SSHelper

4.6
1.09K reviews
100K+
Downloads
Content rating
Everyone
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About this app

SSHelper is an advanced, multi-protocol, secure server for the Android platform.

SSHelper works just fine with a normal, unrooted Android device — i.e. your device. It also offers special features on rooted devices.

SSHelper works as an application and as a service. As a service it runs in the background, providing secure communications protocols without requiring user attention.

SSHelper supports interactive Secure Shell (hereafter SSH) sessions and various kinds of transfers including scp, sftp, and rsync, on all common platforms:

On Windows, SSHelper works with WinSCP, PuTTY and similar programs.

On Linux, apart from normal SSH shell session activities, SSHelper can be used directly with file browsers for seamless filesystem browsing and transfers by specifying the "sftp:" protocol.

On the Mac, SSHelper works with Cyberduck and similar programs.

SSHelper versions >= 7.8 accepts any network type that Android recognizes -- it's no longer limited to wireless networks.

SSHelper announces itself on your network by way of Zeroconf/Bonjour, an efficient way to configure a local network.

SSHelper includes a log monitor Web server showing an activity log on local network browsers.

SSHelper also includes a clipboard Web server that permits read/write access to the Android clipboard from local network browsers.

SSHelper is free, open-source and there are no ads. It's licensed under the GPL and the source is freely available.

The SSHelper Home Page is located at http://arachnoid.com/android/SSHelper -- visit for more information and configuration tips.
Updated on
Aug 26, 2020

Data safety

Safety starts with understanding how developers collect and share your data. Data privacy and security practices may vary based on your use, region, and age. The developer provided this information and may update it over time.
No data shared with third parties
Learn more about how developers declare sharing
No data collected
Learn more about how developers declare collection

Ratings and reviews

4.6
1K reviews
A Google user
December 16, 2019
This is the definitive ssh server app. It sets up a usable home directory on the server, complete with keys. And it comes with the rsync executable which is what I really needed to sync my music collection to my phone. Writing to an external SD card is problematic on android, not the fault of this app, but the author provides comprehensive documentation on how to work around these constraints. This app brings my android phone a huge step forward toward looking like just another linux server to deal with, ie, I can use the same tools now to manage all my machines instead of having specialized ways to deal with the phone. If this were a paid app, I would happily pay for it.
59 people found this review helpful
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A Google user
August 31, 2019
I use SSHelper primarily to transfer files to and from my unrooted phones over SFTP and SSHFS, both of which work smoothly. Most phones mount the internal storage on /storage/emulated/0, which isn't traversable on unrooted devices but fortunately still accessible. The app itself is very easy to set up. Everything you can configure is in the Configuration tab. However, the terminal tab is useless. The soft keyboard will close after pressing a single character for some reason.
23 people found this review helpful
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Doğan Çelik
June 9, 2020
1) Clipboard works but why does it always say "ClipboardServer: restarting server at 8081" every time I switch to the SSHelper window? 2) The server dies frequently even though I disabled battery optimization for this app. 3) Persistent notification in Notification Panel sometimes disappears for no reason. 4) A small widget to toggle server (on/off) would be awesome.
34 people found this review helpful
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What's new

Sorry -- this app cannot be updated to full compliance with Android 10 (API 29) (but it works correctly with Android 10). This means SSHelper will disappear from Google Play within 60 days at most. Please visit the SSHelper Home Page (https://arachnoid.com/android/SSHelper/) for full details and future updates.