Local forward

SSH local port forwarding on iPhone, iPad and Mac

By Aime Tech Media Limited · AnyPane

A local forward opens a port on your device and relays one remote address through an SSH connection. Use it for a development tool or admin page that should stay off the wider network.

Create the forward

1. Open Local Forwards and add a forward.
2. Choose the SSH connection that can reach the service.
3. Keep the bind address at 127.0.0.1 or ::1. AnyPane rejects other bind addresses, so another device on your network cannot connect to that local port.
4. Leave the local port empty to let AnyPane choose one, or set a port yourself.
5. Set the target port. Target address 127.0.0.1 means the service runs on the SSH server itself. Change it only to a host that the SSH server can reach.

The forward is saved separately from workspace panes, and it is saved disabled. Enable it under Local Forwards when you need it, then stop it when you are finished. Relaunching AnyPane does not turn it on again. Closing a pane does not remove the saved forward.

A listening local port means the forward is open on your device. It does not show that the remote service is healthy.

Example: open a remote development web app

Suppose a web app listens on 127.0.0.1:3000 on your SSH server. Choose that server’s SSH connection, bind to 127.0.0.1 with local port 8080, and set the target address to 127.0.0.1 and target port to 3000. Enable the forward, then open http://127.0.0.1:8080 in a browser on the same device. These ports are examples; use the ones appropriate for your service.

The bind address belongs to your device; the target address is resolved from the SSH server. The SSH tunnel protects traffic to the SSH server, not an onward connection to a different target host. Keep the service’s own authentication enabled.

If the local page does not open

If the local port is already in use, choose a different port or leave it empty and use the port AnyPane assigns. If the forward is listening but the page still fails, check the target service, its port and the SSH server’s TCP forwarding policy. Use HTTP or HTTPS according to the service’s configuration; the tunnel does not change that protocol.

On iPhone and iPad, switching to a browser may put AnyPane in the background, where the system can interrupt the connection. Return to AnyPane and check the forward’s status if the page stops responding.

Limits

Remote port forwarding and SOCKS proxies are not supported. AnyPane does not provide the SSH server or the internal service. Minimum systems: iOS/iPadOS 17 and macOS 15.

Use one SSH jump host →
Prefer VNC over SSH →
Check connection requirements →

For iPhone, iPad and Mac.