Browser Terminal
Open a root shell on your GPU box from a tab in the console. No SSH client, no key wrangling, no port forwarding — on the providers that support it.
Provider coverage
Available where the provider assigns the box a directly dialable address — DataCrunch, Hot Aisle, Hyperstack, Massed Compute and Vultr. Dark by design on NAT/forwarded-port providers: VoltagePark, SimplePod's docker pool, Akash and Vast.ai. SSH is the path there, and the console tells you which case you are in.
What it is
Every Aquanode instance runs a small agent on the box. When the provider gives that box a directly reachable address, the console can attach a terminal straight to it: you open the Terminal tab on a running deployment and you are at a root prompt on the machine, in the browser.
It is a real shell, not a restricted console. nvidia-smi, apt, pip, tmux, editing files, tailing a training log — all of it works exactly as it does over SSH, because it is the same shell.
Why you would use it instead of SSH
Nothing replaces SSH for long sessions, and Aquanode gives you SSH on every VM. The browser terminal is for the moments where opening a client is the annoying part: checking whether the GPU is actually busy, reading why a startup script failed, or fixing a typo in a config from a machine that does not have your key.
It also means a teammate with console access can look at a box without you first adding their public key and redeploying.
How the console tells you which case you are in
The terminal is not silently missing when it is unavailable. Each deployment records whether a terminal could be attached and, if not, the machine-readable reason — so the console can say "this provider maps ports through NAT, use SSH" rather than showing a dead tab.
On a supported provider the deployment page shows Connection Available next to an Open Terminal control alongside the usual ssh command.
FAQ
Do I need an SSH client to use the browser terminal?
No. On a supported provider the terminal runs entirely in the browser from the deployment's Terminal tab, at a root prompt on the box. SSH remains available on every VM and is the right tool for long sessions.
Which providers support the browser terminal?
Providers that assign the instance a directly dialable address: DataCrunch, Hot Aisle, Hyperstack, Massed Compute and Vultr. It is unavailable by design on providers that map ports through NAT — VoltagePark, SimplePod's docker pool, Akash and Vast.ai — where SSH is the access path instead.
Is it a real root shell or a restricted console?
A real root shell on the instance. Anything you would run over SSH — nvidia-smi, package installs, editing files, attaching to a tmux session — behaves identically, because it is the same shell.
What happens if my provider does not support it?
The deployment records that the terminal is unavailable along with the reason, and the console surfaces it rather than showing a broken tab. Use the SSH command shown on the deployment page.
