---
name: "endlessh"
section: "1"
platform: "linux"
package: "endlessh"
version: "1.1-5.1"
release: "Debian 13 (Trixie)"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/endlessh"
---

# endlessh(1)

SSH tarpit

## NAME

**endless** – SSH tarpit

## SYNOPSIS

**endless** \[**-46chsvV**\] \[**-d** *delay*\] \[**-f** *config*\] \[**-l** *max* *banner* *length*\] \[**-m** *max* *clients*\] \[**-p** *port*\]

## DESCRIPTION

**endless** is an SSH tarpit that very slowly sends an endless, random SSH banner.

**endless** keeps SSH clients locked up for hours or even days at a time. The purpose is to put your real SSH server on another port and then let the script kiddies get stuck in this tarpit instead of bothering a real server.

Since the tarpit is in the banner before any cryptographic exchange occurs, this program doesn't depend on any cryptographic libraries. It's a simple, single-threaded, standalone C program. It uses poll() to trap multiple clients at a time.

The options are as follows:

- **-4**

  Forces **endless** to use IPv4 addresses only.

- **-6**

  Forces **endless** to use IPv6 addresses only.

- **-d** *delay*

  Message milliseconds delay. Default: 10000

- **-f** *config*

  Set and load config file. By default **endless** looks for /etc/endlessh/config.

- **-h**

  Print the help message and exit.

- **-l** *max* *banner* *length*

  Maximum banner line length (3-255). Default: 32

- **-m** *max* *clients*

  Maximum number of clients. Default: 4096

- **-p** *port*

  Set the listening port. By default **endless** listens on port 2222.

- **-s**

  Print diagnostics to syslog. By default **endless** prints them to standard output.

- **-v**

  Print diagnostics. Can be specified up to twice to increase verbosity.

- **-V**

  Causes **endless** to print version information and exit.

If **endless** receives the SIGTERM signal it will gracefully shut down the daemon, allowing it to write a complete, consistent log.

A SIGHUP signal requests a reload of its configuration file.

A SIGUSR1 signal will print connections stats to the log.

## FILES

- */etc/endlessh/config*

  The default **endless** configuration file.