Keystroke Wire is a small local-network tool that lets one computer tell another computer to press keys or type text. The usual setup is a Windows PC as the trigger—where you type commands in a terminal—and a Mac as the receiver, where those keys actually fire. On the Mac, injected keystrokes can open Raycast commands, hit system shortcuts, or type into whatever app is focused.
The project exists to solve a simple problem: you want a deliberate action on one machine (for example a hotkey that Raycast handles, or a short string typed into a field) without walking over to that machine or installing a heavy remote-desktop stack. It uses only Python’s standard library and a plain TCP message format, so there is nothing to install with pip.
What stands out is the split between hotkeys (shift+i) and typed text (txt cats), plus a receiver that can keep running in the background with nohup so the Mac does not depend on an open Terminal window.
Both machines need Python 3 and must share the same Wi‑Fi or wired LAN. On Windows, install Python from python.org and enable Add python.exe to PATH during setup. On a Mac, run python3 --version to confirm Python is available.
Place trigger.py on the machine that will send commands (typically Windows) and receiver.py on the machine that will receive them (typically a Mac).
The receiver injects real keyboard events. On the Mac, open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility and allow Terminal (or iTerm, or whichever app runs python3). Without that permission, network messages can arrive but no keys will press.
If the Mac firewall is enabled, it may block inbound connections on port 5055. Open System Settings → Network → Firewall → Options… and allow incoming connections for Python or Terminal. For a first test you can turn the firewall off briefly, confirm that Windows connects, then turn it back on and keep an allow rule.
In Terminal, change into the folder that contains receiver.py and run:
python3 receiver.pyThe script prints the listening port and the LAN IP address(es) Windows should use. Leave that process running, or use the background method in the Usage section.
In Command Prompt or PowerShell, change into the folder that contains trigger.py and pass the Mac IP printed by the receiver:
python trigger.py 192.168.1.42
If python is not found, try py trigger.py 192.168.1.42. Do not use 127.0.0.1 on Windows; that address is the Windows PC itself, not the Mac.
When the trigger starts, it prints a short format guide and then a > prompt.
Send a hotkey by typing modifiers and a key joined with + and no spaces:
> shift+i
> ctrl+option+cmd+k
> f9
The Mac presses that combination once. Bind the same shortcut in Raycast (or another app) if you want that press to run a command.
Type text by prefixing the string with txt and a space:
> txt cats
> txt Hello world
The Mac types each character with a short pause between letters. Focus the target text field on the Mac before you send so the characters land in the right place.
Quit the trigger with:
> quit
| You type | Meaning on the Mac |
|---|---|
cmd or command |
Command (⌘) |
ctrl or control |
Control (⌃) |
option or alt |
Option (⌥) |
shift |
Shift (⇧) |
a … z |
Letter keys |
f1 … f12 |
Function keys |
space, tab, enter, esc |
Special keys |
A normal python3 receiver.py session stops when you close Terminal. To keep listening in the background, start the receiver with nohup from the folder that contains receiver.py:
nohup python3 receiver.py > receiver.log 2>&1 &nohup ignores the hangup signal sent when the terminal closes. Output is written to receiver.log so you can still inspect connections. The trailing & returns you to the shell immediately.
Useful follow-ups:
pgrep -fl receiver.py # confirm it is running
tail -f receiver.log # watch the log live
pkill -f receiver.py # stop the receiver laterAfter this, you can quit Terminal entirely. Accessibility permission still applies to the environment that runs Python; if keystrokes stop working after you change how you launch the script, re-check Privacy & Security → Accessibility.
If Windows reports that the socket is not connected, the connection was refused, or the attempt timed out, the Mac is not accepting the TCP connection. Confirm that the receiver is still running, that you used the IP printed by receiver.py, that both machines are on the same network, and that the Mac firewall allows port 5055.
If the connection succeeds but nothing useful happens on the Mac, verify Accessibility permission first. For hotkeys, match the Raycast (or app) shortcut to what you send. For txt …, focus a text field on the Mac before sending. The Mac log—either the Terminal window or receiver.log—should show each successful trigger.
- Hotkey relay — send combinations such as
shift+iorctrl+option+cmd+kfor Raycast or system shortcuts - Text typing —
txt your messagetypes characters one by one on the receiver - Interactive trigger — format help at startup, then a simple
>prompt loop - Stdlib only — no pip dependencies; Python 3 on each machine is enough
- Background receiver — optional
nohupworkflow so the Mac keeps listening after Terminal closes - Clear network protocol — lines like
KEY:shift+iandTXT:catsover TCP, withOK/NOreplies
The default pair is Windows as trigger and Mac as receiver because the Mac script uses osascript and System Events. You can still adapt the same idea elsewhere.
Running the trigger on a Mac works without code changes: python3 trigger.py <other-ip>. The protocol does not care which OS sends the message.
Using Windows as the receiver requires replacing the Mac-specific key injection in receiver.py with Windows APIs (for example ctypes and keybd_event / SendInput, or a library such as pynput). The network format (KEY:… and TXT:…) can stay the same, so Windows-to-Windows or Mac-to-Windows setups are possible once that side exists.
To use another port:
# Mac
python3 receiver.py --port 5056
# Windows
python trigger.py 192.168.1.42 5056With nohup on a custom port:
nohup python3 receiver.py --port 5056 > receiver.log 2>&1 &Use this tool only on a trusted private network. There is no password and no encryption; do not expose port 5055 to the public internet.
Code written by me, REEDME generated using grok.