Frequently Asked Questions

Does the device need a public IP?

No. The agent connects outbound and holds that connection open. Nothing about the device’s network has to change. See Ports and Connectivity.

Do I have to open a port on the device?

No. The agent never listens.

Does the server need a public address?

Yes. The asymmetry is the point: one reachable server, any number of unreachable devices. If you are self-hosting, the server is the thing that has to be reachable.

Which operating systems does the agent run on?

Linux, on amd64, armv6, armv7, arm64 and 386. FreeBSD is supported through the ShellHub ports tree rather than the installer.

Do I need a special SSH client?

No. The SSHID is encoded as an ordinary SSH username, so OpenSSH, PuTTY, scp, sftp and Ansible all work with nothing installed. See SSH Client Configuration.

Can I use ShellHub without installing anything on my own machine?

Yes — the web terminal runs in the browser. See Connecting to a Device.

Is ShellHub a VPN?

No. Nothing joins a network. A device is a destination, not a participant, and devices cannot reach each other through ShellHub. See ShellHub vs. Jump Hosts and VPNs.

Can two devices talk to each other through ShellHub?

No. There is no path between two devices.

What happens when the device loses its connection?

The agent retries on its own, waiting a random 5 to 65 seconds before each attempt. The device shows as offline until it reconnects, and reconnects on its own once the network is back.

What happens if I delete the agent’s private key?

The device comes back as a new one. The key at SHELLHUB_PRIVATE_KEY is what identifies the device — keep it on persistent storage.

Is session recording available in Community?

Yes, recorded in the browser that opened the session and kept there. Recording on the server, stored centrally, is Cloud and Enterprise. See Sessions.

Can I have more than one namespace?

Not on Community, which is single-namespace by design. Cloud and Enterprise allow many. See Editions.

Is SAML SSO available on Cloud?

No — SAML is Enterprise only. It is the one capability Cloud does not include.

How many devices can I connect?

Self-hosted Community has no limit. The Cloud free plan is limited to 3 devices.

Does revoking someone’s access kill their open session?

No. Authorization is evaluated when the connection is made. A session already open continues until it is closed. See How Authorization Works.

Why was my connection refused?

There are four distinct reasons and they point at different fixes. See Connection Denied.

Can an API key do everything a user can?

No. Routes that act for a person refuse an API key whatever its role. Managing keys, creating a namespace, and anything to do with MFA are all refused; see What a key cannot do for the full list.

Which database does ShellHub use?

PostgreSQL. Earlier releases used MongoDB; that is gone.

Where do I report a bug?

GitHub Issues. See Getting Support.