch it from command line if you have installed it using flatpak command:
$ flatpak run org.x.Warpinator
Warpinator will automatically search and list all reachable computers with Warpinator running on the network as shown in the below screenshot.
As you can see, Warpinator interface is very simple and self-explanatory. It displays the remote system's user@hostname and its ip address.
To send files to a remote system, simply click on the respective system and click "Send files -> Browse" button. Next, choose the list of files you want to send to the remote system.
Now the recipient will see a pop-up file transfer window in his/her system's task bar. The recipient should approve the incoming file request to download them in his/her system.
All files will be downloaded in the ~/Warpinator directory. You can change the download location from the Warpinator's Preferences window. Click the hamburger menu on the top left and choose Preferences from the drop-down menu bar.
You can mark a PC as your favorite device, set nick name for each PC, and change the incoming port for file transfer. By default, Warpinator uses port 42000. You can, ofcourse, use any port number. However, it is recommended to use the same port for all computers to add firewall exceptions if necessary.
Remove Warpinator
To remove Warpinator, simply run:
$ flatpak uninstall org.x.Warpinator
Conclusion
Warpinator has made the file transfer between Linux PCs on the same network much easier as well as faster. You don't need to rely on USB sticks or cloud storage like Dropbox or Google drive. Give it a try, you won't be disappointed!
Resource:
Related read:
- Transfer Files And Folders Between Computers With Croc
- PSiTransfer – A Simple Open Source Self-hosted File Sharing Solution
- How to Setup A Basic File server Using simpleHTTPserver
- An Easy And Fast Way To Share Files Over Internet From Command Line
- OnionShare – Share Files Of Any Size Securely And Anonymously
4 comments
I’m running this in Linux. You write “Between Linux Desktops” and later “all reachable computers”. I’m confused, would this find and connect to a Windows computer?
Warpinator is only for Linux desktops. For cross-platform, try Snapdrop. https://ostechnix.com/share-files-between-multiple-devices-using-snapdrop-via-web-browser/
I have installed onto a PC running Ubuntu and one running Linux Mint. The Mint PC can see the Ubuntu PC but not connect to it. The Ubuntu PC cannot see the Mint PC at all. What could be wrong? I have checked all settings, and even with the VPN turned that off, or having it on but with a bypass for the IP address of the other PC.
Please check you can able to ping both systems from each other. If any one of the system is not reachable, then check the firewall settings. Warpinator uses port 42000, so make sure the port is allowed in your firewall or router.