FAQ

General

Is MoltShell free?

Yes. MoltShell is free during the early access period. Each user gets one VM at no cost.

What is MoltShell, exactly?

MoltShell is a browser-based terminal that gives you a dedicated Linux virtual machine. It runs on Google Cloud Platform and is accessible from any device with a web browser. See What is MoltShell? for details.

Do I need to install anything?

No. MoltShell runs entirely in the browser. There is no desktop app, CLI tool, or browser extension to install.

What browsers are supported?

MoltShell works in modern browsers including Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge. For voice input, you need a browser that supports the AudioWorklet API (Chrome 66+, Firefox 76+, Safari 14.1+).

Your VM

What happens when my VM suspends?

After 60 minutes of inactivity, your VM is suspended. GCP's suspend operation saves the VM's RAM to disk. All processes, tmux sessions, and files are preserved. When you resume, everything restores exactly as it was.

Can I install anything I want?

Yes. You have passwordless sudo access. Use sudo apt install, pip install, npm install -g, or any other package manager. You can also install Docker, configure system services, and modify system files. See Use sudo.

How do I access my files?

Your files live on the VM at /home/moltshell. They persist across browser closes, VM suspends, and device switches. There is no file browser UI -- use the terminal (ls, cat, nano, vim, etc.).

Is my data private?

Each user gets a dedicated VM. No one else has access to your VM or its filesystem. MoltShell does not read, scan, or share the contents of your VM. The VM's firewall only allows traffic from the MoltShell proxy.

What if I need more resources?

During early access, each user gets a single e2-medium VM (2 vCPU, 4GB RAM, 10-15GB disk). Larger instance types and additional VMs may be available in the future.

Can I SSH into my VM?

No. The VM's firewall only allows traffic from Cloudflare's IP ranges, which is how MoltShell proxies your connection. Direct SSH access is not available. All access is through the MoltShell web interface.

Terminal

My terminal disconnected. Did I lose my work?

No. Terminal sessions run in tmux on the server. If your browser disconnects, the sessions continue running. When you reconnect (which happens automatically within a few seconds), you reattach to the same sessions.

Can I use tmux directly?

MoltShell uses tmux under the hood for session persistence, but you should avoid using tmux's built-in split and window commands. MoltShell manages splits at the application level, and tmux-level splits will not appear in the UI. Use the split buttons in the pane header instead.

You can use other tmux features like scroll mode (Ctrl+B [) and key bindings.

How do I copy text from the terminal?

On desktop:

• Drag to select: Text is automatically copied to your clipboard when you release the mouse button (via OSC 52 clipboard integration).
• Ctrl+Shift+C: Copies the current selection.
• Copy button: In the pane header, copies the current selection.

On mobile:

• Long-press (500ms) to open the Select & Copy overlay, then use your device's native text selection.

Why does right-click not show a copy option?

The terminal renders to a canvas element, so the browser's built-in "Copy" context menu option does not work with terminal text. Instead, use drag-to-select (auto-copies), Ctrl+Shift+C, or the copy button. MoltShell disables tmux's right-click popup menu so the browser's context menu still appears for other uses.

Can I have multiple tabs open?

Yes. You can have MoltShell open in multiple browser tabs or on multiple devices. All tabs connect to the same tmux sessions. Input from any tab goes to the same session, and output appears on all connected tabs.

Troubleshooting

My VM is stuck on "starting"

VM provisioning or resume can take 30-60 seconds. If it takes longer than 2 minutes, try refreshing the dashboard page. The health checker automatically detects and resets stuck VMs within 5 minutes.

The terminal shows "Connecting..." but never connects

This usually means the terminal server on your VM is not running yet. Wait for the dashboard to show the server as ready (the "Launch Terminal" button appears). If the problem persists, try stopping and starting your VM from the dashboard.

I see a memory warning banner

Your VM is running low on memory (80%+ usage including swap). Close unused programs, kill background processes, or exit AI tools you are not actively using. See Limits & Specs for memory management thresholds.

My process was killed unexpectedly

If memory usage exceeds 90%, the memory watchdog kills the largest user process to prevent the system from freezing. Run free -h to check current memory usage and consider closing other programs before restarting your process.