Devzat — developer chat right in the terminal

When the terminal becomes a social network

Imagine: you connect to a server via SSH, but instead of the usual command line, you see... a chat with colleagues. Surprised? That's how Devzat works — an unconventional project that turns an SSH client into a full-fledged communication platform.

What is this Devzat thing?

Devzat is a custom SSH server built in Go that opens a chat interface instead of a shell. The main advantage is cross-platform compatibility — you can connect from any device with an SSH client (even from a mobile phone!).

The project was created by Ishan Goel with support from the Hack Club community. In just a couple of years, Devzat has gathered nearly 4,000 stars on GitHub and enthusiastic reviews from the founders of Supabase and other well-known developers.

5 reasons to try Devzat right now

1. Chat from anywhere — SSH is everywhere: from your work laptop to a smartphone terminal
2. Markdown to the max — tables, headings, code with syntax highlighting via ```
3. Games in the terminal — built-in Tic-tac-toe and Hangman with command tic or hang
4. Direct messages — =user Сообщение for quick DMs or cd @user to go private
5. Your own servers — deploy your own instance in 5 minutes (more on that below)

How to join the chat?

Try the public instance with this command:

ssh devzat.hackclub.com

Or, if your firewall blocks the standard port 22:

ssh devzat.hackclub.com -p 443

First time connecting? Your chat name will match your SSH username. Want to change it? Just type:

nick НовоеИмя

Under the hood

Under the hood, Devzat is a Go application using the standard golang.org/x/crypto/ssh package. To host your own server, you just need:

git clone https://github.com/quackduck/devzat && cd devzat
go install
ssh-keygen -qN '' -f devzat-sshkey
devzat

The server will start on port 22221 (you can change it via the $PORT environment variable). Full administration documentation is available in the Admin's Manual.

Who will love it most?

• Remote teams — an easy way to chat without installing messengers
• System administrators — a chat that's guaranteed to work even on servers without GUI
• Terminal-first enthusiasts — a minimalist interface without distractions
• Gophers — a great way to practice Go on a real project

Personal experience

I tested Devzat on a MacBook and iPhone (via Termius). Connection is instant, the chat is responsive. The Markdown support was especially impressive — code with highlighting looks clean. Playing Tic-tac-toe with a colleague added unexpected fun to the workflow.

Alternatives

Similar projects:

• ssh-chat — a more spartan option
• WeeChat — a powerful client for IRC and other protocols

But Devzat stands out with built-in features like games and Markdown support.

Verdict

Devzat is a fresh idea in the world of dev tools. It doesn't replace Slack or Discord, but offers a unique "chat from the terminal" experience. I'd especially recommend it:

• For quick discussions while working with servers
• As an unusual way to chat with tech-savvy friends
• As inspiration for your own SSH experiments

Try it right now — it might become your new favorite way to share ideas!

P.S. Interestingly, the project earned a Product Hunt badge — which means it's definitely worth your attention.