Local Unix terminal for iOS. Run Python, JavaScript, sh & all Unix commands locally on your phone, no network connection required.
Powerful when combined with Shortcuts.
a-Shell mini is a complete local terminal emulator, allowing to run most Unix commands on you iOS device. You can transfer files using scp and curl, edit them with vim and ed, process them using grep, awk and sed. Work with git repositories using lg2.
Most commands are compiled for iOS native Arm64 format, making them fast and well integrated with iOS underlying BSD Unix.
a-Shell mini includes Python, Lua, JavaScript and webAssembly for programming and scripting. It also includes native ffmpeg and convert for fast image and video conversion.
There are also multiple network utilities: nslookup, ping, whois, ifconfig... Type help for help, help -l to get the full list of commands.
a-Shell mini can be controlled from Shortcuts: run commands in order, process files in a-Shell, get the results as text or files, transfer files to other apps...
a-Shell mini uses iPadOS 13+ “multiple windows” ability, so you can run multiple shells at the same time, with different commands, in different directories. You can edit a file in one window with vim and process it in the other with python.
a-Shell mini is a minimalist terminal, designed to have a very small footprint (less than 250 MB). If you need more commands, please consider a-Shell, which has more Python packages, more JavaScript modules, Perl, make, a C and C++ compiler and TeX.
I find this app very useful for core operations like SSH to servers for management, pinging devices on the network, plus finding uptime on my iPhone, ifconfig info, etc.There’s a lot of functionality built into this pared down version of its sister app, a-Shell (the full featured app). a-Shell Mini omits all the Python and other scripting libraries in favor of a smaller footprint, which is fine by for my needs. Again, if you want to do development, go for the full version.Otherwise, I find a very useful tool in my IT toolbox.
Bad update (temporarily, it's fixed!)
brucebruce10
Edit: Great developer, it's fixed! 5 stars 🤩This app and the full a-shell are amazing. The recent update to version 2 makes the keyboard icons comically large on the left side and unusable on the right side. Of course apple doesn't allow us consumers to install a previous version of the app so I'm stuck with this unwanted change. Please add option to use old keyboard buttons, the new ones are such a disaster.
Developer Response
I don’t understand the issue that you describe (and it doesn’t happen on my test devices). If you could send a more detailed description with screenshots to another_shell@icloud.com? (Or using any of the bug reporting methods detailed in “help”)
Used to be good
synathleo
This app used to be pretty great. Now it's much less great, at least on an iPhone. Controls I relied on for reliable/manageable keyboard input are gone, like there's no way to scrollback in the shell history. There used to be. Maybe this is now optimized for an iPad UI? I don't have an iPad, so I can't compare. I can't reliably see what a backspace is doing. Seems like maybe it deletes things but the deletes don't display. Etc. I'm considering switching to something else, maybe even paying the outrageous $20/year Blink wants. Really frustrating, since I was quite happy with this app until a few months ago when things took a turn.
Developer Response
Use two-fingers scroll to scroll back in the shell history (this made text selection, with a single finger, more robust).I don't understand your issue with backspace (and could not reproduce it). Would you mind sending a more detailed description using one of the methods in the "help" command: e-mail (another_shell@icloud.com), Bluesky (@a-shell-ios.bsky.social), github (https://github.com/holzschu/a-shell/issues) or Discord (https://discord.gg/cvYnZm69Gy).
Perfect and Exactly what I needed
Gabri31Cary
I rarely review apps. But, I came from the blink shell emulator before they pay-walled it. Honestly I’m glad that did, because I much prefer having a-shell(mini on my phone) in my tool belt. It’s fast, simple, and it may not be “pretty” like blink or ish but it’s so lightweight and functional, and it isn’t paywalled. Just download and use. To the Dev, hat’s off to you good sir! Keep up the amazing work, and thank you so much!!
Fixed several bugs.
- one that caused a crash when entering control-escape
- one that caused a crash when clicking on screen while running certain commands
- one about the window dimensions on iPhones
Version 2.2.2
The developer, Nicolas Holzschuch, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .
Data Not Collected
The developer does not collect any data from this app.
Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More
The developer indicated that this app supports the following accessibility features. Learn More
Supported Features
VoiceOver
Larger Text
Dark Interface
Sufficient Contrast
Information
Seller
Nicolas Holzschuch
Size
391.3 MB
Category
Developer Tools
Compatibility
Requires iOS 14.0 or later.
iPhone Requires iOS 14.0 or later.
iPad Requires iPadOS 14.0 or later.
iPod touch Requires iOS 14.0 or later.
Mac Requires macOS 12.0.0 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip or later.
