CH-J Server Managerserver management over SSH
PROJECT DOCUMENTATION

How Server Manager works

An overview of the Core application, secure connections, installable plugins, and distribution channels for Windows, macOS, and Linux.

Current branchCore 0.0.1alpha
01

About the project

CH-J Server Manager brings SSH server management, profiles, a terminal, SFTP files, and extension tools together in one desktop application.

Small Core, separate tools

Sensitive operations remain in Core. Features such as monitoring and file management run as isolated sandboxed plugins with narrowly scoped permissions.

02

Main features

Encrypted vault

Profiles, saved SSH passwords, and known host keys are protected with scrypt and AES-256-GCM. The master password is never stored on disk.

Server profiles

Save a host or IP, port, user, SSH key, and optional password for repeated connections.

SSH terminal

Interactive terminal with host-key fingerprint verification and DNS, IPv4, and IPv6 connectivity.

Installable plugins

Each tool is a standalone verified package that can be installed, updated, or removed without modifying Core.

Update catalog

Core lists all compatible builds, distinguishes same-version releases by date, and verifies both size and SHA-512.

Three languages

The app and website support Czech, German, and English with automatic environment-based selection.

03

Available plugins

Plugins have no general access to Node.js, the filesystem, or the network. They use only capabilities provided by Core.

System Monitor

CPU and core types, RAM, swap, filesystem, uptime, and network interface state including RX/TX.

File Manager

SFTP browsing, upload, download, recursive operations, archives, and an offline Monaco Editor.

Key Generator

Generate modern and explicitly confirmed legacy SSH keys in OpenSSH, PEM, and PPK formats.

Log Viewer

Safely view a bounded tail of the Core log with filtering and automatic refresh.

Users

List accounts and perform bounded administrative actions without giving the plugin a general remote shell.

NGINX Manager

NGINX configuration inventory and editor, effective nginx -T output, nginx -t validation, timestamped backups, automatic rollback, and confirmed graceful reload without a general remote shell.

04

Security model

Core separates the user interface, privileged operations, server sessions, and plugins. Every boundary validates inputs and permitted capabilities.

  • Local secrets are authenticated and encrypted.
  • First-seen and changed SSH host keys require confirmation.
  • Renderer and plugin windows run sandboxed without Node integration.
  • Downloaded packages are verified by size and SHA-512.
Temporary alpha TLS mode

The test Core accepts the certificate only for its fixed HTTPS server without CA validation. Standard TLS verification and signed manifests will be restored before public distribution.

05

Updates and channels

The application and plugins have separate channel selections. macOS uses a ZIP for first installation and a DMG for updates.

Alpha

The newest test builds, which may change quickly.

Beta

More functionally complete builds intended for broader testing.

Stable

Verified releases intended for normal use.

Open all releases
06

Current support status

Core 0.0.1 is an actively developed alpha. Package availability does not mean that every feature is fully supported on that platform.

macOS

The current Apple Silicon alpha includes Plugin API 1.1 and all six published plugins. The package is not yet notarized by Apple.

Windows

A working x64 alpha is available, but the current release still uses Plugin API 1.0; NGINX Manager therefore requires a new Windows build.

Ubuntu / Linux

No Ubuntu/Linux package has been published yet and end-to-end installation and update testing is not complete.

What is not stable yet

Remaining work includes standard TLS certificate validation in Core, signed update metadata and platform packages, legacy data migration, Safe Mode, and complete tests on every supported operating system.

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