SuperPuTTY and WinSCP

Software tools on Windows PC for routine work.

SuperPuTTY

Steps to install and set up SuperPutty

1. Install Putty. Version 0.76 is installed in a folder under C:\Program Files\PuTTY (vs. just one file putty.exe).

PuTTY stores setup data (saved sessions, SSH host keys) in the Registry. The location is

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\SimonTatham\PuTTY

To configure PuTTY, such as log file location and font size (under Appearance), select and save them to "Default Settings".

 

2. Download SuperPuTTY from https://github.com/jimradford/superputty/releases (Release 1.5.0.0 is available in 2023).

3. Unzip the .zip file to a folder (e.g. c:\Putty\SuperPuTTY-1.5.0.0)

4. Create a shortcut on desktop pointing to file SuperPutty.exe

c:\Putty\SuperPuTTY-1.5.0.0>dir

 ... ...

01/29/2023  08:32 AM           44,464 License.rtf

01/29/2023  08:31 AM             1,129 License.txt

07/24/2022  11:40 PM          270,336 log4net.dll

01/29/2023  08:30 AM           20,623 ReleaseNotes.txt

05/29/2022  04:51 AM         804,352 Renci.SshNet.dll

01/29/2023  08:36 AM      1,090,560 SuperPutty.exe

01/29/2023  06:57 AM           10,378 SuperPutty.exe.config

01/29/2023  08:36 AM         794,112 SuperPutty.pdb

08/24/2023  06:54 PM    <DIR>        themes

08/27/2021  04:24 PM          244,736 WeifenLuo.WinFormsUI.Docking.dll

08/27/2021  04:24 PM            90,112 WeifenLuo.WinFormsUI.Docking.ThemeVS2005.dll

Initial setup info of SuperPutty is stored in file C:\Users\User_ID\SuperPuTTY.settings:

Tells where Putty is installed:

      <PuttyExe>C:\Program Files\Putty\putty.exe</PuttyExe>

Specifies a folder to hold server listing and session info:

      <SettingsFolder>c:\Putty\SuperPuTTY</SettingsFolder>

  

If needed, setup info can by changed by Tool -> Options.  File SuperPutty.exe.config holds configuration info.

 

To use the passwords on the command line or in a session, you must check the box 

"Allow plain text passwords on putty command line" in Tools -> Options -> Gui under security

You can disable the update check (Tools -> Options -> Advanced -> Uncheck Automatically check for updates) to avoid message in version 1.5.0.0:

Error during update check

There was an error while checking for updates. Please try again later.

Need to backup folder C:\Putty\SuperPuTTY from time to time (specially when a new server session is added to the list!). When a SuperPutty is installed on a new PC, you can restore the backup folder to the new PC. Then, point SuperPutty to this folder to transfer all connection info to the new PC. 

WinSCP 

On its login box, it has a Tools dropdown for Import/Restore Configuration and Export/Backup Configuration. 

I have WinSCP version 5.19.5 installed in C:\Program Files (x86)\WinSCP. Its configuration is stored in Windows registry HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Martin Prikryl\WinSCP 2

On my old laptop, I ran potable version 5.5.6 in a folder by unzipping file winscp556.zip. File WinSCP.ini in the folder has all configuration info. When a newer WinSCP version was installed on a new laptop, I copied the .ini file to the new computer and use Import to transfer the info to the newer version.

Exceed

Exceed is a tool for bringing X Window (e.g. GUI forms) from Linux/Unix session to your PC. It is owned by Open Text and is installed in folder C:\Program Files\Hummingbird\Connectivity. OpenText website says "In October 2006, OpenText™ acquired Hummingbird. Hummingbird’s enterprise software solutions, including Exceed, enabled the management of the life cycle of enterprise content."