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Frequently Asked Questions

General​

Is KoreShell free?​

KoreShell offers a 30-day free trial with all features unlocked, no credit card required. After the trial, a paid license is required. See License & Trial → for pricing.

Does KoreShell upload my data anywhere?​

No. Servers, credentials, terminal history, files, and AI conversations never leave your machine. The only outbound network traffic is SSH connections (directly to your servers), AI API calls (directly to your chosen provider), and license validation (key + device fingerprint to license.koreshell.io). See Privacy →.

Does it work offline?​

Yes, after the first license activation. License validation results are cached locally — the app works fully offline. SSH connections require network access to your servers, obviously.

What platforms does KoreShell support?​

macOS (Ventura 13+), Windows 10+, and Linux (Ubuntu 20.04+, Debian 11+, or any distro with WebKitGTK 4.1).

Installation​

macOS says "KoreShell can't be opened"​

This is a Gatekeeper warning for apps not from the Mac App Store. Go to System Settings → Privacy & Security → Open Anyway. You only need to do this once.

The app won't start on Linux​

KoreShell requires WebKitGTK. Install it:

# Ubuntu / Debian
sudo apt install libwebkit2gtk-4.1-0

# Fedora
sudo dnf install webkit2gtk4.1

Servers & Connections​

My connection keeps dropping​

Enable the SSH keepalive in Settings → SSH → Keepalive interval (default 30s). If your server or firewall has a short idle timeout, lower this to 15s.

I can't connect with an SSH key​

  • Verify the public key is in ~/.ssh/authorized_keys on the server
  • Check the key format — Ed25519 and RSA 2048/4096 are supported
  • If the key has a passphrase, ensure it's stored in the vault (it was entered when adding the key)
  • Try ssh -v user@host -i /path/to/key in a terminal to see the detailed handshake

How many servers can I add?​

Unlimited. There's no cap on the number of servers in any plan.

SSH Keys​

Where are my keys stored?​

In the local vault — encrypted with AES-256-GCM. On macOS, the vault master key is in the system Keychain. Keys are never written to ~/.ssh/ or any other plaintext location unless you explicitly export them.

Can I use keys from ~/.ssh/?​

Yes — when adding a key, click the file picker and navigate to ~/.ssh/. KoreShell imports the key into the vault. The original file on disk is not deleted.

AI Terminal​

Which AI provider should I use?​

For most users: Anthropic Claude Haiku (default). Fast, cheap, and handles shell questions well. For full privacy with no API cost, use Ollama with a local model.

Can the AI run commands without my permission?​

No. KoreShell requires explicit RUN approval for every command the AI suggests. Nothing runs automatically.

Are my prompts sent to KoreShell?​

No. Prompts go directly from your machine to your configured AI provider (Anthropic, OpenAI, etc.). KoreShell never sees your conversations.

Backup​

Do I need root to use Backup?​

No. rclone is installed to ~/.local/bin/rclone without sudo. Backup jobs run as the SSH user you connected with — make sure that user has read access to the source paths.

What cloud storage does Backup support?​

Any storage supported by rclone: AWS S3, Backblaze B2, Wasabi, Cloudflare R2, MinIO, Google Drive, Dropbox, SFTP, and more. See rclone docs for the full list.

Licensing​

Can I use one license on multiple machines?​

Yes — each plan allows activation on 3 devices. Manage or revoke devices from koreshell.io/dashboard or Settings → License → Deactivate.

What happens when I upgrade from monthly to annual?​

Your new annual license key is emailed immediately. Deactivate the monthly key in Settings → License, then activate the annual key. Your data is unaffected.

What happens when my trial expires?​

SSH, SFTP, monitoring, backups, and deployments are disabled. Your servers, vault data, keys, and history are kept intact — activate a license at any time to resume.

Support​

Still stuck? Email support@koreshell.io. Include your OS, KoreShell version (Settings → About), and a description of the issue.