Glitter — Simple File Transfer CLI

English | 中文

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Glitter is a cross‑platform, terminal‑based tool for sending files over a local network. It discovers peers automatically, confirms transfers on the receiver, and supports English/Chinese UIs.

• OS support(x86/ARM): Linux, macOS, Windows
• Bilingual UI: English, 中文 (switchable in settings)
• Peer discovery via UDP broadcast + smart replies (or manual IP entry)
• Encrypted transfer (DH key exchange + ChaCha20 stream cipher)
• Device fingerprint verification (TOFU) to flag impersonation attempts
• Integrity check (SHA-256) after receive
• Directory transfer: send entire folders (auto-zipped, zero compression)
• Transfer progress and live throughput (e.g. 1.2 MB/s)
• Transfer history (JSONL) stored under user home
• Settings for language & device name & encryption, clear history

Why Glitter?

Glitter provides a simple, terminal-based alternative to GUI tools and complex protocols:

Tool	Pros	Cons	Glitter Advantage
LocalSend	Beautiful GUI, cross-platform	Requires GUI environment, ~100MB+ install	CLI-first: works via SSH, lightweight (<1MB), scriptable
Magic Wormhole	Simple one-time codes	Requires relay server, single-file only	LAN-direct: no internet needed, auto-discovery, no codes to type
SFTP/SCP	Universal, encrypted	Needs SSH server setup, manual IP entry	Zero-config: auto-discovers peers, no server setup
rsync	Powerful sync engine	Complex syntax, requires remote shell access	Interactive: menu-driven, progress bars, history tracking
HTTP file server	Simple python -m http.server	No encryption, manual URL sharing	Secure: DH key exchange + encryption, peer selection UI
croc	End-to-end encryption, relay servers, cross-platform	Requires typing codes, internet relay by default	LAN-native: auto-discovery on local network, no codes needed, works offline

Use Glitter when you want:

• Quick file sharing on LAN without leaving the terminal
• Auto-discovery instead of typing IPs
• Encrypted transfers without complex SSH setup
• Minimal dependencies (pure Python, no external binaries)
• Transfer history and bilingual UI

Quick Start

On first run, Glitter asks for language and device name and saves them. Next runs go straight to the main menu.

• Compilation: binary
• Firewall: Allow UDP 45845 and TCP 45846 (transfer port) for the app if discovery/transfer is blocked.

Run Glitter instantly with uv

  curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh
  uv run glitter

Installation

Recommended to install and run via pipx:

• apt install pipx # Debian/Ubuntu
• pipx install glitter-cli
• glitter
  • pipx upgrade glitter-cli # to update

Alternative: install via pip (not recommended)

• pip install glitter-cli
• glitter
  • pip install --upgrade glitter-cli # to update

From source

Requirements: install deps

• Linux/macOS/WSL/Windows (PowerShell/CMD) Run:
  • git clone https://github.com/scarletkc/glitter.git
  • pip install -r requirements.txt
  • python3 -m glitter
    • git pull # to update

Usage

• glitter — Launch the interactive menu (list peers, send/receive requests, view history, configure download/encryption/auto-accept modes, etc.).
• glitter send [-q|--quiet] <peer|IP[:port]> <path> — Send a file or directory directly without the menu (peer ID, device name, or manual IP).
• glitter peers — List peers currently discovered on the LAN.
• glitter history [--clear | --export [PATH]] [-q|--quiet] — Print recent transfer history records, clear them instantly, or export them as glitter-history-<count>.txt.
• glitter settings [--language CODE] [--device-name NAME] [--clear-trust] [-q|--quiet] — Jump straight into the settings menu or apply specific changes (language, device name, trust reset) in one go.
• glitter update — Check the latest available Glitter version.
• glitter receive [--mode trusted|all] [--dir PATH] [--port PORT] [--no-encryption] [-q|--quiet] — Run in auto-receive mode (trusted/all) without opening the menu.

Tip: once the initial setup is complete, you can keep Glitter running headlessly with your favourite process manager (systemd, pm2, ...).

Files & Persistence

• Config: ~/.glitter/config.json (language, device name, transfer port, encryption, default receive directory, auto-accept mode)
• Trusted fingerprints: ~/.glitter/known_peers.json (peer IDs and fingerprints stored after first approval)
• History: ~/.glitter/history.jsonl (one JSON per line)
• Default receive folder: configurable; defaults to ~/Downloads/GlitterDownloads on Windows, ~/GlitterDownloads elsewhere

Debugging

• Enable verbose IDs in lists by setting env var GLITTER_DEBUG=1 before launch.

License

MIT