SSH or Secure Shell is a cryptographic network protocol for operating network services securely over an unsecured network. Typical applications include remote command-line, login, and remote command execution, but any network service can be secured with SSH.
SSH was designed as a replacement for Telnet and for unsecured remote shell protocols such as the Berkeley rsh and the related rlogin and rexec protocols. Those protocols send information, notably passwords, in plaintext, rendering them susceptible to interception and disclosure using packet analysis. The encryption used by SSH is intended to provide confidentiality and integrity of data over an unsecured network, such as the Internet.
This roundup picks our favourite SSH servers for Linux. Here’s our verdict captured in a legendary LinuxLinks-style ratings chart. Only free and open source software is eligible for inclusion here.
Let’s explore the SSH servers at hand. For each title we have compiled its own portal page, a full description with an in-depth analysis of its features, an image of the software in action, together with links to relevant resources.
| SSH Servers | |
|---|---|
| OpenSSH | Comprehensive SSH server for secure remote access and file transfers |
| Teleport | Infrastructure access platform with SSH authentication and auditing |
| ssh3 | Faster and rich secure shell using HTTP/3 |
| TinySSH | Minimalistic SSH server |
| Dropbear | Lightweight SSH server for embedded and resource-limited systems |
| quicssh-rs | Simple ssh server |
| ssh2incus | SSH access to Incus instances without running SSH servers inside them |
| Russh | Low-level Tokio SSH2 client and server implementation |
| wolfSSH | Embeddable SSH server implementation with SCP and SFTP support |
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 Explore our carefully curated directory of recommended free and open source software, covering every major software category.The directory forms part of our extensive collection of articles for Linux enthusiasts. It includes hundreds of detailed reviews, together with free and open source alternatives to proprietary software from companies such as Google, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, IBM, Cisco, Oracle, and Autodesk. LinuxLinks also covers interesting projects worth exploring, Linux-compatible hardware, free programming books and tutorials, and much more. Know a useful free and open source Linux application that we haven’t covered? Tell us about it using our submission form. |
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