How to SSH into servers from an iPad or Chromebook

If you use a MacBook or a Windows machine, connecting to a remote server is trivial. You open the native terminal, type ssh user@ip, and you are in.

But if you are traveling with an iPad, working from a locked-down corporate Chromebook, or using a public computer, you suddenly hit a wall.

iOS does not have a built-in terminal. ChromeOS requires enabling a Linux subsystem just to run basic networking commands.

You have two options to fix this: buy and install a dedicated mobile app, or use a clientless web terminal.

Option 1: Native Mobile Apps (The old way)

The App Store is full of SSH clients. Termius and Prompt are the most popular.

They work well, but they introduce a massive security headache. To use them, you have to move your private SSH keys off your secure laptop and onto your mobile device. If you use multiple devices, you have to sync those keys through the app developer's proprietary cloud service.

You are trusting a third-party company to store the keys to your entire infrastructure. For many developers, that is an unacceptable security risk.

Option 2: Clientless Web Terminals (The new way)

A web terminal runs entirely in your browser. You don't install anything.

This solves the sync problem. You navigate to the web client, paste your private key directly into the connection form, and connect. The key stays in your browser's local memory and is never uploaded to a cloud syncing service. When you close the tab, the connection dies.

The challenge with web terminals is that the browser cannot open raw TCP sockets to port 22 on its own. It needs a backend proxy to translate WebSockets into raw SSH traffic.

Doing it securely with SSHDock

We built SSHDock to solve this exact problem. It is a full-featured SSH client that runs in Chrome, Safari, and Firefox.

It handles Ed25519 keys, RSA keys, and even complex network setups like Bastion Hosts. Because it is a progressive web app, you can pin it to your iPad home screen, and it behaves exactly like a native app.

If you are on a Chromebook or an iPad, you don't need to enable Linux subsystems or buy expensive subscription apps. Just open the browser, connect, and get back to work.