Solo Tested

How I Set Up RustDesk to Save Hundreds Per Office Computer

2026-10-31

The short answer: rent or repurpose a small server, run the free RustDesk server on it, install the RustDesk client as a service on each office computer, and point every client at your server. You can then reach those computers from anywhere without paying a yearly remote access license.

We have four staff working from home, and each one needs to reach an office computer. I set this up on those four computers instead of paying for TeamViewer Remote Access. Each one would have needed its own license at about AU$400 a year, or about AU$1,600 a year in total. The saving is real, but you take on the job of running and securing the system yourself.

This guide covers the setup and the costs. It does not include performance measurements, so test the connection on your own network before you rely on it.

What it actually saves

Check how a paid tool counts licenses before you work out your saving. Many plans charge per user or connection, not per computer, and one license can cover many devices. If you need several people connected at once, you may need more than one license. TeamViewer's Business plan, for example, covers 200 devices but only one user. Your real saving depends on how your office works.

These are the list prices shown on each official pricing page on October 31, 2026, excluding tax. Your region and any discounts may differ.

Plan Listed price Cost per year Includes
AnyDesk Solo US$28.90 a month, billed yearly US$346.80 1 user, 1 connection, 100 unattended devices
AnyDesk Standard US$44.90 a month, billed yearly US$538.80 Up to 20 users, 1 connection, 500 unattended devices
TeamViewer Remote Access AU$31.90 a month, billed yearly AU$382.80 1 user, 1 connection, 3 unattended devices
TeamViewer Business AU$57.90 a month, billed yearly AU$694.80 1 user, 1 connection, 200 unattended devices
TeamViewer Premium AU$117.90 a month, billed yearly AU$1,414.80 15 users, 1 connection, 300 unattended devices
RustDesk open source server Free Your server costs only Self-hosted, community support

Four TeamViewer Remote Access licenses would come to AU$1,531.20 a year before tax, at that listed price.

If one license covers all your computers, divide its yearly cost by your computer count:

Computers AnyDesk Solo AnyDesk Standard TeamViewer Premium
3 US$115.60 US$179.60 AU$471.60
4 US$86.70 US$134.70 AU$353.70
5 US$69.36 US$107.76 AU$282.96
10 US$34.68 US$53.88 AU$141.48

These plans are not identical, so this compares license cost, not features. Each of these plans includes only one connection at a time. Subtract your server cost from any saving. AnyDesk was also showing a 20% first-year discount on the same day.

My own server runs on Tencent Cloud Lighthouse for US$6 a month, or US$72 a year, which is US$18 per computer. I chose Tencent Cloud because our staff are based in China. The server is in Hong Kong, and the office computers are in Shanghai. Even after that cost, I save well over AU$1,400 a year, or more than AU$350 per computer.

Who this suits

This fits a small office with someone comfortable using a command line, and a fixed set of computers that you own and manage.

Skip it if nobody can maintain a server, or if you need vendor phone support, a central admin console, or single sign-on. RustDesk's open source server gives you the ID and relay services and community support. Central management, access control, and two-factor login for a web console belong to the paid Server Pro product.

Before you start

Only install remote access software on computers your business owns, with approval from whoever is responsible for them. Tell staff that it is installed and when it may be used. Workplace monitoring rules vary by location, so check yours. If your server, computers, or staff are in different countries or regions, check the data and network rules that apply to each.

Download only from rustdesk.com. RustDesk warns about lookalike websites offering unsafe downloads.

RustDesk's public server now requires login because of scam and botnet abuse, which is another reason an office should run its own.

How the setup works

Two small services do the work:

Your remote session normally goes directly between the two computers. RustDesk says relay bandwidth for office work is around 100 KB/s, and a basic cloud server or even a Raspberry Pi is enough.

Step 1: Set up the server

Use a small Linux server with a fixed address. With Docker installed, RustDesk's documented commands are:

sudo docker image pull rustdesk/rustdesk-server
sudo docker run --name hbbs -v ./data:/root -td --net=host --restart unless-stopped rustdesk/rustdesk-server hbbs
sudo docker run --name hbbr -v ./data:/root -td --net=host --restart unless-stopped rustdesk/rustdesk-server hbbr

RustDesk also documents an install script and a Debian package if you prefer those.

Step 2: Open only the ports you need

Allow TCP 21115 to 21117 and UDP 21116 through the firewall. On a cloud server, that usually includes the firewall in your provider's control panel as well as any firewall on the server itself.

Leave the other ports closed unless you know you need them. Port 21114 is for the paid Pro server. RustDesk warns that the web client ports, 21118 and 21119, should only be reached through a reverse proxy.

Step 3: Copy your public key

The first time hbbs runs, it creates a key pair. Your public key is in the id_ed25519.pub file inside the data folder:

cat ./data/id_ed25519.pub

Back up that folder. Clients trust this key, so replacing it means updating every computer. Never share the private key file.

Step 4: Install the client as a service

On each office computer, use the installer rather than the portable version. RustDesk says the portable build stops at logout and cannot handle Windows admin prompts without elevation.

Check Settings > General to confirm the service is running. That lets the computer accept connections after a reboot, even at the login screen. On a Mac, you must also grant Screen Recording and Accessibility permissions.

Step 5: Point each client at your server

Go to Settings > Network, unlock the settings, and enter your server in ID Server and your public key in Key. You can usually leave the Relay and API fields blank. Do this on both the office computers and the device you connect from.

Once one client works, try Export Server Config there and Import Server Config on the others. RustDesk's page does not say whether this works with the open source server, so confirm it on yours.

Step 6: Lock it down

An always-on remote access tool is a serious target. Do all of this before you rely on it, following RustDesk's own advice:

Store these passwords in a password manager, not a shared document. With staff at home, also give each person a separate password for their own computer. Then you can cut off one person without changing everyone's access.

Limitations

You are now the support team. If your server goes down, remote access goes down with it, and there is no vendor to call.

You also carry the security risk. A leaked password or an unpatched server is your problem to catch. Some security tools may also flag remote access software, so check with whoever manages yours.

Finally, the open source server has no central console. Adding, changing, and auditing computers is largely manual, which gets harder as you grow. If you reach that point, RustDesk's self-hosted Pro plans were listed from US$11.88 a month, billed yearly, on October 31, 2026.

Alternatives

If your office computers run Windows Pro, you may already own a free option. Microsoft's Remote Desktop can connect to Windows 10 and 11 Pro or Enterprise, though not Home. Do not expose it directly to the internet. Put it behind a VPN.

If you have only a computer or two, a paid plan may be better value. Your time has a cost too, and vendor support can be worth paying for.

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