PuTTY
free and open-source terminal emulator, serial console and network file transfer application
PuTTY () is a free and open-source terminal emulator, serial console and network file transfer application. It supports several network protocols, including SCP, SSH, Telnet, rlogin, and raw socket connection. It can also connect to a serial port. The name "PuTTY" has no official meaning.
PuTTY was originally written for Microsoft Windows, but it has been ported to various other operating systems. Official ports are available for some Unix-like platforms, with work-in-progress ports to Classic Mac OS and macOS, and unofficial ports have been contributed to platforms such as Symbian, Windows Mobile and Windows Phone.
PuTTY was written and is maintained primarily by Simon Tatham, a British programmer.
Features
PuTTY supports many variations on the secure remote terminal, and provides user control over the SSH encryption key and protocol version, alternate ciphers such as AES, 3DES, RC4, Blowfish, DES, and public-key authentication. PuTTY uses its own format of key files – PPK (protected by Message Authentication Code). PuTTY supports SSO through GSSAPI, including user provided GSSAPI DLLs.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “PuTTY” as free and open-source terminal emulator, serial console and network file transfer application. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
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The subject matters to the general reference register because the source frames it as free and open-source terminal emulator, serial console and network file transfer application. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 22, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q841685. 2 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 2 carry qualifiers and 1 use preferred rank.
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This entry incorporates text from “PuTTY” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.