Hermit

A focused iOS SSH client built for developers who live in tmux and Claude Code.

Hermit is not a general-purpose terminal emulator. It connects to remote dev machines, attaches to named tmux sessions, and provides configurable soft keys and voice input for working with Claude Code from your phone.

Download from the iOS App Store

Features

• SSH connections with private key authentication
• tmux session attach or raw shell
• Configurable ribbon bar with soft keys (send strings, ESC, voice input)
• xterm.js terminal rendering via WKWebView
• Super Whisper voice transcription integration
• Automatic iCloud Drive sync across devices
• Dark mode enforced
• Portrait-only for v1

Requirements

• iOS 17+
• Xcode 16+

Getting Started

1. Clone the repo
2. Open Hermit/Hermit.xcodeproj in Xcode
3. Build and run on a simulator or device

iCloud Drive Sync

Session and host configuration is stored in hermit-data.json in your iCloud Drive container. This syncs automatically across all devices signed into the same iCloud account. You can edit this file directly from a Mac:

# In Finder
iCloud Drive → Hermit → Documents → hermit-data.json

# Or via terminal
~/Library/Mobile Documents/iCloud~com~zeromissionllc~hermit/Documents/hermit-data.json

Private keys are stored in the iOS Keychain and do not sync — they must be added per device.

Fastlane

TestFlight and App Store deployment is automated via Fastlane.

cd Hermit
bundle install
cp fastlane/.env.example fastlane/.env
# Fill in your credentials in .env
bundle exec fastlane beta      # Upload to TestFlight
bundle exec fastlane release   # Submit for App Store review

See fastlane/.env.example for required environment variables.

Architecture

Concern	Decision
Language	Swift, SwiftUI
SSH Library	Citadel (SwiftNIO SSH) — integration pending
Terminal	xterm.js in WKWebView
Data persistence	JSON in iCloud Drive (local fallback)
Key storage	iOS Keychain
Code signing	Xcode automatic signing

Project Structure

Hermit/
├── App/            # App entry point, URL scheme handling
├── Models/         # Host, Session, RibbonConfig, AppSettings
├── Storage/        # DataStore (JSON + iCloud), KeychainManager
├── SSH/            # SSHConnectionManager, TerminalBridge (WKWebView)
├── Voice/          # VoiceInputCoordinator, SuperWhisperProvider
├── Views/          # All SwiftUI views
├── Resources/      # terminal.html (xterm.js bundle)
└── fastlane/       # Fastfile, Matchfile, Appfile

Open Source

Hermit is open source so you can review exactly what runs on your device and how your SSH credentials are handled. Licensed for personal use — this software may not be sold or redistributed commercially.

Support Open Source

If you find Hermit useful, consider donating to one of the projects that make it possible:

• Citadel — Swift SSH library built on SwiftNIO
• xterm.js — Terminal frontend component
• SwiftNIO — Event-driven networking framework for Swift

License

Personal use only. See LICENSE for details.