PuTTY Windows Phone port currently in development, bringing the SSH client to the small screen

PuTTY (www.greenend.org.uk) is a popular telnet/SSH client for Windows, enabling those with remote access to servers and devices to connect and perform an array of tasks through the terminal or command line interface. A developer has taken to Reddit to announce that he's currently at work on porting the PuTTY Windows client to Windows Phone.

While numerous apps are already available for Windows Phone that support SSH, it'll be good to see such a popular Windows client be brought across to the mobile world. No ETA has been provided, but a screenshot has been teased and we're stoked to finally be able to use PuTTY while on the move.

If you're not a system administrator or own an installation where SSH is required to connect, PuTTY isn't really for you and this article will most likely float way over your head. For those who would be interested in the SSH solution, the developer working on this project has announced on Reddit that the base code of PuTTY has been successfully ported to Windows Phone 8 (no Windows Phone 7 support, folks).

The above image shows the app screenshot that was shared on Reddit, illustrating connecting and "SSH handshaking" both working successfully. The first feature on-screen you'll notice is the keyboard. It looks rather odd, right? That's because there are numerous keys that have been added, which are required to efficiently use an SSH client. While we all love the standard Windows Phone text input, there's simply not enough covered when it comes to connecting to and managing a remote server.

If you'd like to get involved in the future beta, be sure to drop the developer a line (putty@nogsnet.com). The best part about this Windows Phone port is the developer plans to release the app for free with a donation option. Kiss those over-priced clients goodbye! While Justin Timberlake's bringing sexy back, PuTTY for Windows Phone is bringing SSH back. Yeah!

Source: Reddit; thanks, interopbyt, for the tip!

Rich Edmonds
Senior Editor, PC Build

Rich Edmonds was formerly a Senior Editor of PC hardware at Windows Central, covering everything related to PC components and NAS. He's been involved in technology for more than a decade and knows a thing or two about the magic inside a PC chassis. You can follow him on Twitter at @RichEdmonds.