Linked machines

Each assist install is a node, with its own daemon, web server, sessions and repos. When one node links to another, its dashboard shows the other node’s sessions alongside its own, and you can start, watch and drive sessions on either machine from one browser tab. To link nodes, ask an agent to link them.

A link works in one direction. To see both machines from either machine’s dashboard, link each one to the other.

Naming a node

A node’s name labels its sessions on every machine that links to it. It defaults to the machine’s hostname, with -wsl added under WSL. To change it:

assist config set sessions.nodeName laptop

A link must use the peer’s node name, so if you rename a node, re-link it on every machine that links to it.

Picking a machine

Once a link exists, the toolbar shows a Machine picker. The machine you pick is the one the toolbar’s PR and run menus, the history list, and views like Backlog and Config work against. Each entry shows the link’s state, the peer’s version and a behind chip when that machine runs an older assist.

The Machine picker listing this machine and a linked one, with a session from the linked machine in the sidebar

The New session dialog has its own Machine choice for where the session runs. Cards for sessions on a linked machine carry a laptop badge.

Restarting and updating a linked machine

With a linked machine picked, the dashboard menu’s Restart and Update assist items act on that machine, and its row on the Updates panel has the same actions.

Linking over Tailscale

To link machines over Tailscale, turn on MagicDNS and HTTPS certificates in your tailnet’s admin console. Each web server then makes its port available on the tailnet when it starts. To keep a machine off the tailnet:

assist config set sessions.tailscaleServe false

Mismatched versions

When two linked machines’ assist versions are too far apart to talk to each other, the link stays blocked until you update the older one. To connect anyway, set warn. To skip the check entirely, set off:

assist config set sessions.linkVersionCheck warn