Swapping cables
Unplug the keyboard and mouse here, plug them in there.
One keyboard, mouse, headset and monitor for all the computers on your desk
Hotseat moves them between two or three computers with one key. Press F11 and watch.
Or press F11 Space →Tap the key
What moves
Switch one off and it stays on the host.
Works today on Windows 11 and Ubuntu 26.04. macOS is in beta.
What it replaces
A switch box
One more box on the desk, with cables of its own.
The monitor's buttons
Find the input menu and pick the right one, every time.
One key
Press F11: the keyboard, mouse, sound and monitor move together.
What it does
One key, or the edge of the screen
Press F11 to go to the next computer. If one of them has a screen of its own beside you, a laptop for example, push the pointer past the edge and the keyboard and mouse go with it.
The monitor follows
The shared monitor changes to that computer's input by itself, over DDC/CI. No reaching for its buttons.
Copied text comes along
Copy on one computer, paste on the next: the text goes with the keyboard. Files can be sent to another computer from the Hotseat window.
Sound follows, or goes alone
The headset stays plugged into one computer and plays the sound of the one you are on. You can also listen to another computer without moving the keyboard.
Safety
Computers are paired with a 6-digit code, and both show the same fingerprint for you to compare. The link is encrypted and stays on your local network. An emergency key combination brings the keyboard back at once, and it comes home by itself if the other computer falls asleep.
You choose what moves
Keyboard, mouse, sound and monitor can each be pinned to the host, the computer they are plugged into: a pinned device stays there when you switch. Pause a computer and F11 passes it by.
Each of them in detail: what you do, what happens, what it needs and its limits
The app itself
Real screens of Hotseat, with sample computers.
Numbers and facts
Measured on our own desk
under 0.2 sfor the keyboard and mouse to move
≈ 2.6 swith the monitor: as long as the monitor on our desk takes to change input
- No account
- No cloud
- Works on your local network
How it works
Install Hotseat on each computer
Like any other app. After that it updates itself.
Pair them with a 6-digit code
One computer shows the code and you type it on the other. Both have to be on the same local network.
Press F11
The keyboard and mouse move to the next computer; the sound and the monitor follow. Press again for the one after that.
Where it runs
Any two or three of them can share one desk.
Windows
Works todayTested on Windows 11
You downloadsetup.exe
Ubuntu
Works todayTested on Ubuntu 26.04
You download.deb
macOS
BetaFor Macs with Apple silicon. Still in beta: expect rough edges.
You download.dmg
Is it for your desk?
Four desks it was made for, each with what it replaces there and what it does not do.
A work laptop beside your own PC
One keyboard and one headset for both, across the edge of the screen.
A Mac and a Linux box
One monitor, one key, and the text you copied comes along.
One monitor, two towers
The picture changes with the keyboard. No box on the desk, no reaching for buttons.
Play on one, work on the other
The headset stays put and plays whichever computer you choose.
Questions
Does it need the internet or an account?
No. There is no account and no cloud: the computers are linked over your local network, and switching works without the internet. You need it to download Hotseat and its updates.
How does the monitor switch?
Each computer is plugged into its own input on the monitor. Hotseat tells the monitor to change input over DDC/CI, which most monitors support. The switch takes as long as the monitor itself needs: about 2.6 s on the monitor on our desk. The keyboard and mouse alone move in under 0.2 s.
Do I need a shared monitor?
No. Switching the monitor is optional: without it the keyboard, mouse and sound still move.
Is it safe?
Computers are paired with a 6-digit code that you type yourself, and both show a fingerprint that has to match. The link between them is encrypted. If anything goes wrong, an emergency key combination brings the keyboard back at once. Security and privacy in plain words
What if a computer is asleep or switched off?
Nothing moves to it: the keyboard and mouse stay where they are. If the computer you are working on falls asleep or drops off the network, they come back to your own computer.
Can I use it with just two computers?
Yes. With two computers F11 takes you to the other one and back.
Can I move by pushing the pointer past the edge of the screen?
Yes, to a computer that has a screen of its own beside you, such as a laptop. Show Hotseat where that screen stands, then push the pointer past the edge: the keyboard and mouse go with it. This does not work yet when the keyboard and mouse are plugged into a computer that runs Ubuntu.
Can I listen to another computer without moving the keyboard?
Yes. Click the headset in the Hotseat window and pick that computer: its sound plays in your headset while the keyboard and mouse stay where they are.
What does the licence cover?
All your own computers and all updates. You pay once.
Can I get a refund?
Refunds are made by the reseller named on your receipt, under its refund policy and the law of your country. If Hotseat does not work on your desk, write to us first. How refunds work
$9.99 once, for all your computers
A lifetime licence with all updates.
Lifetime licence
$9.99
Pay once.
- All your own computers
- All updates
Hotseat is not on sale yet. This button takes no payment and collects nothing.