ControlDesk for Mac

Support

A clear path from your first connection to your everyday server work.

Create your first connection

  1. Select New Connection or press Command–N.
  2. Enter a name, host address, SSH port and username. Use a host name or IP address, without an ssh:// prefix.
  3. Choose password authentication or select an OpenSSH Ed25519, RSA or ECDSA private key through the native file picker.
  4. Open the saved connection. Enter the password or key passphrase for this session.
  5. Compare the displayed SHA256 server fingerprint with one supplied by your administrator over a trusted channel. Trust it only when it matches.

A server key changed

Stop and verify the change with the server administrator. Reinstallation or key rotation can cause a legitimate change, but an unexpected change can indicate a different server or interception. ControlDesk blocks authentication until you explicitly approve the new identity.

Authentication fails

Check the username, SSH port and server authentication settings. Version 1.0 supports passwords, OpenSSH Ed25519, RSA and ECDSA keys, including encrypted keys with a passphrase, keyboard-interactive and MFA prompts, jump hosts and SSH config import. Hardware security keys are not supported. If a key bookmark becomes stale, select the key again in Edit Connection.

Connection or file browsing fails

Run Network Check for the selected connection. A successful TCP check means the port is reachable; it does not prove SSH authentication will work. Check VPN and firewall settings. SFTP requires the server's SFTP subsystem and file permissions. Uploads do not overwrite existing files; use a new filename. The text editor supports UTF-8 files below 2 MB and asks before replacing remote contents. Keep backups of important files before editing them.

Metrics are unavailable

Live metrics require Linux with readable /proc data and standard POSIX shell tools on the remote server. Python is not required. SSH and SFTP can still work without monitoring support. Preview metrics are explicitly labelled sample data.

Try the offline preview

Select Explore Preview. It uses no network or credentials and does not execute commands on your Mac. Try uname -a, df -h or clear to explore the sample terminal.

Privacy and app data

Command history is off by default. Settings lets you clear history and trusted keys. Read the privacy policy for stored data and permissions.

Contact Lizzian LLC

Email [email protected] with your ControlDesk version, macOS version, authentication method and a redacted error message. Never send passwords or private keys. Include steps to reproduce a bug if possible.