How to set up an SSH environment on iPad for free (iSH + OpenSSH)#
Steps to build an SSH environment on an iPad using the free app iSH. Up to this point, we have set up an environment with zsh + neovim + tmux on Linux, so as long as we can establish an SSH connection, we can work at any time.
Background and purpose#
Since the iPad does not have a terminal by default, some ingenuity is required to perform Linux-like tasks and port forwarding via SSH. There are paid apps (Blink Shell and Termius Pro), but in situations where you want to complete the process for free, using iSH is a strong option.
Tools used#
iSH (Available for free from the App Store)
OpenSSH (added as Alpine package)
iSH is a lightweight virtual environment similar to Alpine Linux that uses apk for package management.
Installation steps#
Install iSH from the App Store
Start iSH and run the following command:
apk update apk add openssh
Commands such as ssh, scp, and sftp are now available.
Try connecting via SSH:
ssh -i .ssh/key user@remote-host
If necessary, you can organize .ssh/config to organize the connection destinations.
Port forwarding (local tunnel)#
You can use port forwarding locally on your iPad by running the following within iSH:
ssh -i .ssh/key -L 8080:localhost:8000 user@remote-host
When you access localhost:8080 on the iPad side, it will be tunneled to localhost:8000 on the remote host.
Now you can easily access a web server running on a remote host.
What to do when you can’t exit with vi#
On a tablet keyboard such as an iPad, you may have trouble finding the ESC key when starting an editor such as vi. It is good to know that on iPad, you can substitute ESC with the following operation. :
Software keyboard: press
Ctrl+[
Customize colors and display#
iSH is in Light mode by default, so you can change to Dark mode if you prefer.
You can change it from the “gear icon” at the top of the screen.
summary#
By using iSH + OpenSSH, you can get a lightweight terminal environment even on your iPad. Its appeal is that it provides functions including port forwarding for free.
If you have an environment like zsh + neovim + tmux installed on the connected Linux side, you will be able to easily manage your site on the go.
Article information
- Post date:
2025-05-14
- author:
Mr. Takagi