How Players Connect

Diegetic Simulators Desktop runs a local server on your PC. Players join in a browser — no install needed. You choose the terminal by opening it in the app; players always join whatever session you have live.

Before you share a link

  1. 1.Start Diegetic Simulators Desktop and sign in.
  2. 2. On the dashboard Operators tab, add your players’ names, then use Assign operators on each terminal (or Assign terminals from the Operators tab) so they appear on the join dropdown.
  3. 3.Open the terminal you want players to see. Only one terminal session is live at a time — switch terminals by opening a different one; assigned players follow automatically.
  4. 4. Pick a connection method below and share that join link. Players can open it before you're ready; they'll see a “waiting for GM” screen until your terminal is open.

Connection methods

Choose one based on where your players are. Everyone uses the same link you share.

Method 1

Same room / same Wi-Fi

Simplest — players at your table

  1. 1.

    Find your local IP.

    • Press Win + R →
    • type cmd →
    • run ipconfig →
    • look forIPv4 Address(e.g. 192.168.1.42 ).
  2. 2.

    Share this link with players:

    http://192.168.1.42:5188/join

    (replace with your IP).

  3. 3. Players open the link in any browser. The page checks automatically until your session is ready, then drops them into the terminal. They can press buttons and interact like cloud operators — no account required.

Everyone must be on the same Wi-Fi or wired network.

Method 2

Remote players (internet)

Players anywhere — use ngrok (recommended)

ngrok creates a secure public URL that tunnels to your local server. Free tier is sufficient.
  1. 1. Download ngrok and create a free account.
  2. 2.

    Start Diegetic Simulators Desktop and open your terminal. On the same PC , open a separate PowerShell or Command Prompt window (not inside the app) and run:

    ngrok http 5188

    First time only: after installing ngrok, run ngrok config add-authtoken YOUR_TOKEN from your ngrok dashboard. Leave this window open while you host — closing it ends the public URL.

  3. 3.

    Share https://YOUR-ID.ngrok-free.app/join with players

    (add /join to the ngrok URL).

Alternatively, forward port 5188 on your router and share http://YOUR-PUBLIC-IP:5188/join — router setup varies by ISP.

Reference

What players see if something isn't ready

Host app not running
“Can't reach the host” — the page retries automatically. Start the desktop app.
No operators set up yet
“Waiting for the GM to set up operators” — no operators are assigned to any terminal. Add names on the dashboard Operators tab and assign them to at least one terminal.
Operators ready, host on dashboard
“Waiting for the GM to open a terminal” — assignments exist, but the host has not opened a terminal session yet (or returned to the dashboard).
Host opened a terminal with no operators
“This terminal has no operators assigned” — the GM opened a terminal that has an empty operator list. They should use Assign operators or open a different terminal. If the GM goes back to the dashboard, players revert to “Waiting for the GM to open a terminal.”
Ready to join
Character dropdown appears — the player picks their name and joins. The GM grants access from Manage Access.
All characters in use
Every assigned operator for that terminal is already connected. Wait for a disconnect or ask the GM.
Join code (optional, advanced)
If you set a join code on the host server, players enter it on the join page. Most home games won't need this.

VPS, VPN, and cloud hosting

Hosting on a VPS (cloud server)

Desktop Edition is built to host from your Windows PC . You can run it on a Windows VPS via remote desktop, but it behaves differently from a home machine:

  • Method 1 (Wi-Fi) won't work for players at your table — use Method 2 with the VPS public address or ngrok instead.
  • Open port 5188 in the VPS provider's firewall or security group, not just Windows Firewall.
  • Some providers block inbound ports — ngrok on the VPS is a fallback.
  • Linux VPS cannot run the Windows desktop host app.
GM or players on a VPN
VPNs often break Method 1 local links. Disconnect VPN for same-room play, or use Method 2 (ngrok / public URL) for everyone.

Troubleshooting

Players can't connect on the same network
Make sure Diegetic Simulators Desktop is running and Windows Firewall allows connections on port 5188.
Players see the wrong terminal
Only the terminal you currently have open is live. Open the correct one on your machine; players can refresh or revisit the join link.
ngrok says "connection refused"
Start Diegetic Simulators Desktop before running ngrok.