Use cases — SSH, SFTP, RDP & VNC for macOS

SSH and SFTP from your iPhone or iPad

A native Apple SSH client that goes where you go — terminal and SFTP on iOS, full all-in-one suite on Mac.

Sometimes the production alert hits at the worst moment — you are away from your laptop, the train is moving, and you need to SSH into a box right now to check a service. The default Apple stack does not give you that: there is no first-party SSH terminal on iOS, and command-line workflows assume you have a desktop in front of you. SSHive ships a native iPhone and iPad app on the App Store with a real SSH terminal and SFTP file manager. Your saved profiles, your keys, your jump hosts — they are right there in your pocket. The iOS app is intentionally focused: SSH terminal and SFTP file manager, with the same connection profiles, jump host support, and key-based auth you set up on your Mac. The features that demand a larger workspace — embedded RDP, embedded VNC, multi-host broadcast, the MCP server for Claude/Cursor, the visual SSH tunnel UI — stay on macOS where they make sense ergonomically. The result is a coherent split: heavy ops on Mac, on-call ops on iPhone, the same source of truth in between.

On-call from your phone

PagerDuty alert at 2am? Open SSHive on your iPhone, tap the saved prod profile, you are in. The iOS terminal handles common keys via on-screen modifier strips (Ctrl, Esc, Tab, arrow keys) so `Ctrl+C`, `Ctrl+D`, navigating less, scrolling logs, all work without an external keyboard. With an iPad and a Magic Keyboard or Bluetooth keyboard, the experience approaches a laptop — well-suited to longer sessions.

SFTP file management on iPad

iPadOS Files-style integration: browse remote SFTP folders, view text files, upload from your iPad photo library or Files app. Useful for quick edits to a config or pulling a log onto the iPad to email it. The iOS SFTP shares the same profile system as the SSH terminal — one credential, both flows.

Touch ID / Face ID and the Keychain

iOS credentials are stored in the iOS Keychain, gated by Touch ID or Face ID. When you tap a profile to connect, biometrics unlock the saved password or key passphrase — never typed manually, never visible. If your iPhone gets stolen and the thief cannot pass biometrics, your servers stay safe. Same model on macOS where Touch ID gates the Mac Keychain.

Frequently asked questions

Is the iOS app free?+

SSHive ships on the App Store with a free tier and a Pro upgrade — see the pricing page for the current details. The free tier covers SSH and SFTP for individual use; Pro extends limits and unlocks features that make sense per platform.

Can I import my Mac SSHive profiles into the iPhone app?+

Yes — profiles can be exported from Mac and imported on iPhone/iPad via the encrypted `.webssh` format with passphrase. Cross-device profile management is part of the design: configure once on Mac, use anywhere.

Does the iPhone app support SSH tunnels and RDP?+

Not on iOS — those features (SSH tunnels, embedded RDP, embedded VNC, multi-host broadcast, MCP server) live on macOS where the screen real estate and OS APIs make them ergonomic. iOS focuses on SSH terminal and SFTP for fast on-call access.

Does it work with an external keyboard on iPad?+

Yes — Magic Keyboard, Smart Keyboard Folio, and Bluetooth keyboards are all handled. Common shortcuts (Cmd+C/V, Cmd+T for new tab, arrow keys, function keys) translate properly. The on-screen modifier strip is hidden when an external keyboard is connected.