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Conchshell for Windows

Version 2.16.0 · Windows 10 and 11, x64. A terminal, a file manager and a remote desktop — one window, one process.

Download for Windows

Windows

10 and 11, x64
Installer .exe 7.4 MBInstaller .msi 10.2 MB

The SmartScreen warning

The Windows builds are not code-signed yet, so SmartScreen shows Windows protected your PC on the first run. Press More info, then Run anyway. Signing is planned; until it ships, comparing the hash is the honest way to know what you have.

.exe or .msi?

The .exe is the ordinary installer — take it if you are installing on your own machine. The .msi is the one for Group Policy, Intune and anything else that deploys packages, and it installs unattended in the usual way:

msiexec /i Conchshell_2.16.0_x64_en-US.msi /qn

Verify what you downloaded

Auto-update checks a detached signature and refuses a build that does not match it. A file you download by hand is not checked for you, so compare its SHA-256 against the published list, in PowerShell or cmd:

certutil -hashfile Conchshell_2.16.0_x64-setup.exe SHA256

What it needs

System
Windows 10 and 11
Architecture
x64
Installers
.exe for your own machine, .msi for deployment
Runtime
Microsoft Edge WebView2 — already there on Windows 11; the installer fetches it from Microsoft if it is missing
Protocols
SSH, SFTP, FTPS, RDP
Account
Not required — there is nothing to register
Price
Free. One build, no tiers, nothing to unlock
Auto-update
Built in, and refuses a build whose signature does not match

What you get on Windows

A real terminal
xterm.js over a real PTY, drawn with WebGL. Split panes in four directions, tab groups, search and link detection, and the workspace comes back on the next launch.
Files without a second app
Local and remote directories side by side over SFTP or FTPS, drag and drop between them, a transfer queue with speed and ETA, and directory comparison before anything is synchronised.
RDP where your terminals already are
The remote desktop opens in the same window as the session that led you to it, or in a window of its own. No switching to a separate client.
Credentials in a vault, not a text file
XChaCha20-Poly1305 with Argon2id. Each saved credential is bound to its whole route — host, port, user, proxy and jump host — so pointing the connection somewhere else gets it refused.

Questions people actually ask

Is this a PuTTY replacement?

It does what PuTTY does — SSH with saved connections, keys and jump hosts — and puts SFTP, FTPS and RDP in the same window instead of in three more applications.

Do I need WSL?

No. It is a native Windows application. WSL is not involved and does not need to be installed.

Does it replace Remote Desktop Connection?

For everyday work, yes, with the session docked next to your terminals rather than in a separate window you have to find. One limit worth knowing: the connection authenticates over CredSSP, so a host with Network Level Authentication switched off is not supported.

Which installer should I use across a fleet?

The .msi — it takes the standard msiexec switches, so Group Policy, Intune and SCCM handle it like any other package. On images without Microsoft Edge WebView2 the installer reaches out to Microsoft for it, which matters if your machines install offline; Windows 11 already has it.

Is there a 32-bit or ARM build?

No. Windows builds are x64 only.

Do I have to retype my connections?

No. Connections, folders, profiles and settings import from a JSON bundle, and key files are referenced where they already sit on disk.

The same application, elsewhere

One codebase, one feature set. Nothing is held back for a particular operating system.

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