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Quick Start to Windows

This guide provides instructions for connecting from the NoPorts desktop application, to a machine running Windows.

Step 9 to Step 11

Complete these steps on the machine you are connecting to (Windows)

On the machine you are connecting to

Step 9: Download and run the Installer

Download the NoPorts msi installer from GitHub. You can run the MSI inside the sshnp-windows zip.

Ensure both Core Tools & Daemon Service are being installed.

Step 10: Initiate atSign authorization request

Open a terminal (Command Prompt or PowerShell) and run the following command to make an authorization request.

Be sure to replace the following values:

@<REPLACE>_np with your device atSign,

<PASSCODE> with the passcode generated in Step 7,

<USER> with your Windows username,

@<REPLACE>_np_key with your device atSign,

<DEVICE_NAME> with the name of the machine you are on

at_activate.exe enroll -a "@<REPLACE>_np" `
  -s <PASSCODE> `
  -p noports `
  -k C:\Users\<USER>\.atsign\keys\@<REPLACE>_np_key.atKeys `
  -d <DEVICE_NAME> `
  -n "sshnp:rw,sshrvd:rw"

Once you see this text, you're ready to continue to the next step.

Submitting enrollment request 
Enrollment ID: ---------------------
Waiting for approval; will check every 10 seconds

If you encounter a handshake exception, it usually means your root certificates are outdated. To refresh them, run the following command with administrator privileges:Install-Script -Name UpdateRootCertificates

Step 11: Setup Service Config

The service config lives in C:\Program Data\NoPorts\sshnpd.yaml, you can open it in notepad buy running the following command:

Make sure you run notepad/terminal as administrator or else you won't be able to save your changes!

notepad C:\ProgramData\NoPorts\sshnpd.yaml

Ensure you provide the following fields to your service config:

  • atsign

    • atsign: example02_np

    • atsign: '@example02_np'

  • keys (windows path)

    • keys: C:\Users\alice\.atsign\keys\@example02_np_key.atKeys

  • manager

    • manager: example01_np

    • manager: '@example01_np'

Examples on how to fill in the fields are inside the config file.

Step 12 to Step 15

With both machines now configured, the final steps bring us back to the machine initiating the connection.

On the machine you are connecting from

Step 12: Approve the atSign authorization request

  1. Click on Requests and approve the pending request. The request will then move to the approved enrollments list.

  2. After a few seconds, the request will also show as approved on the machine you are connecting to.

Step 13: Switch back to your client atSign (@example01_np)

  1. Click on your atSign in the top right corner of the screen. This will open a list of atSigns that are currently signed into the app.

  2. Select your client atSign in order to switch to it.

Step 14: Create a Connection Profile

  1. If you aren't already on the Connections tab, click on Connections at the top of the Screen. Then click Add New, to create a new profile.

  2. Enter the following information into the profile then click Submit.

    1. Profile Name - The name that will be displayed in the profile list.

    2. Device atSign - Your device atSign (eg example02_np).

    3. Device Name - The name of your remote device.

    4. Relay - Select the relay sever closest to you for optimum speed.

    5. Local Port - The port you will use on your local machine.

    6. Local Host - The hostname or IP address to bind to on your local machine.

    7. Remote Host - The hostname or IP address of the machine you are connecting to.

    8. Remote Port - The port that will be used on the remote machine.

For reference, we've documented our most common use cases, including MCP, SSH, RDP, SFTP, Web Server, and SMB.

Step 15: Establish a connection

Click the Connect Icon ▶️ to establish a connection with your remote device. If the connection is successful, you will see green. If you see red, hover over the icon to see reason for failure.

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