Run SSH commands in C# .NET with examples

Today in this article, we will see how to run C# SSH Client commands in .NET with examples.

We will explore this option using the SSH.NET library for .NET/.NET Core.

Execution of the SSH command using the SSH.NET library is pretty simple.

Below is the list of high-level features supported by the SSH library (but not limited to).

• Provide SFTP functionality for both synchronous and asynchronous operations.

• Provides SCP functionality.

• Execution of SSH command using both synchronous and asynchronous methods.

• Provide a status report for upload and download SFTP operations to allow accurate progress bar implementation.

• Supports public-key, password, and keyboard-interactive authentication methods.

• Supports two-factor or higher authentication.

• Supports SOCKS4, SOCKS5, and HTTP Proxy.

Execution of the SSH command using the SSH.NET library is pretty simple.

Getting Started

Create any .NET Core application like a console application,

Add SSH.NET Nuget package as below,

Package Manager Console,

Install-Package SSH.NET -Version 2020.0.2

Note: Please use the latest version.

Remote C# SSH Client Connect using class SshClient

SSH.NET provides SshClient class that lets you connect to the server securely and access files let you perform server-side operations like login, reboot, connect services and restart the services.

Below is the sample code connected to the server using SSH.

 using (var client = new SshClient("Server/IP", "UserName", "Password"))
            {
                client.Connect();
             }

As shown above, you need a server name/IP, Username, and password to connect to the remote server remotely.

Lets now see fee c# ssh.net examples

C# SSH.NET command execution – Example

Now that we have completed the setup, Let’s see a few examples of commands,

Example 1 – executes apt update or upgrade SSH command,

using (var sshClient = new SshClient("Server/IP", "UserName", "Password"))
            {
                sshClient.Connect();
                var cmd = sshClient.CreateCommand("apt update && apt upgrade -y");
                var asyncExecute = cmd.BeginExecute();
            }

Example 2 – Create a directory or Folder structure SSH Command

In this example, we are executing a shell command to create a directory in the target server/machine.

using (var sshClient = new SshClient("Server/IP", "UserName", "Password"))
            {
                sshClient.Connect();
                sshClient.RunCommand("mkdir -p /home/root/thecodebuzz /home/root/thecodebuzz/uploads /home/root/thecodebuzz/downloads");
            }

Example 3 – networking restart/start/stop SSH command

Use the following command to restart the server networking service. 

 using (var sshClient = new SshClient("Server/IP", "UserName", "Password"))
            {
                sshClient.Connect();
                sshClient.RunCommand("/etc/init.d/networking restart");
            }

Use the following command to stop the server networking services

using (var sshClient = new SshClient("Server/IP", "UserName", "Password"))
        {
            sshClient.Connect();
            sshClient.RunCommand("etc/init.d/networking stop");
        }

Do you have any comments or ideas or any better suggestions to share?

Please sound off your comments below.

Happy Coding !!

---

Please bookmark this page and share it with your friends. Please Subscribe to the blog to receive notifications on freshly published (2025) best practices and guidelines for software design and development.

---

Do you have any comments or ideas or any better suggestions to share?

Please sound off your comments below.

Happy Coding !!

---

Please bookmark this page and share it with your friends. Please Subscribe to the blog to receive notifications on freshly published (2025) best practices and guidelines for software design and development.

---