🚁 SSH Pilot

Ultra-lightweight SSH management with a clean web interface

A single native binary that provides a modern web interface for managing SSH server configurations, client hosts, and key pairs. No Docker, no containers, no complexity - just drop the binary and run.

✨ Why This Exists

Managing SSH configurations traditionally requires editing config files manually, remembering complex syntax, and dealing with multiple tools. SSH Pilot gives you a clean web interface to handle all SSH management tasks in one place.

Need command-line only? → Use traditional SSH tools
Want visual management? → You're in the right place
Want both convenience and power? → SSH Pilot delivers

🚀 Quick Start

# Download and run
wget https://github.com/NtWriteCode/ssh-pilot/releases/latest/download/ssh-pilot
chmod +x ssh-pilot

# Start SSH Pilot
./ssh-pilot

# Open browser → http://localhost:8081
# Login: admin / admin (changeable in settings)

That's it. No configuration files required to get started.

⚡ Features

🔧 SSH Server Management

• Visual Configuration - Configure SSH daemon settings through web interface
• Security Options - Port, authentication methods, user restrictions
• Config Generation - Generate and write sshd_config files
• Service Control - Start, stop, restart SSH daemon
• Configuration Testing - Test SSH configuration before applying
• Status Monitoring - Real-time SSH daemon status and health

🌐 SSH Client Host Management

• Host Database - Store and manage SSH client configurations
• Config Generation - Generate SSH config entries for easy connection
• Advanced Options - Port forwarding, proxy commands, custom settings
• Config Export - Download client configurations as files
• Connection Details - Organize hosts with aliases and connection info

🔑 SSH Key Pair Management

• Key Generation - Generate SSH key pairs (RSA, Ed25519, ECDSA)
• Key Organization - Store and organize key information
• QR Code Sharing - Generate QR codes for easy key sharing
• Multiple Types - Support for various key sizes and comments
• Secure Storage - Keys stored in standard SSH locations

📊 Statistics & Monitoring

• Active Connections - View current SSH connections
• User Sessions - Monitor connected users and sessions
• Health Checks - SSH daemon status and health monitoring
• Real-time Stats - Connection statistics and usage data

📋 Requirements

• Linux, macOS, or Windows system
• SSH daemon installed (openssh-server)
• Appropriate permissions for SSH configuration management
• systemctl for service management (Linux)

No additional dependencies, databases, or services required.

🏗️ Installation

Download Binary

# Intel/AMD (x64)
wget https://github.com/NtWriteCode/ssh-pilot/releases/latest/download/ssh-pilot-linux-amd64 -O ssh-pilot

# ARM64 (Pi 4, Apple Silicon servers)
wget https://github.com/NtWriteCode/ssh-pilot/releases/latest/download/ssh-pilot-linux-arm64 -O ssh-pilot

# ARM (Pi Zero, older Pi)
wget https://github.com/NtWriteCode/ssh-pilot/releases/latest/download/ssh-pilot-linux-arm -O ssh-pilot

# macOS Intel
wget https://github.com/NtWriteCode/ssh-pilot/releases/latest/download/ssh-pilot-darwin-amd64 -O ssh-pilot

# macOS Apple Silicon
wget https://github.com/NtWriteCode/ssh-pilot/releases/latest/download/ssh-pilot-darwin-arm64 -O ssh-pilot

chmod +x ssh-pilot

Build from Source

git clone https://github.com/NtWriteCode/ssh-pilot.git
cd ssh-pilot
go build -o ssh-pilot .

🎯 Usage

SSH Server Configuration

1. Access Dashboard → Navigate to Server Configuration

2. Configure Settings:

   • SSH port and web interface port
   • Authentication methods (password, public key)
   • User restrictions (allow/deny users)
   • Security settings (strict modes, timeouts)
   • Advanced options (forwarding, logging)

3. Apply Changes:

   • Write Config → Generate sshd_config file
   • Test Config → Validate settings before applying
   • Restart SSH → Apply changes to running service

Managing Client Hosts

1. Add Host → Click "Add Client Host" from dashboard

2. Configure Connection:

   • Host alias and hostname/IP address
   • Username and port configuration
   • SSH key file path specification
   • Advanced options (forwarding, compression)

3. Use Configuration:

   • View Config → See generated SSH configuration
   • Download Config → Save as .ssh/config file

SSH Key Management

1. Generate Keys → Click "Add Key Pair" from dashboard

2. Choose Key Type:

   • Ed25519 (recommended) - Modern, secure, fast
   • RSA (compatible) - Widely supported legacy option
   • ECDSA (performance) - Good performance balance

3. Key Management:

   • Generated keys stored in ~/.ssh/ directory
   • QR Code feature for easy mobile sharing
   • Key information organized and searchable

⚙️ Configuration

• Config file: ssh-pilot.json (auto-created)
• SSH configs: Generated in standard SSH locations
• Web port: 8081 (use PORT=8082 to change)
• Session timeout: 60 minutes (configurable in web interface)

Required Tools

SSH Pilot checks for these tools at startup:

• ssh - SSH client
• sshd - SSH daemon
• ssh-keygen - Key generation
• systemctl - Service management

🔒 Security

For local network use. This tool manages SSH configurations and should be treated securely.

• ✅ Bcrypt password hashing
• ✅ Session-based authentication
• ✅ Rate limiting (5 attempts = 15min block)
• ✅ Secure cookie flags
• ✅ Input validation and XSS protection
• ✅ Configuration backups before changes

Security Best Practices

• Change default password immediately after first login
• Use on trusted networks only (localhost/LAN)
• Run with appropriate permissions (not root unless necessary)
• Review configurations before applying to production
• Monitor SSH logs for suspicious activity
• Keep SSH keys secure and rotate them regularly

🛠️ Troubleshooting

Missing SSH Binaries:

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt install openssh-server openssh-client

# CentOS/RHEL
sudo yum install openssh-server openssh-clients

Permission Denied Errors:

# Run with appropriate permissions for SSH config management
sudo ./ssh-pilot

# Or ensure user has write access to SSH directories

Configuration Test Failed:

• Check SSH configuration syntax in generated files
• Verify file paths and permissions are correct
• Review SSH daemon logs: journalctl -u ssh

Web Interface Not Accessible:

# Check if port is available
netstat -tlnp | grep 8081

# Try different port
PORT=8082 ./ssh-pilot

# Check firewall settings
sudo ufw status

Logs and Debugging

# Run with verbose output
./ssh-pilot 2>&1 | tee ssh-pilot.log

# Check SSH daemon logs
sudo journalctl -u ssh -f

# Monitor SSH connections
sudo journalctl -u ssh | grep "Accepted\|Failed"

🏗️ Architecture

ssh-pilot           (native binary)
├── Web Interface   (HTML + vanilla JS)
├── Session Auth    (secure cookies)
├── SSH Management  (sshd integration)
├── Config Generator (sshd_config + ssh_config)
├── Key Management  (ssh-keygen integration)
└── Service Control (systemctl integration)

Files:

• main.go - Application entry point and setup
• config.go - Configuration management and persistence
• ssh.go - SSH daemon operations and key management
• handlers.go - HTTP request handlers for web interface
• templates.go - HTML templates for web interface
• qr.go - QR code generation for key sharing

📊 API

SSH Pilot provides a simple JSON API when running in web mode:

• GET /api - Get current configuration (sanitized)
• GET /api/stats - Get SSH statistics and connection info
• POST /ssh-control - Control SSH daemon (start/stop/restart)

🚀 Roadmap

• Multi-server management
• SSH certificate support
• Configuration templates
• Bulk operations
• Integration with cloud providers
• Advanced monitoring dashboards

🤝 Contributing

This project prioritizes simplicity and reliability. PRs welcome for:

• Bug fixes and security improvements
• UI/UX enhancements
• Performance optimizations
• Documentation improvements

Please avoid adding:

• Heavy dependencies or complex frameworks
• Enterprise features that complicate core use cases
• Features that break the "single binary" principle

📝 License

MIT License - use it however you want.

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⭐ Star this repo if you find it useful!

Built with ❤️ for people who want simple, reliable SSH management without the complexity.