Request: ssh client!!

[CaptSaltyJack]

I'm surprised this wasn't one of the first things to show up on the App Store! We need a good, free ssh client for the iPhone. Ideally it would allow us to bookmark hosts to easily connect later, and maybe have a few different color schemes (black on white, green on black, etc).

[Jeremy1026]

Doubt we will ever see it, that would make it too easy to mess with system files, which Apple has already said they will not allow.

[CaptSaltyJack]

No no.. ssh client, not shell access on the phone. In other words, I tap the SSH client on the iPhone, it loads up and asks me where I want to connect to. (my Linux server, what have you). I can see people trying to connect to "localhost" to access the phone, maybe there's some way to prevent that. I really just want to be able to access remote servers from my phone.

[plumbingandtech]

I want one too.

Jeremy1026, you are wrong there is MUCh use for this in the enterprise and those in charge of web sites.

[CaptSaltyJack]

Additional thoughts on keeping hackers out of the iPhone..

The ssh client itself would have to check to make sure the user isn't trying to connect to localhost. Either that, or maybe the iPhone isn't running sshd so it's not a problem. That would be the only roadblock I think. Otherwise, an ssh client would be awesome.

[plumbingandtech]

Additional thoughts on keeping hackers out of the iPhone..

The ssh client itself would have to check to make sure the user isn't trying to connect to localhost. Either that, or maybe the iPhone isn't running sshd so it's not a problem. That would be the only roadblock I think. Otherwise, an ssh client would be awesome.

I was going to add that...

if(host == 127.0.0.1) block

problem solved.

[Jeremy1026]

Ok, I stand corrected. I didn't know where you were going with it. The application of SSH you are speaking of would certainly prove to be a very useful tool.

[firewood]

Doubt we will ever see it, that would make it too easy to mess with system files, which Apple has already said they will not allow.

Not a problem: all SDK apps run inside a sandbox. So ssh will be able to mess with all the files insides it's own sandbox, and everything else will be inaccessible to it. It's just not possible to mess with most anything outside the sandbox from an SDK developed ssh client or server.

The delay with ssh is probably for two main reasons:

1) A lot of the easy free ssh code has a license that is incompatible with Apple's. So that code either needs to be completely rewritten from scratch, or a compatible license has to be purchased from all the previous authors.
2) The App Store may require government export certification paperwork for all apps using certain types of encryption, so someone may have to pay a lawyer to do all the legal documents.

[rdrr]

It seems to me, that the easiest thing to do would be to take the ssh client that apple has native in OS X and put a gui around it. That asks you where you want to go...

No licensing fee or lawyers need apply. ;)

[CaptSaltyJack]

1) A lot of the easy free ssh code has a license that is incompatible with Apple's. So that code either needs to be completely rewritten from scratch, or a compatible license has to be purchased from all the previous authors.

But isn't ssh GPL?

[skestes]

Combine Mocha VNC with a low graphics Linux installation(X-windows running at 800x600 @ 16 colors) and run the terminal application at full screen and you have an SSH client.

[CaptSaltyJack]

Combine Mocha VNC with a low graphics Linux installation(X-windows running at 800x600 @ 16 colors) and run the terminal application at full screen and you have an SSH client.

No..by doing what you suggest, I have shell access.. not ssh. :) VNC is not secure. So by connecting from your iPhone to your Linux through VNC, you're operating over a non-secure connection. Not to mention that means you have a VNC port open to the world, not safe.

ssh is encrypted.

[skestes]

No..by doing what you suggest, I have shell access.. not ssh. :) VNC is not secure. So by connecting from your iPhone to your Linux through VNC, you're operating over a non-secure connection. Not to mention that means you have a VNC port open to the world, not safe.

ssh is encrypted.

Yes, you are correct about the security, or lack thereof.

As for SSH I was leaving it as an exercise to the reader to use that shell access to then run a command line SSH utility. A GUI based one would work just as well but I was going for speed since VNC is a slowdown to begin with.

I was thinking purely along the lines of creating a work-around for the lack of SSH not for a long-term solution. And not for a DMZ->internal network configuration.

[firewood]

But isn't ssh GPL? Exactly. The GPL is a highly restrictive license (for any developers other than the original author), and incompatible with many other licenses, including very possibly the iPhone, SDK and/or App Store license.