In simple English
This is a private video call server that you run on your own machine. It lets groups meet over video without relying on big tech companies. It uses very little computer memory, so it runs well on cheap cloud servers. You manage users with simple text files on your server. It costs you only the price of a small server to host it yourself.
What it is
Galène is a videoconference server written in Go (a compiled programming language designed by Google for writing fast and reliable software). It uses WebRTC (a web technology for real-time audio and video streaming in the browser) to connect participants directly.
What it is good for
Solo builders who want to host private video calls for clients, teams, or communities without paying for commercial meeting software.
- Runs smoothly on a cheap server with low memory needs.
- Comes as a single file, so deployment is straightforward.
- Users join directly through their web browser without installing an app.
- Requires manual text file editing to add users and set passwords.
- Shows a security warning in the browser until you install a real certificate.
- Lacks advanced features found in commercial video tools like breakout rooms.
Paid video meeting services like Zoom or Google Meet
An Nginx reverse proxy for handling SSL certificates
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git clone https://github.com/jech/galene cd galene CGO_ENABLED=0 go build -ldflags='-s -w' mkdir groups ./galene