How to Create and Access Hosts in Blink Shell
Overview
The purpose of this guide is to show you how to pre-configure hosts for a simpler and more secure access. It is time consuming to type the same IP address, username and possibly password repeatedly, so we added the Hosts feature in Blink to allow this data to be saved for easier use.
Adding a Host
When accessing the Hosts section in the configuration pane of Blink, you will be presented with a list of existing hosts. If this is your first time using this section it will be empty.
To add a host, click the +
sign. When you do, you’ll be prompted for the details of that host.
Host
This is the name of the host. Use this for easy identification in the lists of hosts. It does not necessarily have to match the hostname or IP address of the host.
Hostname
In this field, please enter the hostname or IP address of the remote host.
Port
In most cases this will be 22
, the default SSH port. If the host requires a different port number (1
-65535
) please enter it here.
User
This is the username to connect with on the remote host.
Password
If using password-based authentication, enter the password here. If you leave this blank and you don’t have a key for this host you will be prompted for the password each time you connect. If you choose to save a password, it is stored securely in the iOS Secure Enclave.
Keys
To use public key encryption, select your key in this box. By default, the key named id_rsa
will be used.
Mosh Parameters
If you wish to use Mosh, you will have to supply additional parameters.
Server
The route for the mosh-server
command on the destination server. In most cases this will be /usr/bin/mosh-server
but on some remote systems, like macOS, the binary may be located in /opt/bin/mosh-server
. You can check where is it located on the server using the which
command as shown below,
which mosh-server
Port
If you need to specify a UDP port for Mosh, please enter it here.
Prediction
When you are finished with the parameters tap Save.
Changing or Deleting Host
If you wish to change a host, tap on it in the hosts lists. Alternatively, to delete a host slide to remove it.
Using Hosts
Once you have saved a host, you use the name you provided in the Blink Shell console:
mosh plankton
To use the host named plankton
use the hostname that you specified in your command.
Command line parameters always have preference over configuration. You can redefine a parameter by specifying it on the command line. For example, to use a different user (in this case, root
), specify:
mosh root@plankton