How to Mount a Remote Directory on Your Local PC with sshfs

1. Install sshfs on Your Local PC

  • On a Linux machine (e.g., Ubuntu/Debian), install the sshfs package: 
    sudo apt update
sudo apt install sshfs
  • For macOS, install sshfs via Homebrew: 
    brew install macfuse
brew install sshfs
  • For Windows, use WinFsp and SSHFS-Win.

2. Create a Local Mount Point

Create a local directory where the remote filesystem will be mounted, for example:

mkdir ~/remote_home

3. Mount the Remote Directory with sshfs

Use the following command to mount the remote directory:

sshfs username@remote_host:/path/to/remote/home ~/remote_home
  • Replace username with your username on the remote server.
  • Replace remote_host with the address of your remote server (e.g., 192.168.1.100 or example.com).
  • Replace /path/to/remote/home with the path of the directory you want to mount (e.g., /home/user).

4. Useful Options

Here are some useful options to customize the mount:

  • Verbose mode (for debugging): Add -o debug.
  • Compression: Add -o compression=yes to compress transferred data.
  • Read-only mode: Add -o ro to mount in read-only mode.
  • Custom SSH port: If the server uses a non-standard SSH port (e.g., 1234): 
    sshfs username@remote_host:/path/to/remote/home ~/remote_home -p 1234
  • Preserve local permissions: 
    sshfs username@remote_host:/path/to/remote/home ~/remote_home -o uid=$(id -u),gid=$(id -g)

5. Unmount the Directory

To unmount the directory when you are done, use:

fusermount -u ~/remote_home

6. Automate with /etc/fstab (Optional)

If you want to mount the directory automatically at startup:

  1. Add a line to the /etc/fstab file: 
    sshfs#username@remote_host:/path/to/remote/home ~/remote_home fuse.sshfs defaults,_netdev 0 0
  2. Set up your SSH key to avoid entering the password every time.

7. Use an SSH Configuration File (Optional)

If you have specific SSH options (such as ProxyCommand or a custom port), configure them in ~/.ssh/config. Example:

Host remote_server
    HostName example.com
    User username
    Port 1234
    ProxyCommand ssh -W %h:%p jump_host

Then, simply use:

sshfs remote_server:/path/to/remote/home ~/remote_home

If you encounter any issues or need additional help, feel free to ask!

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