Tip: Easy-Access LaunchBar Terminal “Bookmarks”

Here’s a very little but very useful tip for you Mac OS X 10.3 users who use the fantastic LaunchBar utility and frequently connect to remote servers via the Apple-provided Terminal application:

1. Create a folder somewhere cozy in your home directory and it “Remote Servers”, “SSH Servers”, “Shells”, or something of that ilk.
2. In Terminal, open a new terminal window with color and font settings you like and go to File -> Save As…
3. Select the radio button in the lower portion of the Save dialog next to “Execute This Command,” and enter in the associated text field, with the appropriate substitutions:

Whether or not to run the SSH process in a shell depends on if you want the window just disappearing when you log out of the remote server (don’t run in a shell) or want it to linger about telling you that it’s done its duty (do run in a shell).

1. Give this terminal file the name of your.server.com.
2. Repeat as necessary for all servers you frequently connect to.
3. Now in LaunchBar, go to Configuration -> Open Configuration and click the “Add…” button, followed in the next dialog by the “Custom” option.
4. Select the folder you created in Step 1.
5. Once your folder appears in the list of directories that LaunchBar scans, click on it and in the drop-down details palate set Scan Type to “Any File.” Save your configuration and tell LaunchBar to scan the selected item.

You’re now able to open a connection to your most-used remote servers with a mere Command-Space and the first few letters of the server name! LaunchBar will present you with your Terminal file(s), and simply hitting Return will launch a new Terminal window containing a new SSH connection to that remote machine.

If you really want to streamline your remote work, consider generating an SSH keypair and uploading your public key as an authentication token: you’ll be automatically logged in on supported servers! Here is a solid tutorial on this process, and many others can be found.

For more Mac OS X tips and tricks see Mac OS X Hints. Enjoy!