Source
r/sysadmin•
JrSysAdmin

What are the must have programs to manage Linux boxes from a Windows client?

I work in a primarily Windows shop but around 30% of our servers (primarily web) are CentOS machines.

Given that my client machine is built on Windows 7, what would you recommend as the must have tools to properly manage Linux from my Windows laptop?

I'm looking to put together a list for current and future reference.

Thanks in advance.

Posted Dec 14, 2011, 1:37 PM UTC

126
tommyd_pl•

PuTTY, WinSCP

13
liquusMaster of Nothing•

DRAC..iLO...RAC...

3
gojasonwJack of All Trades•

PuTTY and WinSCP are good but lately I find myself using Cygwin. Just feels a bit more like home I guess.

5
oiwot/usr/bin/yes•

Just feels a bit more like ~ I guess.

FTFY

7
[deleted]•

PuTTy, SecureCRT also good.

4
hi_in_fiber•

SecureCRT blows PuTTy out of the water, but of course it's not free. The scripting feature and tabs alone is worth the price.

1
ak104Network Admin•

A 12-Step program would also be helpful. You'll likely need it.

4
darksim905Hot Spare Admin | @darksim905•

PuTTy, maybe WinSCP to make your life easier managing files.

WinSCP is also useful for file permissions, even on Windows...

3
JrSysAdminOPSr. IT Consultant•

These are the two I've been using for years but I was just wondering if there was anything else out there that I'd been missing out on.

Thanks for the input.

1
oiwot/usr/bin/yes•

If you're connecting to various different servers, you can make logins much easier with SSH keys and using Pageant to authenticate. See the manual for details.

4
darksim905Hot Spare Admin | @darksim905•

I especially like WinSCP in Windows because you can pull up a file and see the RWX permissions and play around with them in a different way than the security dialogs and such. :0)

2
SudosSandwich•

MRemoteNG

Does SSH/TELNET/HTTP(S) from one console.

3
UndeadBelaLugosi•

mRemoteNG is great. I also have a Linux laptop as well as a Windows laptop.

2
akashaniSr. Linux Admin @startup #8•

I'm one of those odd sysadmins that prefers a Windows laptop and manages a 100% Linux environment. My work environment is setup like this.

  • SecureCRT, accept no substitute. It's a $100 and worth it.
  • Virtualbox and then install one each Linux distro you support. In my case that's Ubuntu 32/64, Fedora 16 64bit, and Centos 5.7 64bit.
  • I run a Gentoo Linux VM for development
  • I run a Ubuntu 10.04 VM for connecting to other machines. Makes pushing code and automation updates simpler when they are separated. Write in one, deploy in the other.
  • Wincp though SecureCRT supports zmodem so I usually install lrzsz on a VM and zmodem files to the local VM rather than fire up another program. Then scp or rsync from the Linux VM to where ever it needs to go.
  • ssh keys everywhere. I type my key in when I reboot and that's it.

The benefit of the above is getting to local Linux VMs as local environments that are the same to the machines I manage while having a laptop that can dock to dual monitors without major X gymnastics.

editing: cleanup of grammar and some clarification

3
JrSysAdminOPSr. IT Consultant•

This is very helpful, thanks.

2
FluR0•

Thanks for the info, posting so I can get here quick when I'm back on windows.

1
labmansteveI Am The RID Master!•

I manage all my linux boxes using nothing more than putty and a KVM.

2
damoek•

SecureCRT, cygwin, Vnc

2
puremessagebeep -f 2000 -r 999999•

this covers a lot of my wants

i'm not a big fan of his BBlean thing but oh well.

2
cheeseprocedurewatchen das blinkenlichten•

While these aren't purely management applications, consider installing GNU tools for Windows. You may encounter less frustration as you switch back and forth:

http://getgnuwin32.sourceforge.net

2
JrSysAdminOPSr. IT Consultant•

Awesome, thanks.

1
BitpatternDesignatorI dislike being labeled•

I just use Linux to manage my Linux servers but I'm hearing a lot of positive reviews about Console2 lately.

1
JrSysAdminOPSr. IT Consultant•

Very interesting, thanks!

1
lordmycal•

I like bitvise tunnelier as an alternative to PuTTY & WinSCP. Handles both tasks quite nicely.

1
balorgJack of All Trades•

FreeNX if you need to use the GUI.

1
thestephenh•

ultravnc, putty, winscp,

1