NYnyreed·Apr 28, 2026
For true crossplatform p2p the closest I have found is FlyingCarpet [1].
But it is not super reliable or friendly.
[1] https://github.com/spieglt/FlyingCarpet
In Localsend: An open-source cross-platform alternative to AirDropspieglt
FlyingCarpet
Rust2017–2026
spieglt / FlyingCarpet
FlyingCarpet
Cross-platform AirDrop. File transfer between Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, and Windows over ad hoc WiFi. No network infrastructure required, just two devices with WiFi chips (and optionally Bluetooth) in close range.
6Distinct people
19Mentions
1Explicit recommenders
5.4KGitHub stars
What to know before exploring
What it is
Cross-platform AirDrop. File transfer between Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, and Windows over ad hoc WiFi. No network infrastructure required, just two devices with WiFi chips (and optionally Bluetooth) in close range.
GitHub
Where it is used
No documented product use has been verified yet.
What people are saying
It's wonderful just like SnapDrop and I recently found another one: https://github.com/spieglt/FlyingCarpet I love the "Air Drop" feature from apple and I'm very happy we can…
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This week on Hacker News
Nov 7–Nov 14 UTC · Direct repository links and separately labeled related project stories. Indexed through 11/14/2026, 3:56:07 PM UTC.
No direct repository links were found in the indexed HN discussions over the past seven days. Older discussions are available below.
Mentions over time
HN mentions by year19 dated mentions
Observed mentions: 2017-08-10 03:32:48 UTC to 2026-04-28 13:10:47 UTC.
* An incomplete calendar period is marked with an outlined bar. Its count is not directly comparable with a full period.
Counts come from the repository’s dated source evidence. Index cutoff: 2026-11-02 08:16:59 UTC.
View mention counts and date ranges
| Period | Start (UTC) | End (exclusive, UTC) | Mentions | Submissions | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 2017-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2018-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 2018 | 2018-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2019-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 3 | 1 | 2 |
| 2019 | 2019-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2020-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 3 | 1 | 2 |
| 2020 | 2020-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2021-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| 2021 | 2021-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2022-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | 2022-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2023-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 2023 | 2023-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2024-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2024 | 2024-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2025-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 3 | 1 | 2 |
| 2025 | 2025-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2026-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2026 (partial) | 2026-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2027-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 1 | 0 | 1 |
What Hacker News says
19 sourcesI have a project that's more like AirDrop, doesn't require a local network and configures the hotspot automatically: https://github.com/spieglt/flyingcarpet
In Show HN: I made an app people call "Airdrop for Android"FlyingCarpet: File transfers over ad-hoc WiFi
2 points · Open discussionMine does! https://github.com/spieglt/flyingcarpet
In Free and Open Source Alternative to AirdropRelated projects:
- FlyingCarpet: direct transfer over local adhoc WIFI: https://github.com/spieglt/FlyingCarpet
- LANDrop: Drop any files to any devices on your LAN: https://github.com/LANDrop/LANDrop
- Snapdrop: In-browser file transfer similar to Airdrop: https://snapdrop.net/
- Magic Wormhole: simple file transfer from computer-to-computer over the net: https://github.com/magic-wormhole/magic-wormhole
- Croc: similar to magic wormhole: https://github.com/schollz/croc
- Wormhole: user-friendly in-browser based e2e encrypted file transfer: https://wormhole.app/
In Localsend: Open-Source Airdrop AlternativeI don't really know how many users I have, so I don't know how "meaningful" my projects are, but I have found some of them posted on French, Chinese, Greek, Russian blogs etc., so hopefully they fill some people's needs besides my own.
https://github.com/spieglt/flyingcarpet
https://cloaker.mobi
https://github.com/spieglt/cloaker
https://github.com/spieglt/whatfiles
https://github.com/spieglt/winage
I learned to program because I was frustrated that after working in IT consulting for several years, I still had no idea how computers worked. I started with "Learn Python the Hard Way" and "Automate the Boring Stuff with Python". Then got a job doing some Windows consulting stuff, and they said they'd hire me as a software engineer if I learned Go, which was a pretty easy step from Python. I'd tried to learn programming as a kid several times
Read the rest
and always found it too frustrating. I started working on side projects as a way to learn new languages, improve my resume, and scratch my own itches. The hardest part was coming up with ideas for useful/worthwhile projects. I was super frustrated one day that the easiest way to get a file between two machines that were right beside each other was sending them out to the internet via Google Drive or Dropbox, which made me want to write "cross-platform AirDrop", which became Flying Carpet. If you find yourself wanting a simple piece of software that seems like it should already exist, that's a great project idea.
Show HN: Flying Carpet iOS, file transfer to Windows and Linux, no internet reqd
If you've ever wanted to transfer files directly between iOS and Windows/Linux without using the internet or setting up a SMB share on a WiFi network, try it out! Desktop versions at https://github.com/spieglt/flyingcarpet.
2 points · Open discussionIf you're physically close but not on the same network, please check out https://github.com/spieglt/FlyingCarpet.
In Croc: Easily and securely send things from one computer to anotherHere's an alternative to AirDrop! https://github.com/spieglt/FlyingCarpet Linux, Mac, and Windows, requires no network, just two laptops with wireless cards.
In Croc: Easily and securely send things from one computer to anotherI wrote github.com/spieglt/flyingcarpet because I needed AirDrop on my Linux and Windows machines, pretty much does the same thing as running a Python server but over ad hoc wifi.
In Ask HN: What is your favorite method of sending large files?I work on open source projects* when I have a need that other tools don't quite fill properly, and because I like to work with languages like Rust and C that I don't get to use at my day job. I'd like to have a "buy me a cup of coffee" button on my Github because I have put thousands of hours into my side projects, but have no idea how to monetize really. And I wouldn't want to use the monthly supporter model because often when I finish a project I want to take months off, and may not have another idea for a while.
*like https://github.com/spieglt/flyingcarpet
https://github.com/spieglt/whatfiles
https://github.com/spieglt/cloaker
In How to pay your rent with your open source projectIt's wonderful just like SnapDrop and I recently found another one: https://github.com/spieglt/FlyingCarpet
I love the "Air Drop" feature from apple and I'm very happy we can do this on linux now without the need to explain someone how to open a socket in the terminal ;-P
In ShareDrop – P2P File Transfer Using WebRTCCheck out https://github.com/claudiodangelis/qr-filetransfer for computers and phones on the same LAN.
Works great, and I'm planning on integrating that functionality into my project which transfers files between laptops using only wireless cards, no LAN required. https://github.com/spieglt/flyingcarpet
In Firefox Send: Free encrypted file transfer serviceShow HN: Flying Carpet 2.0 – Ad-hoc wifi, cross-platform encrypted file transfer
1 points · Open discussionGreat project! I'm working on one that's somewhat related, it's basically cross-platform AirDrop (though only for laptops). Seems like mine could really benefit from a method of getting files to phones like this, and yours could benefit from not needing a wireless network like Flying Carpet. http://github.com/spieglt/flyingcarpet
In Show HN: Transfer files to mobile device by scanning a QR code from the terminalShowing the 15 most recent of 19 sources. Enable JavaScript to search and browse every indexed mention.