Remote Access Your Raspberry Pi from Anywhere with SSH

Learn how to send commands to your Raspberry Pi remotely via SSH and control it from anywhere using a terminal. …


Updated September 6, 2023

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Learn how to send commands to your Raspberry Pi remotely via SSH and control it from anywhere using a terminal.

SSH (Secure Shell) is a powerful tool that allows you to access, manage, and control your Raspberry Pi remotely. With SSH, you can run commands on your Raspberry Pi as if you were sitting right in front of it, but from the comfort of your own computer or device. This makes it easy to administer your Raspberry Pi without having to connect a monitor, keyboard, and mouse every time you want to make changes.

There are two main ways to send commands to your Raspberry Pi using SSH:

  1. Using an SSH client on your local machine (Windows, macOS, Linux)
  2. Connecting via web-based SSH clients like Coda, Putty, or Termius

Using an SSH client on your local machine (Windows, macOS, Linux)

To send commands to your Raspberry Pi using an SSH client on your local machine, follow these steps:

  1. Enable SSH on your Raspberry Pi:

    • Open the terminal on your Raspberry Pi and type sudo raspi-config to open the configuration tool.
    • Navigate to “Interfacing Options” and enable SSH. Save and exit the configuration tool.

  2. Find your Raspberry Pi’s IP address:

    • Open a terminal window on your local machine (Windows or macOS) or connect to your router using a web browser to find the IP address of your Raspberry Pi.
    • Alternatively, you can use arp-scan to scan for devices on your network and find your Raspberry Pi’s IP address. Install it with sudo apt install arp-scan, then run sudo arp-scan --interface=wlan0 --localnet (replace wlan0 with the name of your WiFi interface).

  3. Open an SSH client on your local machine:

    • For Windows, you can use PuTTY. Download it and run the installer.
    • For macOS or Linux, open a terminal window.

  4. Connect to your Raspberry Pi using SSH:

    • In PuTTY, enter your Raspberry Pi’s IP address in the “Host Name (or IP Address)” field and click “Open.”
    • On macOS or Linux, type ssh pi@<ip_address> in the terminal. Replace <ip_address> with your Raspberry Pi’s IP address. Press Enter to connect.

  5. Authenticate yourself:

    • The first time you connect to your Raspberry Pi using SSH, you will be prompted to enter the password for the “pi” user account. This is the default username and password for a new Raspberry Pi installation. You can change this later if needed.

  6. Send commands:

    • Once connected, you are now remotely accessing your Raspberry Pi’s terminal. You can run any command as if you were sitting in front of it. For example, to update the system packages, type sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get upgrade. Press Enter after each command.

  7. Disconnect:

    • To disconnect from your Raspberry Pi, simply type exit or use the appropriate keyboard shortcut for your SSH client (Ctrl+C in PuTTY or Ctrl+D in terminal).

Using a web-based SSH client

Web-based SSH clients like Coda, Putty, and Termius allow you to access your Raspberry Pi from any device with an internet connection, making it great for remote work or on-the-go management. To send commands using a web-based SSH client:

  1. Enable SSH on your Raspberry Pi (same as above).

  2. Find your Raspberry Pi’s IP address (same as above).

  3. Open your chosen web-based SSH client and enter the IP address, username (default is “pi”), and password (default is “raspberry”) in the appropriate fields. Connect to your Raspberry Pi.

  4. Send commands:

    • Once connected, you are now remotely accessing your Raspberry Pi’s terminal. You can run any command as if you were sitting in front of it. For example, to update the system packages, type sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get upgrade. Press Enter after each command.

  5. Disconnect:

    • To disconnect from your Raspberry Pi, simply click the “Disconnect” button or use the appropriate keyboard shortcut for your SSH client (Ctrl+C).

In conclusion, sending commands to your Raspberry Pi using SSH is a powerful and convenient way to administer it remotely. With just a few steps, you can connect from anywhere and run commands as if you were sitting right in front of it. Whether you use an SSH client on your local machine or a web-based tool, the process is simple and secure. Happy remote Raspberry Pi hacking!