Deploy and Host Kali Linux Desktop (KDE Plasma) in your browser on Railway

A full Kali Linux desktop with KDE Plasma that runs in the cloud and opens in any modern browser. The Kali menu, terminal and tools are ready, the desktop user has passwordless sudo, and everything you save survives restarts.

About Hosting Kali Linux Desktop (KDE Plasma) in your browser

The template runs the open source LinuxServer.io image kali-linux:latest as one Railway service. The Kali Linux KDE Plasma desktop is streamed to your browser over Railway's HTTPS domain on port 3000, and HTTP basic auth protects it with CUSTOM_USER and a generated PASSWORD that you copy from the service Variables. A volume is mounted at /config, the desktop user's home folder, so your files, settings and browser profiles survive restarts and redeploys. The first boot takes a minute or two.

Common Use Cases

Learning penetration testing and security tooling on a machine you can reach from anywhere
CTF practice and labs on your own targets without a local virtual machine
A disposable security workstation you can redeploy in minutes

Dependencies for Kali Linux Desktop (KDE Plasma) in your browser Hosting

No other services: one container plus a volume
A modern browser; Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari all work

Implementation Details

Open the Railway domain, sign in with CUSTOM_USER and PASSWORD, and the desktop loads. The desktop user has passwordless sudo, so you can install software:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install -y kali-tools-web

Give the service at least 2 GB of memory for a smooth session. Image: lscr.io/kali-linux:latest (https://github.com/linuxserver/docker-kali-linux).

Only test systems you own or have written permission to test. Railway's Fair Use Policy applies.

Why Deploy Kali Linux Desktop (KDE Plasma) in your browser on Railway?

Railway is a singular platform to deploy your infrastructure stack. Railway will host your infrastructure so you don't have to deal with configuration, while allowing you to vertically and horizontally scale it.

By deploying Kali Linux Desktop (KDE Plasma) in your browser on Railway, you are one step closer to supporting a complete full-stack application with minimal burden. Host your servers, databases, AI agents, and more on Railway.