SSHFS: mount remote files as local folder

FTP, rsync, SCP - there are many ways to access files remotely. SSHFS is the most transparent: you mount a folder on a remote server as a local disk. You just work in it via the Finder, your editor or the terminal, as if the files were local. No extra ports, no separate protocol - pure SSH.

Installation

macOS

brew install sshfs

On newer macOS versions, you also need macFUSE. Install that first via the website or via brew install --cask macfuse.

Ubuntu / Debian

sudo apt install sshfs

Arch Linux

yay -S sshfs

Fedora / Red Hat

sudo dnf install sshfs

Remote folder mounting

Step 1 - Create a local mountpoint:

mkdir -p ~/shares/server

Step 2 - Mount the remote folder:

sshfs gebruiker@server.nl:/pad/naar/map ~/shares/server

Replace:

• user → your user name on the remote server
• server.nl → IP address or hostname
• /path/to/map → the path on the server you want to mount

Step 3 - Navigate in it like a regular folder:

cd ~/shares/server
ls -la

Or open it in the Finder on macOS:

open ~/shares/server

Convenient options

# Use a different SSH port
sshfs -p 2222 gebruiker@server.nl:/pad ~/shares/server

# Automatically reconnect on loss of connection
sshfs -o reconnect gebruiker@server.nl:/pad ~/shares/server

# Specify SSH key explicitly
sshfs -o IdentityFile=~/.ssh/id_ed25519 gebruiker@server.nl:/pad ~/shares/server

# Combination
sshfs -p 2222 -o reconnect,IdentityFile=~/.ssh/id_ed25519 gebruiker@server.nl:/pad ~/shares/server

Unmounting

# macOS
umount ~/shares/server

# Linux
fusermount -u ~/shares/server

Automatic mounting at login

If you want to make the mount persistent, add it to /etc/fstab (Linux):

gebruiker@server.nl:/pad /home/jou/shares/server fuse.sshfs defaults,_netdev,IdentityFile=/home/jou/.ssh/id_ed25519 0 0

On macOS, you can create a login item or launchd-plist that executes the sshfs command at login.

Safety

• Use SSH keys instead of passwords - faster and more secure
• Limit SSH access via firewall to trusted IP addresses
• Run SSH on a non-standard port to reduce automatic scanning traffic
• Use AllowUsers in /etc/ssh/sshd_config to restrict access to specific users