--- title: "How to Install and Use Kitty SSH Client" description: "Discover a different terminal option with the Kitty SSH client and add this useful and powerful terminal client to your list of tools!" canonical: "https://adamtheautomator.com/kitty-ssh/" --- # How to Install and Use Kitty SSH Client > Discover a different terminal option with the Kitty SSH client and add this useful and powerful terminal client to your list of tools! Source: https://adamtheautomator.com/kitty-ssh/ --- ATA Learning Tap to hide [ ATA Learning ](/) * [Home](/) * [Tutorials](/tutorials/) * [Instructors](/author/) * [Advertising](/advertising/) * [Recommended Resources](/resources/) * [About Adam](/about-adam/) Search for: * [](https://twitter.com/adbertram) * [](https://github.com/Adam-the-Automator) * [](https://www.linkedin.com/company/adam-the-automator-llc) * [](/feed/) ![How to Install and Use Kitty SSH Client](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/How-to-Install-and-Use-Kitty-SSH-Client.jpg) # How to Install and Use Kitty SSH Client [![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/2788bb1a3f735603f81eca51d68daec56a9d97e805a10268fb2c20afcc76b81b?s=192&d=mm&r=g)Nicholas Xuan Nguyen](https://adamtheautomator.com/author/nicholas-xuan-nguyen/)7 October 20227 min. read Categories: [IT Ops](/category/it-ops/) Tags:[Command Line](/tag/command-line/)[SSH](/tag/ssh/) Table of Contents * [Prerequisites](#prerequisites) * [Installing Kitty SSH Client Using Scoop](#installing-kitty-ssh-client-using-scoop) * [Installing the KiTTY SSH Client Using Chocolatey](#installing-the-kitty-ssh-client-using-chocolatey) * [Downloading KiTTY SSH Client’s Portable Version](#downloading-kitty-ssh-clients-portable-version) * [Connecting to a Server Using the KiTTY SSH Client](#connecting-to-a-server-using-the-kitty-ssh-client) * [Managing SSH Sessions](#managing-ssh-sessions) * [Routing Traffic With an SSH Proxy Tunnel](#routing-traffic-with-an-ssh-proxy-tunnel) * [Conclusion](#conclusion) Are you looking for a fast and practical SSH client? Say hello to the KiTTY SSH client! KiTTY lets you conveniently log in to your remote hosts and automatically set up an environment like your local shell. In this tutorial, you will learn how to install and use the KiTTY SSH client. You will also look at some of its features that will make your life easier. Stay tuned and get connected to your server with a few clicks! ## Prerequisites This tutorial will be a hands-on demonstration. To follow along, be sure you have the following: * A Windows computer – This tutorial uses a Windows 10 21H2. * A Linux server with [SSH enabled](https://linuxize.com/post/how-to-enable-ssh-on-ubuntu-20-04/) – This tutorial uses an Ubuntu 20.04 server. Related:[How to Install Ubuntu 20.04 \[Step-by-Step\]](https://adamtheautomator.com/install-ubuntu/) ## Installing Kitty SSH Client Using Scoop Scoop is a command-line installer for Windows. Like APT and YUM in Linux, Scoop helps you easily install, update, and manage your applications. But first, you will have to install Scoop on your system. Related:[Learning Ubuntu Apt Get Through Examples](https://adamtheautomator.com/ubuntu-apt-get/) 1\. Open [PowerShell as an administrator](https://adamtheautomator.com/powershell-run-as-administrator/) on your Windows computer. 2\. Next, run the following [Invoke](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/powershell/module/microsoft.powershell.utility/invoke-restmethod?view=powershell-7.2)[\-RestMethod](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/powershell/module/microsoft.powershell.utility/invoke-restmethod?view=powershell-7.2) command to retrieve Scoop’s installer script, and run (.\\) the script (install.ps1) to install Scoop on your computer. ```powershell # Retreives Scoop's installer script Invoke-RestMethod get.scoop.sh -outfile 'install.ps1' # Runs the installer script as administrator .\install.ps1 -RunAsAdmin ``` ![Installing Scoop](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-736.png) Installing Scoop Related:[How to Run a PowerShell Script From the Command Line and More](https://adamtheautomator.com/run-powershell-script/) 3\. Once installed, run the [scoop bucket](https://github.com/ScoopInstaller/Extras) command below to add Scoop’s extra [bucket](https://scoop.sh/#what-are-buckets). The extra bucket contains many useful applications, one of which is KiTTY. ```powershell scoop bucket add extras ``` ![Adding Scoop’s extra bucket](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-737.png) Adding Scoop’s extra bucket 4\. Now, run the below command to install KiTTY. ```powershell scoop install kitty ``` ![Installing the KiTTY SSH client](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-738.png) Installing the KiTTY SSH client 5\. Finally, run the kitty command, which does not provide output but launches the KiTTY SSH client. ```powershell kitty ``` Below, you can see the KiTTY SSH client’s window. Looks familiar? KiTTY is a fork from version 0.76 of PuTTY and is only designed for the Microsoft Windows platform. ![Launching the KiTTY SSH client](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-739.png) Launching the KiTTY SSH client Alternatively, you can find and open KiTTY from your start menu. ![Launching the KiTTY SSH client from the start menu](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-740.png) Launching the KiTTY SSH client from the start menu ## Installing the KiTTY SSH Client Using Chocolatey If you are unfamiliar with Scoop, another command-line installer for Windows is Chocolatey, which you can use to install KiTTY. Chocolatey is similar to Scoop but has a more extensive selection of applications. But like Scoop, you first have to install Chocolatey on your computer. 1\. Run the following command to install Chocolatey on your computer without blocks (Set-ExecutionPolicy Bypass) and prompts (-Force). ```powershell Set-ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Scope Process -Force; Invoke-WebRequest https://community.chocolatey.org/install.ps1 -UseBasicParsing | Invoke-Expression ``` ![Installing Chocolatey](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-741.png) Installing Chocolatey 2\. After installing Chocolatey, run the choco command below to install KiTTY. ```powershell choco install kitty ``` When prompted, type A and press Enter to confirm the installation. ![Installing the KiTTY SSH via Chocolatey](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-742.png) Installing the KiTTY SSH via Chocolatey 3\. Lastly, run the kitty command to launch the KiTTY SSH client like in the last step of the “Installing Kitty SSH Client Using Scoop” section. ```powershell kitty ``` ## Downloading KiTTY SSH Client’s Portable Version If you do not feel comfortable installing the KiTTY SSH client to your computer, a portable version is also up for grabs. The portable version is self-contained and does not require installation. Why use the portable version? There are a few reasons: * Perhaps you are using a public computer and do not want to leave any traces of your activities. * Or, you may not have administrative privileges on your computer, so you cannot install applications. Whatever the reason, the KiTTY’s portable version comes in handy. KiTTY solves one of the most significant problems with PuTTY — portability. 1\. Open your favorite web browser, navigate to KiTTY’s official [website](https://www.9bis.net/kitty/#!pages/download.md), and click the [fosshub.com](https://www.fosshub.com/) link to access the download page. ![Accessing KiTTY’s download page](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-743.png) Accessing KiTTY’s download page 2\. Next, click the KiTTY Windows portable link to download KiTTY’s portable version. ![Downloading the KiTTY SSH client’s portable version](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-744.png) Downloading the KiTTY SSH client’s portable version 3\. Once downloaded, open the _exe_ file, as shown below, to launch KiTTY. At this point, you can copy portable KiTTY’s entire folder to a USB drive and use KiTTY on other computers. ![Lunching KiTTY’s portable version](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-745.png) Lunching KiTTY’s portable version ## Connecting to a Server Using the KiTTY SSH Client Regardless of which method you used to install KiTTY on your computer, you still have to test if KiTTY is actually working. How? You will connect to a remote server using KiTTY for the first time. 1\. Open KiTTY, and enter the following information under the **Session** category: * **Hostname or** **IP address** – Enter your server’s IP address or domain name. If you do not have a server, use any SSH-enabled server. This tutorial uses an Ubuntu 20.04 server. * **Port** – The default port for SSH is **22**, as shown below. You can leave the port’s value on default unless your Linux server uses a different port. * **Connection** **type** – Select the SSH radio button since you use KiTTY to SSH to your server. * Keep other settings as is, and click on the Open button (lower-left) to connect to your server. ![Connecting to a server](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-746.png) Connecting to a server 2\. Next, click Accept on the new window to continue connecting to your server. Once connected, KiTTY’s terminal opens, where you can run commands (step three). Getting this message about the server’s host key is normal the first time you connect to a server. ![Adding an SSH key to the cache](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-747.png) Adding an SSH key to the cache 3\. Lastly, provide the username and password for your server on KiTTY’s terminal. > _Note that the password does not appear on the screen as you type it for security reasons._ ![Logging in to the server](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-748.png) Logging in to the server After providing your credentials, KiTTY connects to your server and you will see the familiar command prompt with a welcome message, as shown below. You are now logged into your server and can run commands. > _When you are done working on your server, run the exit command and press Enter to disconnect from the server._ ![Verifying successful SSH to the server](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-749.png) Verifying successful SSH to the server ## Managing SSH Sessions Like PuTTY, KiTTY also lets you open multiple SSH sessions. But how to manage them? KiTTY enables you to manage your SSH sessions in different ways. One example is you can save your sessions and load them later. This feature eliminates the tedious process of configuring your session each time you connect to your server. Instead, you can load a saved session and connect to the server with a single click. Configure the SSH session, as you did in step one of the “Connecting to a Server Using Kitty SSH Client” section. But this time, instead of opening the session, provide a descriptive session name first under the **Save** **Sessions/New Folder** field and click the **Save** button to save the session. ![Saving an SSH session](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-750.png) Saving an SSH session The newly-saved session appears in the list, as shown below. ![](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-751.png) Verifying a saved SSH session Now, select the session from the list, click on the **Load** button to load the session’s configuration, and click on **Open** to launch the session. As you can see below, connecting to your server gets faster using a saved session. ![Loading and opening a saved SSH session](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-10.gif) Loading and opening a saved SSH session ## Routing Traffic With an SSH Proxy Tunnel When you plan to route traffic from your local computer through a remote server, KiTTY also comes in handy. Doing so secures the traffic, encrypted end-to-end. Suppose you want to access a website that is only available on the server. In that case, you can use an SSH tunnel to forward traffic from your local computer to the server and then back. With this setup, you can access the website as if you were on the server. To set up an SSH tunnel: 1\. Load a saved SSH session for your server or manually fill in the connection information. 2\. Expand the Connection category → SSH, and select Tunnels to access the port-forwarding configuration page. ![Accessing the port-forwarding configuration page](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-752.png) Accessing the port-forwarding configuration page 3\. Configure a new port-forwarding with the following: * **Source port** – Enter a port number on your local computer, but this tutorial uses port **9999**. * Select the **Auto** and **Dynamic** options under **Destination**. These options ensure the SSH tunnel is available only while the SSH session is active. * Click **Add** to add the new tunnel, which appears in the list of active tunnels, as shown below (**D9999**). * Click **Open** to connect to the server and activate the SSH tunnel. ![Setting up an SSH tunnel](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-753.png) Setting up an SSH tunnel 4\. Now, open Firefox and navigate to _about:preferences#general_, scroll down, and click on Settings under Network Settings, which opens the Connection Settings window (step five). You need to configure your applications to use the SSH tunnel. This tutorial uses Firefox as an example, but the steps are similar for other applications which support SOCKS5 proxies. ![Opening the Network Settings](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-754.png) Opening the Network Settings 5\. Select the **Manual proxy configuration** option, and configure the connection settings with the following: * **SOCKS Host** and **Port** – Enter **localhost** and port **9999** (the same port you configured for the SSH tunnel). * Select the **SOCKS v5** option as the protocol to establish a relay connection between the internal and external networks. * Click **OK** to save the changes. Now, all the traffic from Firefox will go through the SSH tunnel and be encrypted. ![Setting up manual proxy configuration](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-755.png) Setting up manual proxy configuration 6\. Finally, find your IP address on [google.com](http://google.com/) by searching my ip to verify that the tunnel is working. As you can see below, the IP address has changed to the server’s IP address (142.93.115.37). This outcome signifies all traffic is routed through your server. When you are not using the SSH tunnel anymore, close the SSH session, and the tunnel will be closed automatically. ![Verifying the SSH tunnel is working](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/image-756.png) Verifying the SSH tunnel is working ## Conclusion In this tutorial, you have learned how to install the KiTTY SSH Client, connect to a server, and create an SSH tunnel to route traffic to your server. You have seen how KiTTY lets you conveniently save and load SSH sessions. And at this point, you can now say goodbye to tedious session configurations each time you connect to your servers. The KiTTY SSH client is a powerful tool that offers more than you have seen in this tutorial. So why not explore KiTTY’s other features? Perhaps [transfer](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_OwmqjAcn0) and edit files between your local computer and the server using SFTP? Related:[Activate PowerShell SFTP to Transfer Files](https://adamtheautomator.com/powershell-sftp/) Share this article [Share on X](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fadamtheautomator.com%2Fkitty-ssh%2F&text=How%20to%20Install%20and%20Use%20Kitty%20SSH%20Client)[Share on Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fadamtheautomator.com%2Fkitty-ssh%2F)[Share on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fadamtheautomator.com%2Fkitty-ssh%2F) ## Related Posts ![](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/How-to-Use-SSHFS-Mount-with-Remote-Directories-over-SSH.jpg) ### [How to Use SSHFS Mount with Remote Directories over SSH](/sshfs-mount/) Are you tired of using SCP to push or pull remote files? 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