MobaXterm logo MobaXterm
Home / Features

capability map

What the workstation actually does

Tabbed terminal, X.org, SFTP, remote desktops and Unix commands, grouped the way sysadmins look them up.

Tabbed terminal

From the console you run the Unix commands that ship in the base file: ls, cd, grep, awk, tail, cut, sed, wget, rsync, telnet, ssh, rlogin, rsh. Missing tools can be added with free plugins or with MobApt / apt-get inside the local terminal.

The SSH client is based on PuTTY, with antialiased fonts, macros and local syntax highlighting. Highlighting still works when the remote host does not send colors, which helps when you read logs. Multi-execution sends the same command to many open terminals at once (Ctrl+Shift+Insert to paste in that mode).

If a split pane blocks tab switching, return to a single pane first. That is a known layout quirk, not a missing feature. See session tips.

Four local terminals receiving the same typed command in Multi-execution
Multi-execution: one command typed to every selected terminal.

Sessions management

Create SSH, Telnet, Rlogin, RDP, VNC, XDMCP, FTP, SFTP or Serial sessions. Every session you start is saved and listed in the left sidebar. Mosh is available for lossy links. From v26.4 you can right-click an SSH session and open SFTP with the same parameters, and you can move the SSH browser so the session tree and the file list stay visible together.

Protocol icons for SSH, Telnet, XDMCP, RDP, VNC, FTP, SFTP, Serial and Mosh
Protocol strip used when you start a new session.
Saved session tree beside Home status for X11-forwarding, SSH-agent and tunnels
Saved sessions on the left. Home tab status for X11-forwarding, SSH-agent and tunnels.

Graphical SFTP browser and MobaTextEditor

When you log in with SSH, a graphical SFTP browser pops up in the left sidebar. You drag files to or from the remote host over SFTP. In v26.5, SFTP sessions can drop a remote file into a subfolder of the local file browser.

Double-click a remote file to open MobaTextEditor. Column widths in the SSH browser persist after restart (v26.4). If the panel stays empty, the remote sshd often has no SFTP subsystem. Fix a missing SFTP browser.

A "Follow terminal folder" checkbox keeps the tree in step with the shell. If you switch tabs quickly with Follow terminal on, older builds could show an empty browser. That race was called out in the v26.4 notes.

Graphical SSH file list of a remote home directory with Follow terminal folder
SSH browser beside the terminal, with Follow terminal folder at the bottom.

X11 server

On SSH, Telnet or Rlogin/RSH you can display remote applications on the local Windows PC. SSH does not need a manual DISPLAY value when X11-forwarding is on. The server is X.org with OpenGL, Composite and Randr. XDMCP is included for a full remote Unix desktop.

If sudo drops your DISPLAY, or you see localhost:10.0 and think it is wrong, read the X11 guide. localhost:10.0 is normal for forwarded X11.

XDMCP login screen for a remote Solaris-style host on the Windows desktop
XDMCP session: remote Solaris-style login on the Windows desktop.

Remote desktops, gateways and tunnels

RDP includes console (/admin), drive and printer redirect, clipboard, CredSSP and, in v26.5, WebAuthn redirect so Windows Hello prompts can land on the local PC. VNC gained Tight/Hextile/RRE/TRLE encodings, extra auth methods, Ctrl+wheel, and shortcut combos in 26.5.

SSH gateway (jump host) is available on SSH, Telnet, RDP and VNC. The graphical tunnels manager builds local and remote port forwards. Home Edition allows 2 saved tunnels.

If RDP or VNC is the daily driver, keep it in the same tree as SSH so credentials stay under one master password.

RDP tab with a remote Windows desktop and detach plus fullscreen controls
RDP tab with detach, scaling and fullscreen controls.

Tools, plugins and portable packaging

Embedded daemons (HTTP, FTP, TFTP and others) start without extra runtimes. Home Edition stops those daemons after 360 seconds. MobApt / apt-get pulls extra Unix packages into the local terminal. Plugins are files you drop next to the exe.

Passwords can sit behind a master password. v26.4 added smart card (CryptoAPI) SSH login and a smart card manager. Macros record keystrokes; Home Edition stores 4.

The program is a single executable. No admin rights. You can start it from a USB stick. Company branding and default INI values need the Professional Customizer.

Home Edition ceilings

Item Home (personal, free) Professional
Saved sessions12Unlimited
SSH tunnels2Unlimited
Macros4Unlimited
Tftp / Nfs / Cron run time360 secondsUnlimited
Customizer (logo, welcome, profile)NoYes
Use inside a companyNot licensedLicensed, $69 / 49€ per user

Download MobaXterm v26.5 Open troubleshooting

Download