Connectbot: Access our PC via SSH from Android

In recent days I have had access to a mobile with the famous operating system Android 2.2 and I started playing with him for a little while.

In the article in question we are going to connect using the protocol SSH via connection WiFi From the phone Android with the host debian. For this task we will use the application connectbot.

Theory

The function of SSH (Secure SHell) is to connect securely with remote computers. Use the default port TCP 22 to establish communication between nodes.

A good security measure would be modify it.

SSH was born from the need to improve the links between terminals that until recently was carried out by telnet. This network protocol has the disadvantage that the information travels in plain text, which makes it easy to find out our username and password, similar to what happens with rlogin y ftp.

So, to establish communication we are going to have on one side the SSH client aka connectbot and SSH server, in this case my team with Debian Testing using the daemon it provides openSSH: SSHD.

Installing the client

connectbot is a simple and powerful client SSH / Telnet Open source that can be found as a downloadable application on our mobile or tablet through Google Play. If we have installed Barcode Scanner we just scan the following unit’s QR code to proceed to download:

3..2..1 "whiskey"

 Using Connectbot

The interface is simple, at the bottom we choose the connection protocol and to its right we have the entry to enter the address of the remote device with the format user @ IP_or_host_name. Example:

croto@192.168.0.144 ó croto@debian

In case of having modified the port TCP on the server by 456 As an example, we add «:" and the  Port number as follows:

croto@192.168.0.144:456

Apart from SSH y telnet, we can internally explore the device files Android selecting the option LOCAL

connectbot it is storing a list of the connections that we have established with different servers.

Detail of multiple connections made.

Established the connection with the server we can give free rein to our imagination. With a good knowledge of commands we will surely take advantage of this application. If you are not comfortable with the size of the fonts, with the volume keys + / - we modify its size.

Video with basic features of connectbot (English):

Configuring the GNU / Linux host

In our system we must make sure we have a server installed SSH. The most interesting option in free software is Openssh, which is a set of tools to connect safely using the protocol SSH. Within the applications that make up this suite, sshd is the service in charge of receiving connection requests from clients SSH. To install it:

sudo aptitude install openssh-server

I hope this post is useful for you and you comment on your experiences.

Regards!