---
id: dvc-ssh
version: "4.3.0"
license: Apache-2.0
license_treatment: permissive
maintenance: active
---

# dvc-ssh — ssh plugin for dvc

License: permissive · Maintenance: active · Downloads: 96.7K/mo

## What it is and what it does

dvc-ssh is a plugin that extends DVC (Data Version Control) to support SSH as a remote storage backend. It enables you to push and pull versioned datasets to and from remote machines over SSH, integrating SSH-based storage into DVC's data pipeline workflow.

The plugin works by adding SSH as a configurable remote storage option in DVC. Once installed alongside dvc and sshfs, it allows your DVC project to treat SSH servers as first-class remote storage targets, similar to how DVC handles S3, Azure, or local storage. This is useful for teams storing data on on-premises servers or when cloud storage is not an option.

Use it for:

- Store large datasets on an on-premises SSH server while using DVC to version and track them across team members
- Back up versioned data to a remote Linux server without requiring cloud storage infrastructure
- Integrate DVC pipelines with existing SSH-based data repositories in your organization
- Use SSH remotes as a staging area for data before moving to production storage systems

## Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts above — verify before relying.

Adds SSH remote storage support to DVC, allowing you to store and retrieve versioned data on remote SSH servers as part of your data pipeline.

Yes, if you need SSH remote storage for DVC. The plugin is actively maintained, has no known vulnerabilities, and carries a permissive license. Install friction is low. Only install if your workflow actually requires SSH remotes; if you use cloud storage or local remotes, this plugin adds no value.

## Install

pip install dvc-ssh
uv add dvc-ssh
poetry add dvc-ssh

## Installing dvc-ssh

Before you install: Low friction install with active maintenance. Last release 84 days ago, repository actively maintained with recent commits. Depends on dvc and sshfs, both standard packages.

License in practice: Apache-2.0 permissive license allows use in commercial and private projects with minimal restrictions.

Quickstart:

pip install dvc-ssh

from dvc.repo import Repo
repo = Repo()
repo.config.set('remote', 'myremote', 'url', 'ssh://user@host/path')

Requires Python >=3.9 and a working SSH connection to the target server.

Verify before relying:

- Whether sshfs system dependency is automatically installed or requires separate setup
- Specific SSH authentication methods supported (key-based, password, agent)
- Performance characteristics for large file transfers over SSH

## Package facts

- License: Apache-2.0 (permissive)
- Python support: supports_current
- Install friction: low
- Maintenance: active
- Downloads: 96.7K/month (top 15,000 on PyPI)
- Known vulnerabilities: none known

## Tags

dvc ssh remote storage, ssh plugin for dvc, remote data storage over ssh, dvc ssh backend, ssh data versioning, dvc remote ssh server, ssh filesystem dvc, dvc-plugin, remote-storage, data-versioning

[View on SkillFed](https://skillfed.io/packages/dvc-ssh) · [View on PyPI](https://pypi.org/project/dvc-ssh/)