Web-based hardware config tools - Yay or Nay?

[YALE70]

Obviously these tools aren't a new thing - I'm sure a lot of you are familiar with the QMK Configurator, Via, Vial and whatnot - but I've tried a bunch of Chinese keyboards over the past several weeks and have encountered a couple (namely from FGG and VTER) with these web-based config tools for keymapping, RGB, etc and... I don't like them.

What irks me is the availability of these tools appears to be completely dependent on the respective company's ability to continue hosting them, and they generally don't provide any locally run alternatives. I also don't know/can't tell if they're based on anything more known and accessible. So, say FGG goes belly up in the future and their website shuts down. How the hell am I supposed to configure my keyboard then? I'd imagine QMK isn't an option for most of these boards - especially for us technically impatient folk - and so far the only solution I've found is to install the website as a progressive web app (PWA) from the browser. Doing so allows the for the use of the tool offline since it's cached, which is a big step in the right direction. But it doesn't appear to be something that I could just easily share like an executable in the event the actual site goes down, at least not for people running a different browser than what the PWA was created with. Perhaps there's even some other nefarious reason why a company would set up their product like this but regardless, it's just plain annoying IMO.

That all said, I can see two obvious benefits to implementing the config tool in this fashion. For one, the tool is platform agnostic and easier to implement since you only need a web browser that can interface with USB devices to utilize it. Secondly, they're relatively light on hardware resources. The FGG and VTER tools I've used so far use around 70-100 MB of memory and aren't constantly running in the background, opposed to something like Razer Synapse 4 which is hogging up close to 450 MB doing god-knows what. I could be generalizing these a bit, but that's what sticks out to me.

How do you all feel about this? Is it no big deal? Or are people better off avoiding anything solely reliant on these web tools like the plague?

[HoffmanMyster]

I’m not an expert, but IMO giving a website control over any hardware is not something to take lightly from a security perspective. I use VIA because of the team behind it and their track record, but I would not give a relatively random company that I don’t know that much access. Maybe I’m misunderstanding the risks involved, someone can correct me, but that’s my 2 cents.

[Leslieann]

They can be good, like at my brothers work they configure all the routers and switches at not just one building but all of their buildings through a web interface, makes universal changes easy.

On the other hand, what happens if they shut down that web site or it gets hacked?
Many of these have a local client but I reject all of them if that's the only way. Never trust corporations.

[blondie]

Nay.

The web browser is not the OS.

[Findecanor]

Everything cloud-connected is a big No from me.

[KAMRANBASHEER234]

Totally agree — reliance on web-only config tools without offline or standalone options feels risky. I’ve also tested a few FGG and VTER boards, and while the browser-based approach is lightweight and convenient in the short term, the long-term viability is shaky. If a manufacturer stops supporting the tool, users are left stranded, especially if there's no open-source or downloadable fallback.

We recently dealt with a similar issue while helping a client at our San DIEGO web design company who needed a stable, offline-accessible tool for internal device configuration. It’s a good reminder that while web apps are flexible, they shouldn’t be the only option. PWA caching is clever, but yeah, not really a reliable backup for everyone.

Would love to see more transparency from these companies on whether their tools are based on open standards or locked-down proprietary code. Until then, I’d personally stay cautious with any keyboard that doesn’t offer local config support.