Extra ssh settings

Sometimes a server needs an ssh setting that AirSCP has no field for. Add it under Other ssh options, one per line, as Name=value. Leave it empty unless you need one.

Steps

  1. Select the host and choose Host ▸ Edit…, then click Advanced.
  2. Under Other ssh options, type one setting per line, for example ConnectTimeout=10.
  3. Or use Add Common Option…: it adds a line for you and says when you’d use it.
  4. Click Save.
Other ssh options with two lines and the Add Common Option menu

AirSCP checks each line as you type, with ssh -G (which connects nowhere). A wrong line is shown in red with ssh’s reason, and Save waits until it is fixed.

Common options

Option When you’d use it
Compression=yes Faster on slow links for text and logs; slower on fast networks.
ConnectTimeout=10 Give up after 10 seconds instead of waiting long for a server that is down.
IdentitiesOnly=yes Try only the chosen key. Fixes “Too many authentication failures”.
PubkeyAcceptedAlgorithms=+ssh-rsa Old servers that only know RSA keys.
HostKeyAlgorithms=+ssh-rsa Old servers whose own key is RSA.
KexAlgorithms=+diffie-hellman-group14-sha1 Very old servers (“no matching key exchange”).
AddressFamily=inet Use IPv4 only, when IPv6 hangs.
StrictHostKeyChecking=accept-new Trust a new server’s key automatically, but still warn when it changes. The Server key setting does this too.
SetEnv LANG=en_US.UTF-8 Fix garbled characters in file names.
IPQoS=throughput Steadier big transfers on some Wi-Fi networks and routers.
LogLevel=ERROR Hide the server’s banner text in the command log.

Tips

  • Settings that AirSCP has a field for (port, user, key, jump host, proxy) belong in those fields.
  • Some options can’t be changed here, because AirSCP runs them itself (for example ControlMaster, ControlPath, ControlPersist, RemoteCommand). The red line says why.
  • Your ~/.ssh/config still applies: use it for settings you share with Terminal.