SecureCRT 9.6

Overview

System and network administrators definitely need to use command line devices, and there's no time to waste looking for a tool which greatly fits them. So, to make things easier, we present you SecureCRT, a Windows-based SSH/Telnet client developed by VanDyke, available to users for $99 (and a 30-day evaluation period available for testing purposes before buying it). This program has a very easy to use interface and gives IT professionals the ability to manage network devices via SSH/Telnet protocols in a completely pleasant way.

Installation

Once you launch the installer you will be presented to the installation wizard, which will guide you through the installation steps. The only settings you’ll have to configure is select whether you want to use a personal or common profile installation (common affects all users), choose between Complete and Custom installation mode (in custom mode you can select which features will be installed, whereas in complete mode all features will be installed), as well as choose whether you want to install program shortcuts.

SecureCRT is cross-platform and can be installed under Windows (2003, XP, Vista, 7, 8, 8.1), Mac OS X and Linux (Ubuntu 12.x/13.x/14.x and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.0). Both 32 and 64-bit systems are supported.

Interface

First-time users will have to specify a folder in which configuration data will be stored. A default folder is already specified, so you can leave that if you don’t have any particular reason not to. Then, after accepting the License Agreement, a window will open and ask you if you want to create a passphrase in order to maximize security, since it can also save passwords in its database.

Afterwards you will be brought to the program’s main interface, and the Quick Connect window will be open, from where you can quickly and easily connect to a host by filling in the required details (protocol, hostname, port, etc.).

The main window has a session manager on its left side, where you can manage the active host sessions. These sessions also appear in the form of tabs in the main area of the window, which takes the place of the console window.

Pros

Supported protocols are SSH1, SSH2, Telnet, Telnet/SSL, RLogin, Serial, TAPI and RAW. Authentication is performed via Password, PublicKey, Keyboard Interactive or Kerberos v5 via GSSAPI.

One very important advantage of SecureCRT is its tabbed connections feature. All connections are stored in tabs, making things more organized and reducing the screen space taken by the active host session windows.

You can run scripts written in VBScript, JScript, PerlScript or Python. This is useful when you want to automate repetitive tasks and reduce the time and effort needed to perform them.

Cons

Even though it appears that SecureCRT is very easy to use despite is advanced functionality, its cost is a bit too much for someone who isn't a professional. There aren't any cons, other than that.

Alternatives

Alternatives to SecureCRT are mRemoteNG (free), MobaXterm (paid), Bitvise SSH Client (paid), Terminals (free), xshell (paid, SSH Terminal Emulator (paid), and of course, KiTTY (free) and PuTTY (free).

Conclusion

SecureCRT is a very interesting application for those who want to manage their network devices in a user-friendly environment with a lot of options.