How to install and use AnyDesk on Linux

You can share files with the remote system, launch applications on it, chat with users on the other end, and even share your screen.

With AnyDesk, you can bring the remote system's desktop to your local device's screen and work on it as if you were sitting in front of it. All you need is to install and run AnyDesk on both local and remote systems.

Let's see how to install and use AnyDesk on Linux.

Install AnyDesk on Ubuntu, Debian or Linux Mint

AnyDesk is not available in the default repositories of Debian-based distributions. However, you can install it from the AnyDesk repository or use the DEB package available on the AnyDesk website.

Follow one of the following methods to install AnyDesk on Debian-based distributions such as Ubuntu and Linux Mint.

1. Through AnyDesk repository

To install AnyDesk from the official repository, you first need to add the repository and its GPG key. To add a GPG key, open a terminal and run:

wget -qO - https://keys.anydesk.com/repos/DEB-GPG-KEY | sudo apt-key add -

Add the repository to your system's sources list by running:

echo "deb http://deb.anydesk.com/ all main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/anydesk-stable.list

Once done, update the APT package index with:

sudo apt update

Now, you can install AnyDesk on your system using:

sudo apt install anydesk

2. Use AnyDesk DEB package

To install AnyDesk using a DEB package, download the installation package from the AnyDesk website:

Then use the dpkg command to install the DEB package:

sudo dpkg -i anydesk_*_amd64.deb

In case you receive any error related to dependencies, run:

sudo apt -f install

Install AnyDesk on RHEL and openSUSE based systems

On openSUSE and RPM-based distributions such as RHEL, CentOS, and Fedora, you can install AnyDesk by adding the RPM repository and then installing it using the default package manager.

Create the AnyDesk.repo repo file in the /etc/yum.repos.d directory using nano, Vim or any other editor:

sudo nano /etc/yum.repos.d/AnyDesk.repo

For openSUSE, create this repo file in your current terminal directory by running:

sudo nano AnyDesk.repo

Add the following lines to the file:

[anydesk] name=AnyDesk - stable baseurl= gpgcheck=1 repo_gpgcheck=1 gpgkey=https://keys.anydesk.com/repos/RPM-GPG-KEY

Depending on the Linux distribution you use, edit the baseurl line in the above file to look like this:

On RHEL:

baseurl=http://rpm.anydesk.com/rhel/$releasever/$basearch/

On CentOS:

baseurl=http://rpm.anydesk.com/centos/$releasever/$basearch/

On Fedora:

baseurl=http://rpm.anydesk.com/fedora/$basearch/

On openSUSE:

baseurl=http://rpm.anydesk.com/opensuse/$basearch/

Once completed, save and close the file. After creating the archive files, you can install AnyDesk using the system's package manager.

To install AnyDesk on RHEL/CentOS/Fedora, use the dnf command:

sudo dnf install anydesk

On older distributions like CentOS 7, RHEL 7, and Fedora 21, you can use YUM to install AnyDesk:

sudo yum install anydesk

To install AnyDesk on openSUSE, you first need to add the repository to your system's software repositories:

zypper addrepo --repo AnyDesk.repo

You can then install AnyDesk on your system using Zypper:

sudo zypper install anydesk

How to use AnyDesk on Linux

Before continuing, ensure that AnyDesk is installed and running on both the local and remote systems. Launch AnyDesk from the applications menu to get started.

On the left side of the AnyDesk interface, you will see a 9-digit number in Your Address. This is the ID of the local system where you are sitting. You will need to share this ID with others if you want them to connect to your system. Similarly, if you need to connect to a remote system, you will need their ID.

To connect to another system, enter that system's ID in the Remote Desk field on your local AnyDesk window and click Connect.

If the ID provided is valid, you need to accept the connection request on the other machine. After accepting the request, the connection will be established.

You can also set up unattended access if no one at the remote system physically accepts the connection. On the system you want to access remotely, open AnyDesk and click Set Password. This will open the Settings window.

In the Security tab , check the Enable unattended access box . Then set a password for it. From now on, when you need to connect to this remote system, you will only have to use this password.

Micah Soto

Update 28 September 2023