SSHU (SSH Utility)

SSHU is an interactive, command-line application designed to simplify SSH connection management. Built with Python and Typer, it eliminates the need to manually edit your ~/.ssh/config file, allowing you to easily add, remove, list, and connect to remote hosts using simple, memorable names.

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Table of Contents

• Features
• Supported Platforms
• Installation
  • Using the Installer Script (Beta)
  • Manual Installation
• Usage / Command Reference
• Configuration
• Logging & Troubleshooting
• Building from Source
• Technologies Used

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Features

• Interactive Management: Add, remove, and list SSH connections from the command line.
• Key Management: Automatically copy identities or use specific key pairs.
• Portability: Available as a standalone binary or via pip.
• Host Key Scanning: Automatically populates known_hosts when adding new connections, either via CLI flags or configuration.
• Autocompletion: Built-in autocompletion for commands and connection names.

Supported Platforms

SSHU is OS-agnostic when installed via pip. Standalone binaries are available for the following operating systems:

• Linux (glibc): Debian, Ubuntu, RedHat, Fedora, etc.
• Linux (musl): Alpine
• macOS
• Windows

(Note: Currently, only Linux with glibc is fully tested natively, but binaries are built for all listed platforms.)

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Installation

You can find all official releases on the Releases page. For developmental pip packages, visit Test PyPI.

Using the Installer Script (Beta)

[!NOTE] The installation script is currently in beta and is tailored for Debian, RedHat, and SUSE-based distributions using bash-like shells.

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/FuReAsu/sshu/refs/heads/main/install/linux_bash/sshu-installer.sh | sudo bash

Manual Installation

1. Download the appropriate binary for your platform from the Releases page.
2. Make the downloaded binary executable (Linux/macOS):

   chmod +x sshu-linux-glibc
   

3. Move the binary to a directory included in your system's PATH:

   sudo mv sshu-linux-glibc /usr/local/bin/sshu
   

4. Verify the installation:

   sshu --help
   

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Usage / Command Reference

Manage your connections directly from the CLI.

Listing Connections

sshu ls

Adding a Connection

# Basic setup with a password prompt
sshu add connection_name -u user -a hostname --passwd

# Add and immediately copy SSH ID to the remote host
sshu add connection_name -u user -a hostname --passwd --copyid

# Add using an existing, specific keypair
sshu add connection_name -u user -a hostname --keypair /path/to/key

# Add connection with a custom SSH port (e.g., 8282)
sshu add connection_name -u user -a hostname -k /path/to/key --port 8282

# Add connection and scan server host key to known_hosts
sshu add connection_name -u user -a hostname -P --key-scan

Removing a Connection

# Remove a connection locally (supports autocompletion)
sshu rm connection_name

# Remove a connection locally and clean up remote keys
sshu rm --remote connection_name

# Remove all managed connections and restore SSH config
sshu rm --all

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Configuration

SSHU utilizes a YAML configuration file located at: $HOME/.config/sshu/config.yaml

Example Configuration

default_identity_key: id_ed25519
keys_dir: /home/fureasu/.ssh/keys
key_scan: false

Configuration Reference

Key	Description	Default Value
default_identity_key	The private key used when the --copyid flag is passed.	id_ed25519
keys_dir	Directory where imported private keys are stored.	~/.ssh/keys
key_scan	Whether to populate the known_hosts file automatically when adding connections.	false

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Logging & Troubleshooting

SSHU logs background activity and debugging information to help you trace actions and troubleshoot errors.

• Linux: ~/.local/share/sshu/sshu.log
• macOS/Windows: Located in the respective user data directory for the application.

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Building from Source

Building SSHU yourself is fast (usually under 3 minutes) and ensures compatibility with your specific environment.

First, clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/FuReAsu/sshu.git
cd sshu

Method 1: Natively

1. Install Python dependencies:

   pip install -r requirement.txt
   

2. Build the executable using PyInstaller:

   pyinstaller --name sshu --distpath ./bin -p ./sshu --onefile ./sshu/cli.py
   

3. The resulting binary will be placed in the ./dist (or ./bin depending on your PyInstaller version) directory.

Method 2: With Docker

Different Dockerfiles are available in the build/ directory for various target environments (e.g., glibc for mainstream Linux, musl for Alpine).

1. Build the Docker image:

   docker build -t local/sshu-build:latest -f build/Dockerfile.linux_glibc .
   

2. Run the container to compile the binary and extract it to your local ./bin directory:

   docker run --rm -it -v $(pwd)/bin/linux_glibc:/dist local/sshu-build:latest
   

3. Move the built binary to your path:

   sudo cp bin/linux_glibc/sshu /usr/local/bin
   

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Technologies Used

• Python 3.12: Core programming language.
• Typer: For building the robust Command Line Interface.
• Fabric: For executing remote commands over SSH.