rootshell - Terminal Emulator for Apple Platforms
Beautiful by Design
Featuring stunning animated backgrounds including the signature solar effect,<br>rootshell transforms terminal work into a visual experience.
Animated starfield background with GPU-accelerated rendering
Dynamic solar effect at sunrise
Resizable split windows for multitasking
Powerful on iPhone
Full local shell access on iOS with beautiful backgrounds
Powerful Features
Everything you need for professional terminal work,<br>crafted with attention to detail.
Metal Accelerated
Built on libghostty for blazing-fast, GPU-accelerated terminal rendering. Buttery smooth scrolling and instant response.
Built-in AI Agent
Chat with Claude, ChatGPT, or Gemini directly in your terminal. Execute commands, search the web, and get help with streaming markdown responses.
Git Version Control
Full native Git CLI powered by libgit2. Clone, push, pull, and fetch over SSH with the built-in SSH client. Supports init, commit, diff, log, blame, branch, and more with syntax-highlighted output.
Vim 9 & Helix Editor
Full Vim 9.2 with 24-bit color, syntax highlighting, and the huge feature set. Plus the Helix editor with tree-sitter support and system clipboard.
Rootshell Roam
Mosh-compatible sessions with STUN-based firewall traversal. Roam between WiFi and cellular without dropping, resume instantly after app restarts, and enjoy predictive local echo on high-latency connections.
QUIC & KCP Transport
UDP-based terminal sessions via tssh with TLS 1.3 (QUIC) or AES-GCM-256 (KCP) encryption. Full native scrollback, lower latency than mosh, and session resumption surviving app termination and device reboots.
Post-Quantum Cryptography
ML-KEM hybrid key exchange and ML-DSA host key signatures protect your sessions against future quantum attacks. End-to-end post-quantum security for SSH.
SSH VPN
Turn any SSH server into a full system VPN with QUIC and KCP transport. Home Screen and Lock Screen widgets, Dynamic Island live stats, Control Center toggle, and Siri integration. Per-profile DNS and route exclusions.
Hardware Security Keys
SSH authentication with YubiKey PIV, FIDO2, or Secure Enclave. Private keys never leave the hardware. Supports NFC and USB-C.
Native SSH Client
Integrated SSH with a client library written entirely in Swift. Port forwarding, key generation, and password storage with no external dependencies.
GPG Agent Forwarding
Sign git commits and other GPG operations on the remote without ever copying your private key. The device acts as the GPG agent and forwards it over SSH or tssh — reuse SSH keys (incl. YubiKey PIV) or import standalone signing keys, with per-connection approval modes.
And So Much More
Every detail considered. Every workflow covered.
Networking & Infrastructure
Tailscale Integration
Discover and connect to tailnet devices with OAuth authentication.
Kubernetes Support
Debug pod injection and multi-cluster kubeconfig import.
Background SSH Tunnels
Always-on port forwards with auto-start and transfer monitoring.
Multipath TCP
Seamless WiFi/cellular handover without reconnection.
Connection Health
Real-time latency and packet loss charts with tab bar indicators.
MCP Server
Let Claude Code and other AI tools execute commands securely.
Built-in Tools
Local Shell & Utilities
Full shell on iOS with SFTP, SCP, curl with HTTP/2, jq, bat, and more.
Network Diagnostics
Native mtr, traceroute, and ping with truecolor TUI and AS lookups.
Inline Images
Display PNG, JPEG, and HEIC images in terminal via imgcat.
Clickable Hyperlinks
Interactive URLs with Cmd+click, context menus, and copy link.
Custom Keyboard Toolbar
Fully customizable virtual keyboard toolbar with drag reordering and custom key sequences.
Mod-Tap Keys
QMK-style dual-function keys for hardware keyboards. Tap or hold for different actions.
Customization & Productivity
iCloud Sync
Keys, profiles, history, and settings sync across all devices.
Session Persistence
Windows, tabs, splits, and scrollback restore on launch.
Tabs, Splits & Profiles
Unlimited tabs and splits. Save connections with tags and folders.
450+ Themes & Visual Effects
Day/night themes, custom themes, video backgrounds, and Shadertoy shaders.
Custom Fonts & Nerd Fonts
Import TTF/OTF fonts with font features. Nerd Fonts included.
Touch Text Selection
Elegant selection with magnifier loupe, drag handles, and context menus.
One App, Every Apple Device
rootshell is a universal app built natively for each platform,<br>optimized for the unique capabilities of every device.
iPhone
Full terminal power in your pocket. Perfect for quick server checks on the go.
iPad
Split view multitasking, keyboard support, and Stage Manager ready for serious work.
Vision Pro
Immersive terminal experience in spatial computing. Multiple windows in infinite space.
Mac
Native macOS app with transparency, menu bar integration, and all the power you expect.
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