How much real work fits on Android
The honest scope is narrow and useful. A phone is a good place to read a diff, run a command on a server, make a one line fix and push it. It is a bad place to write anything long, and every attempt to make it one has ended in a folding keyboard, at which point it is a small laptop with extra steps.
What fits and what does not
- SSH into a server and fix something
- Review a pull request and comment
- A one line change and a commit
- Reading logs and documentation
- Running a script you wrote earlier
- Writing a feature
- Anything needing two files side by side
- Compiling a large project
- Debugging with a real debugger
- Refactoring of any size
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The toolkit
A full Linux environment with a package manager. Editors, compilers, version control and scripting languages all install into it. The foundation everything else here sits on.
A small, old, reliable SSH client. When the fancier one will not connect, this one does.
The most comfortable SSH experience on Android, with key management that is actually pleasant to use.
Termius. Host and key sync across machines, which is the feature you want when the phone is a third device rather than the only one.
Turns the phone into an SSH server, so a laptop can reach into it. Useful for moving files and for automation.
Review a pull request properly, including inline comments and the file diff. This is the app that makes a phone genuinely useful in a review queue.
A capable code editor with syntax highlighting and SFTP support, so you can edit a file on a server directly.
The alternative editor, with a broader language list and a solid file browser.
Markdown and plain text with a live preview. The right tool for documentation and commit messages.
For notes that link to each other, kept as plain files in a folder you control and can sync however you like.
A tunnel into the network where the servers live, which is the prerequisite for most of the above.
Shared clipboard between phone and desktop. Sounds trivial, saves an error prone retyping of a token several times a day.
Device details when you are testing on hardware and need to know exactly what the hardware is.
More thorough for the same job, including sensors and the exact Android build.
Inspect a link before opening it, and strip tracking parameters from one you are about to share in an issue.
A setup worth the twenty minutes
- Install the terminal and its extra keys row The default has no Escape or Control. The extra keys setting is the first thing to turn on.
- Generate a key on the phone, do not copy one A key that exists only on the phone can be revoked when the phone is lost, without touching your other machines.
- Set up the VPN or the jump host next Everything after this assumes you can reach the machines.
- Install a real editor inside the terminal The one you already know. Muscle memory is worth more than a touch friendly interface.
- Test the whole path once on mobile data Not on the home WiFi. The failure you are preparing for happens somewhere else.
Terminal, SSH key, VPN, an editor you already know. That covers the work a phone can actually do, and it is more than you would think.
Frequently asked questions
Can I run a web server or a database on the phone?
Yes, inside the terminal environment, and it works better than it sounds. Battery and background limits are the practical constraints rather than performance.
Is it safe to keep SSH keys on a phone?
With a passphrase and a screen lock, yes, and it is safer than a key on a laptop left in a bag. Use a separate key so it can be revoked alone.
Why does the terminal app get killed in the background?
Battery optimisation. Exempt it in the settings and use its wake lock, or a long running command will stop when the screen goes off.
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