What is pcopy?

pcopy is a self-hosted clipboard synchronization tool that enables copying and pasting text snippets or files across different machines. It runs as a server that listens on port 2586 (HTTPS) and optionally port 9999 (raw TCP for netcat uploads). Users interact via a CLI (pcp/ppaste), a web UI for drag-and-drop uploads, curl for scriptable access, or netcat for zero-dependency uploads. The server supports multiple named clipboards, each optionally password-protected with key derivation. Files can be shared via temporary links with configurable TTL/expiration, and a browser-only mode stores data entirely in the URL fragment without server storage. The server stores data on the local filesystem with configurable limits on total size, file count, per-file size, and expiration. It is written in Go, distributed as a single binary, and available as Docker image, Debian/Ubuntu packages, RPM, Homebrew, and via Go install.

Should you self-host pcopy?

pcopy scores 49/100 on selfhost.directory (how scoring works) and ranks #19 of 27 in File Sharing & Collaboration. It has 428 GitHub stars.

There was no stable release in the past 12 months, so check the repository's recent activity before you rely on it.

Setup is moderate: expect some configuration beyond a single command. An official Docker image is available. It is Apache-2.0-licensed and written mostly in Go.

Its closest alternative on selfhost.directory is Nextcloud (86/100, 37 325 stars). It scores higher overall, so compare the two before you pick. See pcopy vs Nextcloud side by side.

Features

Browser-only links
Certificate pinning
Clipboard usage limits
Cross-machine clipboard sync
curl-compatible API
File extraction
Folder/ZIP copy
Multiple clipboards
Netcat-compatible upload
Password-protected clipboards
Streaming transfer
Temporary share links with TTL
Web UI

How to configure pcopy

CertFileConfig path with .crt extensionPath to TLS certificate for HTTPS traffic
Path to TLS certificate for HTTPS traffic
values: /some/path/to/server.crt (PEM formatted)
ClipboardCountLimit0 (disabled)Maximum number of clipboard files
Maximum number of clipboard files
values: <number>
ClipboardDir/var/cache/pcopyPath to directory where clipboard data resides
Path to directory where clipboard data resides
values: /some/folder
ClipboardNamepcopyName of the clipboard as shown in the Web UI
Name of the clipboard as shown in the Web UI
values: <string>
ClipboardSizeLimit0 (disabled)Maximum total size of entire clipboard (sum of all files)
Maximum total size of entire clipboard (sum of all files)
values: <number>(GMKB)
DefaultIDdefaultDefault clipboard ID used when CLI is used without an ID
Default clipboard ID used when CLI is used without an ID
values: string consisting only of 0-9a-z.-_, but has to start with 0-9a-z
FileExpireAfter7dDuration after which clipboard contents are deleted (default, nontext-max, text-max)
Duration after which clipboard contents are deleted (default, nontext-max, text-max)
values: default [nontext-max [text-max]] (durations: s|m|h|d|w|mo|y)
FileModesAllowedrw roAllowed file modes for uploads (read-write, read-only)
Allowed file modes for uploads (read-write, read-only)
values: rw|ro [rw|ro]
FileSizeLimit0 (disabled)Maximum size per uploaded clipboard file
Maximum size per uploaded clipboard file
values: <number>(GMKB)
KeyDerived key for password-protected clipboard (SALT:KEY base64)
Derived key for password-protected clipboard (SALT:KEY base64)
values: SALT:KEY (both base64 encoded)
KeyFileConfig path with .key extensionPath to private key for TLS certificate
Path to private key for TLS certificate
values: /some/path/to/server.key (PEM formatted)
ListenAddr:2586/httpsAddress and port to bind the server (HTTPS, HTTP, raw TCP)
Address and port to bind the server (HTTPS, HTTP, raw TCP)
values: [ADDR]:PORT[/(https|http|tcp)]
ServerAddrURL or hostname/port of the pcopy server, advertised to clients
URL or hostname/port of the pcopy server, advertised to clients
values: [http(s)://]HOST[:PORT]