Neko — Self-Hosted Virtual Browser in Docker

What it is

Neko is a self-hosted application that runs a full desktop browser inside a Docker container and streams it to your web browser via WebRTC. Multiple users can connect to the same browser session simultaneously, seeing the same screen and taking turns with mouse and keyboard control.

Neko is useful for watch parties (streaming video together), collaborative browsing (reviewing websites as a team), secure isolated browsing (accessing untrusted sites in a sandbox), and remote desktop scenarios.

How it saves time or tokens

Neko eliminates the need for screen-sharing tools when collaborative browsing is needed. Instead of one person sharing their screen and narrating, everyone connects to the same browser instance. Any participant can take control, type URLs, and interact.

For security use cases, Neko provides browser isolation without installing anything locally. Access sensitive sites from a disposable container. When done, destroy the container and all session data disappears.

How to use

1. Run Neko with Firefox in Docker:

docker run -d --name neko \
  -p 8080:8080 \
  -p 52000-52100:52000-52100/udp \
  -e NEKO_SCREEN=1920x1080@30 \
  -e NEKO_PASSWORD=viewer \
  -e NEKO_PASSWORD_ADMIN=admin \
  ghcr.io/m1k1o/neko/firefox:latest

1. Open http://localhost:8080 in your browser.

1. Log in with the admin password to get control. Share the viewer password with others.

Example

Docker Compose configuration with Chromium and custom resolution:

version: '3'
services:
  neko:
    image: ghcr.io/m1k1o/neko/chromium:latest
    ports:
      - 8080:8080
      - 52000-52100:52000-52100/udp
    environment:
      NEKO_SCREEN: '1920x1080@30'
      NEKO_PASSWORD: 'viewer-pass'
      NEKO_PASSWORD_ADMIN: 'admin-pass'
      NEKO_ICELITE: 'true'
    cap_add:
      - SYS_ADMIN
    shm_size: '2gb'

The shm_size setting is important for Chromium to avoid crashes on memory-intensive pages.

Related on TokRepo

• Self-hosted tools -- Self-hosted applications for privacy and control
• AI tools for browser automation -- Browser tools and automation

Common pitfalls

• Not opening UDP ports 52000-52100. WebRTC uses UDP for video streaming. Without these ports open, connections fall back to TCP relay, which adds latency.
• Setting shm_size too low for Chromium. Chromium uses shared memory for rendering. Without at least 2GB, tabs crash on heavy pages. Firefox is less demanding.
• Exposing Neko to the public internet without authentication. The built-in password system is basic. Put Neko behind a reverse proxy with proper authentication (OAuth, Authelia) for production use.