56

I'm writing an application that makes connections to SSH servers. It doesn't need anything specific from the server (except running under GNU/Linux). I need SSH servers for running my application tests.

I was wondering, is there some kind of free and open to anyone SSH servers? Maybe it's an idea for a new service :)

Guy Avraham
  • 171
  • 1
  • 7
nicoulaj
  • 1,175
  • 2
  • 10
  • 12
  • In case you or anybody here is looking to spin up a mock sshd service for testing ssh based utilities / scripts you may use this - https://github.com/kabirbaidhya/fakeserver too. – kabirbaidhya Nov 28 '18 at 06:25

4 Answers4

47

http://sdf.org

Have used an account here on and off over the years. Recommended!

Skit
  • 660
  • 4
  • 8
  • 1
    +1 for SDF. I've had a user account there for years. – Bill B Sep 29 '10 at 00:47
  • 3
    +1 but unfortunately it's not actually free if you want to anything useful like gcc, python .. – wim May 21 '13 at 05:38
  • Nice, though it doesn't seem to have tools like netcat, telnet etc. – Pithikos Aug 15 '14 at 17:18
  • 1
    Well nothing is free. Someone has to pay the bills. And $36 for lifetime access is a good deal. – NYCeyes Oct 12 '19 at 20:44
  • 1
    When you sign up, it says: your account will expire in 666 days. – jciloa Feb 06 '21 at 19:32
  • https://www.xshellz.com/ is another good option. you create an account and verify it then you can use `$ ssh username @ shell.xshellz.com` – bl3ssedc0de Dec 31 '21 at 18:46
  • I’ve tried SDF and they have a very whacky configuration: psh shell (bash doesn’t seem to be available), `vi` redirects to `pico`, couldn’t even find a way to edit `.ssh/authorized_keys` so I could test public key authentication (even redirecting `echo` doesn’t work as expected). Might work if you just want to test a bare SSH connection with standard settings, but don’t expect too much beyond that. – user149408 Jun 11 '23 at 13:51
32

Check out the Free Shell Accounts list.

ptman
  • 28,394
  • 2
  • 30
  • 45
  • Amazing resource. In fact, I just tried out [Insomnia24/7](http://www.insomnia247.nl/page/shells/index) link and the guys are pretty helpful on the IRC there. Thanks. – qre0ct Mar 22 '17 at 10:08
  • @qre0ct Do you happen to have an Invite Code for Insomnia24/7? Seems like it's invitations only now.. – Lavya Apr 15 '20 at 06:55
  • @qre0ct also I would be glad to receive an invite for Insomnia24/7 – dawez Aug 04 '20 at 19:38
5

Maybe you can use virtualization like virtualbox ? You can setup a running small linux server quickly this way.

Vincent
  • 191
  • 5
3

As suggested, better than need internet connection and free 3rd party ssh accounts, get your own. You can get Virtual Machine (VMWare, VBox, Other) for that, and also, if you have an android mobile you can use SSHDroid (free) instead.

And don't forget Cygwin (Linux environment emulation with some package install support). You can set your ssh server built in windows and no need to get entire system (like vm does). A guide (http://docs.oracle.com/cd/E24628_01/install.121/e22624/preinstall_req_cygwin_ssh.htm)

Regards.

m3nda
  • 161
  • 5