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Enable SFTP & SSH

Secure Shell (SSH) creates a secure connection when you log in to a remote computer and allows Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP), which uses SSH to provide a safe way to transfer files between computers. InstaWP allows you to access your site's file system or run commands using SFTP & SSH.


Plan Requirement: Access to SFTP & SSH depends on which version of InstaWP you're on:


  • Legacy users (pre-v3): Available on the Personal Yearly plan and above.
  • PPU users (v3 and above): Available on all paid plans.



In this documentation, we will explore the steps to:



Let’s get started 🚀


How to Enable SFTP & SSH



Step 1: Open the SFTP/SSH Settings for Your Site


  1. Go to the Sites page in your InstaWP dashboard.
  2. Find the site you want to configure.
  3. Click the ⋯ (horizontal ellipsis / three-dot menu) button on that site's card.
  4. Select SFTP/SSH from the dropdown menu.





A panel will open showing the SFTP and SSH options for that site.




Step 2: Enable SFTP


SFTP lets you connect to your site's file system using an FTP client such as FileZilla or Cyberduck.


  1. In the SFTP/SSH panel, locate the SFTP section.
  2. Toggle Enable SFTP to turn it on.


Once enabled, your SFTP connection details will appear. Use these details in your FTP client to connect:


Inputs

Description

Host Name

Host name of the WordPress site.

User Name

Username to access the WordPress site.

Password

Password to access the WordPress site.

Port

The port number (SFTP) uniquely identifies a connection endpoint used by web servers to receive requests from clients.


💡 Copy each value directly from the panel and paste it into your SFTP client's connection settings.



Step 3: Enable SSH


SSH lets you access your site's backend via a terminal (command line). This is useful for running WP-CLI commands, editing configuration files, and debugging site issues — all without going through the WordPress admin.


  1. In the same SFTP/SSH panel, locate the SSH section.
  2. Toggle Enable SSH to turn it on.





Once enabled, the same connection details from the SFTP section (Host, Username, Password, Port) are used to connect via SSH. Open your terminal and run:


🎯 To use commands like scp or rsync for transferring files, make sure both SFTP and SSH are enabled for your site. These commands rely on SSH for secure connections while handling file transfers.


You will see the same connection details (as after enabling SFTP). Further, if you want password-less login access for your website you must add a new SSH key. For more information, you can refer to the Add & Use SSH Keys documentation.



Updated on: 03/03/2026

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