Introduction
Gatesys SSH is a desktop SSH client for macOS, Windows and Linux with jump hosts, SFTP, tunnels, server health and Farabi AI. What Free and Pro include.
Gatesys SSH is a desktop SSH client for macOS, Windows and Linux. Shells, files, tunnels and jump-host chains live in one window, and Farabi, the built-in assistant, answers from facts the app measured on the server you are connected to.
Who it is for
Gatesys SSH is built for people who look after servers, especially servers that sit behind one or more bastions:
- You want terminal, SFTP and port forwarding for a host in one place, over one connection.
- You reach hosts through jump chains and want failures explained hop by hop, not as a bare error.
- You want AI help that cites evidence, installs nothing on the server, and never runs a command without your click.
What it does
| Area | What you get |
|---|---|
| Connect | Grouped host list with a live dashboard, jump chains of any depth, agent, key, password and keyboard-interactive login, host key verification, ~/.ssh/config import |
| Work | A terminal in every session (more tabs and split panes with Pro), local terminals on this computer, Health signals and top processes for every host, dual-pane SFTP with a review sheet for every remote save, local, remote and SOCKS5 tunnels, watches that tell you when something happens |
| Vault | Keychain with key-hygiene checks, snippets, and an audit log of what happened on which host |
| Farabi AI | An assistant grounded in the host’s measured facts, with your own instructions and skills, every command rated for risk and attacks blocked, Hop Doctor’s Explain, Explain changes, sentences that become watches, tunnels and hosts, reviewed config changes, and a test bench for your model |
| Automate | Hooks that send activity and AI events to your own webhook, command or file, and settings kept in a file you can edit |
One SSH connection is shared per host. The terminal, the file browser, tunnels and metrics for a host all ride the same session, so a jump chain is negotiated once.
Free and Pro
Free includes sessions to as many hosts as you like, each with one terminal, every SFTP, jump-host, tunnel, vault and audit feature, and every safety feature that runs without a model, with no account and no time limit. Gatesys Pro adds Farabi, Explain, model drafts, the model lab, more than one model provider, hooks, and more than one terminal per session: free for 3 months once per account, then $20 a year. See Plans.
A tour of the window
Title bar
- Session tabs on the left, one per connected host. The + opens a new session.
- The search box, first on the right, opens the command palette under it (⌘K on macOS, CtrlK on Windows and Linux). Jump to any host, snippet or view from there.
- After it: a chip that counts down while a config change waits for you to keep it (see Safe Change), the light/dark toggle, the bell that shows update status, and the initials of your user account on this computer.
Left rail
The icon rail holds every view. Hover an icon to see its name.
| Group | Views |
|---|---|
| Connect | Hosts, Terminal, SFTP, Port forwarding |
| Vault | Keychain, Snippets, Audit log |
| Bottom | Settings |
Hosts
The host list on the left, grouped and filterable (All, Online, Production, Recent), with This computer pinned at the top for a local terminal. The search box at the top of the list also adds hosts: paste an ssh … command or type a sentence such as add 10.0.3.4 as deploy behind edge-bastion. Select a host to see its dashboard: live CPU, memory, disk, load, processes and threads, plus OS, uptime, shell, network and the resolved jump chain. See Hosts.
Terminal
Each session opens with one terminal. With Gatesys Pro it holds up to twelve terminal tabs, and each tab splits into up to four panes. The header carries the live metric strip: CPU, MEM, DISK, LOAD, NET, PROC and THR, and a Health pill that says what they mean. A slim strip under it shows what the app learned about the host and what changed since your last visit. The tab row holds the Snippets, Split, Watch, Record and Farabi buttons. Farabi’s panel sits to the right of the shell, folded to a slim tab until you open it. See Terminal.
Settings
Changes in Settings save automatically to ~/.gatesys-ssh/settings.json, a file you can also edit yourself. See The settings file.
- General: theme, accent colour and notifications.
- Terminal: font, size, colour scheme, scrollback, and the shells for local terminals.
- Hosts: metrics polling and host facts, including the service map.
- Farabi: the master switch, the default model and effort, the list of providers, Farabi’s language, instructions and skills, privacy switches and Test this model.
- Safety: the local vault, the SSH agent, host key warnings, command risks, and how config changes are reviewed and kept.
- Automation: hooks.
- Account, at the foot of the list: your Gatesys account, Gatesys Pro on this device, and Run setup again. See Sign in and licence.
First-run setup
The first time the app starts, a short setup walks you through your account, the licence, your servers, Farabi and hooks. Every step can be skipped. If you skip adding servers, a few sample hosts pointing at addresses that go nowhere give the app something to show. See First-run setup.
Next steps
- Install Gatesys SSH.
- Make your first connection.
- Set up a jump chain if your hosts sit behind a bastion.
- Connect a model to Farabi if you use Gatesys Pro.
Something unclear or wrong? Tell us.