Free and open source

Remote control for six AI coding agents, from Claude Code to Devin CLI

Your AI coding agent can run any command it wants, right now.

One click through a permission dialog you stopped reading, and it just did something you did not mean to allow. ÆthelHook gives you remote control over six different coding agents, routing every risky action to your phone first. You decide, not a popup you clicked past.

Download ÆthelHook

Windows PC and Android phone required. No account, no subscription.

Works with Claude Code (CLI and VS Code extension), Codex (CLI and IDE), OpenCode, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot CLI, and Devin's standalone terminal CLI. Not the regular Claude app or claude.ai.

AI coding agents can execute shell commands, overwrite files, and install packages on their own. Most IDEs show a quick allow or deny popup on the same screen you are already working in, which is easy to click through on autopilot. ÆthelHook forces that decision onto a second device, so approving something dangerous takes a deliberate action, not a reflex.

But ÆthelHook is not only about safety. It is about freedom to step away from your desk without stepping away from your work.

Walk away and stay in control

Kick off a task, then actually leave. Step out of the office, run to the store, grab coffee. As long as your phone has a signal, over Tailscale or plain mobile data, you are still in the loop. Need to approve a command? You get a notification. Curious if the agent finished? You get a notification for that too.

Talk to your agent from your pocket

Session Access lets you send a brand new prompt straight from your phone, not just answer approval requests. Forgot to ask it to also update the docs? Tell it from the checkout line. Need a quick fix while you are out? Prompt it right there and let your PC pick it up and get to work.

Built for multitaskers

Deep in three other windows and do not want to alt-tab back to your IDE just to click Allow? Let the notification on your phone handle it instead. Less context switching, less friction, more time spent actually working.

What it does

Remote control and approval for six coding agents, one gateway, and a phone in your pocket.

Works with six coding agents

Claude Code (CLI and VS Code extension), Codex (CLI and IDE), OpenCode, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot CLI, and Devin's standalone terminal CLI (not the Devin IDE, which has no hook mechanism at all). Not the regular Claude app or claude.ai, those are a different product. Most of these need a one-time extra setup step, see the setup guide below for exact instructions per agent.

Real time, end to end encrypted

Approvals travel over a TLS connection with certificate pinning. No cloud relay and no third party push service sits in the middle.

Five ways to answer

Allow once, always allow for this project, always allow everywhere, deny, or deny with a reason fed back to the agent.

Plans and questions too

Claude Code's plan review and clarifying questions are answered from your phone, not just tool calls.

Session Access

Remote control your agent: send a prompt from your phone, by typing or by voice, and kick off a headless run on your PC. Each project keeps its own resumable conversation, with a live context-usage gauge per agent. Works for every agent except GitHub Copilot CLI, which is approval-gate only.

Secure by default

Pairing a new device needs Windows Hello on the PC, not just a QR scan. Every device gets its own token, only one is ever active, and nothing is stored in plain text.

Hidden until you unlock them

Your LAN IP, Tailscale IP, and API token are masked in the app by default. Reveal them with your fingerprint, face, PIN, or password.

Stay connected on the go

Works over the same Wi-Fi, or over Tailscale when your phone is on mobile data and your PC is somewhere else entirely. Leaving your desk does not mean losing control of your agent.

Reconnects on its own

The background service starts automatically when your PC boots, and keeps running through sleep and wake. Your phone finds it again on its own, over the same Wi-Fi or over Tailscale, no need to reopen anything.

Fewer trips back to your IDE

Approve, deny, or answer a question straight from a phone notification. No alt-tabbing away from whatever else you are working on just to click a button.

See it in action

A quick look at the phone app and the tray app.

Phone dashboard

AethelHook Android app dashboard showing gateway status and toggles for Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode, Gemini, Copilot, and Devin CLI, plus approval counts

The Dashboard tab: gateway status, a toggle per agent, and a running approval count.

Windows tray app

Pairing a new device, gated behind Windows Hello, and the live approval feed.

Phone in action

Answering a real approval request, straight from the phone.

Setup

Seven steps, most of them one click.

1
Download the installer and the app
Grab the Windows installer and get the Android app from Google Play, both in the download section below.
2
Install Tailscale on both devices (optional, recommended)
If you want approvals to keep working when your phone is on mobile data, not just the same Wi-Fi as your PC, install Tailscale on both. It is free for personal use. See the Connect section below for the full setup steps. Skip this if you only ever need approvals while your phone and PC share a network.
3
Run the installer on your PC
Run AethelHook-Setup.exe as Administrator. It installs a background service and the tray app, then opens the tray app automatically.
4
Find the AethelHook tray app
Look for the ÆthelHook icon in your Windows system tray, the row of small icons near the clock in the bottom right of your screen. If you do not see it right away, click the small up arrow (^) to show hidden icons. Left click the icon to open the app.
5
Install the app on your phone
Install ÆthelHook from Google Play like any other app.
6
Pair your phone with your PC
In the tray app window, click Pair New Device. Windows Hello asks you to confirm with your PIN, fingerprint, or face, then shows a QR code. Open the app on your phone, go to Settings, and tap Scan QR to Pair, then scan the code from the tray window.
7
You are done
From now on, tool calls, plan reviews, and clarifying questions from whichever of the six supported agents you use are routed to your phone for a decision.

Most agents need one extra one-time step beyond what is listed above: Claude Code needs nothing extra, but Codex needs its hooks trusted, OpenCode and Gemini CLI need Node.js, and Devin CLI needs a one-time interactive login in its standalone terminal CLI. See the full setup guide for exact instructions for each.

Windows Hello guards every new pairing

Only one phone can hold the live connection at a time, and adding a new one takes more than just scanning a QR code.

Windows Security dialog reading 'Making sure it's you, authorize a new device to connect to AethelHook' with a PIN entry field

Clicking Pair New Device in the tray app now opens this Windows Hello prompt before the QR code ever appears. Confirm with your PIN, fingerprint, or face, the same check Windows already uses to unlock your PC.

Only one phone is ever active. Pairing a new device makes it the sole connection, whichever phone was previously connected gets a plain notification that its connection ended, and needs to go through Pair New Device again, with Windows Hello, to reconnect. If Windows Hello is not set up on your PC at all, pairing still works, just without this extra confirmation step.

Staying connected

Three ways your phone and PC can reach each other.

Both sides need to be reachable. Your PC has to be powered on, awake, and running the AethelHook service, if it is shut down, asleep, or the service is not running, there is nothing for your phone to connect to. You will also need an internet connection to use AethelHook and to reach Claude Code or Codex: your phone can be on mobile data, or on a Wi-Fi network with internet access.

Same Wi-Fi

Phone and PC on the same Wi-Fi network. No Tailscale needed, this works automatically once you have paired.

Phone on mobile data, PC on Wi-Fi

You are out and about with your phone on mobile data, while your PC stays on its normal Wi-Fi or ethernet. Install and run Tailscale on both devices.

Phone on mobile data, PC on your phone's hotspot

Your PC is tethered to your phone's own mobile hotspot. Install and run Tailscale on both devices here too, for a reliable connection.

Setting up Tailscale

1
Install Tailscale on both devices
Download it from the Tailscale card below for your PC, and from your phone's app store for Android.
2
Sign in with the same account on both
Tailscale needs both devices signed into the same account so they can see each other.
3
Turn off Use Tailscale DNS on your phone
In the Tailscale app on your phone, open its settings and disable Use Tailscale DNS.
4
Find your PC's Tailscale IP
Open the Tailscale app on your PC. It shows this PC's own Tailscale IP address, something like 100.x.x.x. Copy it.
5
Enter it in the ÆthelHook app
On your phone, open ÆthelHook, go to Settings, and paste the IP into the Tailscale IP field. Tap Save Settings.

Troubleshooting

Four PowerShell commands to check and control the AethelHook service. Also available with one-click copy from the Tray app's "PowerShell Commands" button.

Check if it is running

Get-Service AethelHook

Use this to see if the service is Running or Stopped.

Start it

Start-Service AethelHook

Use this if the service did not start on its own.

Stop it

Stop-Service AethelHook

Use this to turn the gateway off.

Restart it

Restart-Service AethelHook

Use this if the service is running but not responding.

What people are saying

Real feedback from people trying AethelHook out.

“That QR code pairing with Windows Hello is a nice touch, actually makes the remote access feel secure instead of just open to anyone on the network.”

YouTube comment

“The Windows Hello and WinRT part sounds like it was almost harder than the original idea. Those are the kinds of implementation details people never see, but usually end up taking 80% of the development time. Respect for sticking with it.”

Reddit comment

Download

Both installs are free, and the full source is public on GitHub.

Windows

Installs the background service and the tray app.

Download for Windows

You will likely see a security warning. This installer is not code signed yet, since the usual free signing programs require a longer release history than this project has so far. Depending on your PC, that shows up one of two ways: a SmartScreen screen saying "Windows protected your PC", where you click More info then Run anyway, or a plain User Account Control prompt saying the app is from an Unknown Publisher, where you just click Yes to continue. Either way is expected. The full source is public, so you can check exactly what it does first.

Android

Now available on Google Play.

Get it on Google Play

Install it like any other app, then open it and scan the pairing QR code shown on your PC. Prefer a sideloaded APK instead? The signed build is still posted on the GitHub releases page.

Tailscale

Optional, keeps approvals working over mobile data.

Download Tailscale

Tailscale connects your phone and PC directly, even when they are not on the same Wi-Fi network. Install it on both devices if you want approvals to keep working while you are out with your phone on mobile data. Not required if your phone and PC always share the same network. Full setup steps are in the Connect section above.