Browse a server's folders, fix a config file in place, send files from the Files app and save downloads where you want. The same profiles and keys as the SSH terminal.
Reading or changing a file on a server from an iPhone usually ends in cat and nano through a terminal, or in a web file manager open in a browser tab. SSHive has a native SFTP browser instead: remote folders you open with a tap, a search field, a text editor for configuration files, uploads from the Files app and a transfer bar that shows each file's progress. It uses the same SSH connection, profile, keys and jump host as the SSH terminal on iPhone, so a server set up once works for both.
In the free version, uploads are limited to 10 MB per file, which covers configurations, scripts and small assets; downloads have no limit. Pro, a single purchase of $12.99 that covers iPhone, iPad and Mac, removes the upload limit: see what the free version and Pro include. No subscription, and nothing about your files is sent to us.
Tap a folder to open it, jump back through the path bar at the top, pull down to refresh, and filter the current folder with the search field. Swipe a file to the left to download or delete it; touch and hold it for Edit, Download, Copy path and Delete. New folders are one button away.
Tap a text file (.conf, .yml, .json, .env, .sh, or a file with no extension such as a Dockerfile) and it opens in a plain-text editor with a monospaced font. Save writes it back over SFTP. It is built for the quick fix, one line in nginx.conf, rather than long editing: there is no syntax highlighting.
The upload button opens the iOS document picker on Files, iCloud Drive and the storage apps you have installed. Select one file or several: they go to the folder you are in, each with its own progress bar.
When a download finishes, the share sheet opens right away: Save to Files, AirDrop, or open the file in another app. A downloaded file left inside the app would be out of reach from Files, so each finished download also keeps a Save button in the transfer bar.
Touch and hold a file, choose Copy path, and paste the absolute path into the terminal: tail -f, chmod 640, sudo nano. Handy when an SSH session is open on the same server and the path is long.
SFTP on iOS is only useful if files can get into the app and out of it. SSHive takes them from the document picker and hands downloads to the share sheet, so a log you pull off a server can go straight to Mail or AirDrop, and a file from iCloud Drive can reach the server without a detour.
SFTP runs on the SSH connection itself: the same password or Ed25519 key, the same jump host (Pro), the same host key check. Nothing to configure twice, and a server you can reach with the terminal is a server whose files you can open.
Passwords and keys are stored in the iOS Keychain, bound to this device. With Require Face ID / Touch ID on, opening a connection takes Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode. iCloud sees them only if you turn on iCloud sync (Pro). No telemetry.
A long-standing file manager for iPhone and iPad that reaches SMB shares, WebDAV, FTP, SFTP and cloud drives, and edits text files. A good pick if SFTP is one protocol among many for you and you have no use for a terminal.
Termius includes SFTP in its free Starter plan, next to its terminal and port forwarding; the Pro subscription adds encrypted sync of hosts and credentials across devices. A natural choice if you already use Termius for SSH on several platforms.
Detailed SSHive vs Termius comparisonTwo things make SFTP on a phone harder than on a Mac. The first is the iOS sandbox. Every app keeps its files in its own container, and no app can reach into another app's folder the way a desktop program opens any path. A file coming from elsewhere has to be picked by you in the document picker, and a file leaving the app has to be handed to the share sheet. SSHive does exactly that in both directions, and it presents the share sheet as soon as a download finishes: a file left in the app's temporary folder is a file you cannot see from Files.
The second is the network. A transfer is a long-lived connection, and iOS suspends apps that go to the background to save battery. Keep SSHive on screen while a large file moves; the transfer bar shows where each file stands.
Credentials are the third, quieter question. A server may want a password, a private key, a key protected by a passphrase, or a bastion in front of it. SSHive's SFTP uses the SSH profile as it is: one profile, one set of credentials, for the terminal and for the files. They sit in the Keychain with the ThisDeviceOnly protection, so they stay on the device unless you turn on iCloud sync, and while the iPhone is locked not even SSHive can read them.
/etc/nginx/ and tap nginx.conf: it opens in the editor. Change the line, tap Save and SFTP writes the file back. SFTP cannot use sudo, so a file owned by root needs the right permissions first, or sudo nano in the SSH terminal. Then check and reload with sudo nginx -t && sudo systemctl reload nginx.Free on the App Store, no account needed: 2 SSH sessions at a time, 5 profiles, SFTP uploads up to 10 MB per file. Pro costs $12.99 once, covers iPhone, iPad and Mac, and unlocks RDP, VNC, the VPN client and remote tunnels in this app.
Download SSHive Free