Unattended access
Reach a computer when nobody is there to read out the password.
Unattended access needs two things: a way in that does not change (a permanent password, or access granted on your server), and Humble running in the background so it survives a restart.
1. Choose how you will get in
A permanent password
In Settings → Unattended access, enter a password of at least 8 characters twice and press Set password. From then on this password works in addition to the one-time password. With the background service installed, this sets the service's password (see Configure the service). From a terminal:
humble set-password "a long passphrase"
humble set-password # removes it againHumble stores a derived key, not the password itself.
Access through your server
If the computer is enrolled in your server and you have been granted access to its group, you need no password at all. See Access.
2. Run Humble in the background
Most people do not need this: it is only for a computer that must be reachable when nobody is at it. So it is chosen when installing Humble, not in the app:
- Windows: in the installer, turn on Allow unattended access. To add or remove it later, open Windows Settings, Apps, Humble Viewer, Modify.
- Ubuntu, Arch, Omarchy: the packages include the services but leave them off. Turn them on with
systemctl --user enable --now humble-host.service humble-tray.service(and off withdisable --now). - macOS, the portable Windows app, or a build from source: from a terminal (on Windows, as administrator):
humble install # set up the background service
humble uninstall # remove itSettings → Unattended access in the app shows whether the background service is installed and running.
Configure the service
The background service keeps its own settings (on Windows in C:\ProgramData\Humble, which only the system may
change). You change them in the Humble app, the same way as without the service: open it from the tray icon (Settings in
its menu goes straight there) or the Start menu. While the service runs:
- The main page shows the service's ID and one-time password, Background service: running, and whether a personal password is set.
- In Settings, the device name, the personal password, direct connections and their port, local announcement, the server (Get ID, Enroll, Leave server) and Encode video on the graphics card are the service's. Changing them changes the service at once.
- Computers → Add this computer adds the service's identity to your account, so the computer stays reachable through your server while nobody is signed in.
humble set-passwordsets the service's password too.
Only the person signed in at the computer can do this: the service accepts these changes only from programs in the same Windows session (on Linux, of the same user).
| System | What is installed | When it is reachable |
|---|---|---|
| Windows | A Windows service named HumbleHost, and the Humble tray icon at every sign-in. humble install asks for Administrator rights and copies the app to C:\Program Files\Humble. The MSI does this for you. | After the computer starts, once a user is logged in. |
| Ubuntu, Arch, Omarchy | Two user services: humble-host.service, and humble-tray.service for the tray icon. With the Arch package or the .deb, turn them on with systemctl --user enable --now humble-host.service humble-tray.service. | While that user is logged in to the desktop. |
| macOS | A launch agent, com.humble.host. | While that user is logged in. |
On Linux and macOS the computer can only be reached while a user is logged in to the desktop. For a machine that must come back by itself after a power cut, turn on automatic login in the operating system. The login screen itself cannot be controlled yet.
The tray icon
While Humble runs, its icon is in the system tray: the notification area on Windows (it may be behind the ^ arrow), the tray of the top bar on Omarchy (behind the < arrow) and KDE, and the top bar on Ubuntu. Click it to open the Humble window, or use its menu to quit. With the background service installed, the icon is started at every sign-in, so you can see that the computer is reachable; the installer also starts it right away. Its menu has Open Humble Viewer, Settings and Quit. Quitting from the tray only closes the app: the background service keeps running.
By default, closing the Humble window keeps Humble running in the tray (on Windows, minimizing does too), so the computer stays reachable. Turn this off in Settings → System tray to make closing the window quit Humble.
- Starting Humble again while it runs in the tray opens its window instead of a second copy.
- GNOME without Ubuntu's changes shows no tray: install the AppIndicator and KStatusNotifierItem Support extension. Without a tray, closing the window quits Humble.
- macOS has no tray icon yet.
Check that it is running
humble statusThis prints the device name, ID, current one-time password, whether the server connection is up, and any active sessions. When the background service is running, the Humble window shows the service's ID and password instead of starting a second host.
Windows details
- The service runs from its own copy of Humble,
C:\ProgramData\Humble\service\humble.exe, with its own Windows Firewall rule (Humble Viewer (background service)), so installing a newer Humble never has to wait for a restart. Removing the service removes both. - The service keeps its settings and keys in
C:\ProgramData\Humble, readable only by the system and administrators. Logs are inservice.logandhost.login that folder. - To set the permanent password for the service, run this from an Administrator terminal:
humble --config-dir C:\ProgramData\Humble set-password "a long passphrase" - The Windows sign-in screen, the lock screen and administrator (UAC) prompts are not shown in a session yet.