PuTTY

ApplicationSimon Tatham

Also called putty ssh, simon tatham putty

Simon TathamProductivity

Simon Tatham's classic SSH, Telnet, and serial client. The process is putty.exe. The official Windows download is on chiark.greenend.org.uk, not a random putty.org mirror.

What you need to know

Official PuTTY is Simon Tatham's page, not random putty.org mirrors.

putty.exe is the classic SSH and serial client. The real Windows binaries are on chiark.greenend.org.uk. Windows Terminal is a different product. WinSCP is a file GUI that often sits beside PuTTY.

What is it?: Classic SSH and serial client
Official download?: Simon Tatham's chiark page
Same as Windows Terminal?: No. Different product

Feex says

If someone mailed a putty.exe, I would open file location and check the publisher. Simon Tatham's official page is chiark.greenend.org.uk. I would not trust a putty.org lookalike.

What is PuTTY?

PuTTY is a standalone SSH, Telnet, rlogin, and serial client. WinSCP often uses its Pageant keys. Windows Terminal plus OpenSSH is a different stack.

If you have never used it

If you need SSH or a serial console on Windows, PuTTY is the classic small client. Download it only from Simon Tatham's page at chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/latest.html. putty.org lookalikes and random exe hosts are a common junk path. Windows Terminal is a different host. It is not this SSH GUI.

What is it used for?

SSH to a server

Saved sessions in putty.exe. Windows Terminal can wrap OpenSSH instead. That is not this exe.

Serial consoles

COM ports for switches and boards. FileZilla cannot do this job.

Keys with Pageant

pageant.exe holds keys. WinSCP can talk to that agent. GitHub Desktop does not replace it.

Who is it for?

Admins who still live in saved PuTTY sessions
People who need a serial terminal
Anyone who searched putty.org and should have used chiark instead

Current status

PuTTY (1998) is a current ssh and serial client from Simon Tatham. The vendor still points Windows users at https://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/latest.html.

How old is it?

Simon Tatham released PuTTY in 1998. It is older than Windows Terminal and older than OpenSSH in Windows. Current 0.8x builds are still this project. A 0.60 installer from a shareware portal is the wrong place.

Versions

Major channels first. Exact build numbers are not all verified here.

PuTTY 64-bit MSI

Standalone exe

System requirements

Values follow the publisher's public guidance. Workload still changes the real need.

Minimum

Minimum system requirements
Operating system	A current supported Windows 10 or Windows 11 release for current 0.8x builds
RAM	The client is tiny. The session is remote

Resource profile

CPU demand: Follows what you open inside the app
RAM demand: Follows documents, tabs, or libraries

Installed processes

These executables belong to this product when it is installed.

Installed processes
putty.exe	PuTTY terminal window
pageant.exe	PuTTY SSH agent on many installs

Startup components

PuTTY does not need a tray. Pageant can start with Windows if you saved that shortcut.

File locations

Common PuTTY locations
Typical install	C:\Program Files\PuTTY\

File formats

PPK

Common problems

Fake download sites

putty.org-style mirrors and search ads have bundled junk. The official latest.html is on chiark.greenend.org.uk.

Host key warnings

PuTTY is telling you the server key changed. That is an SSH trust question, not a Windows Terminal theme.

Getting unstuck

Download only from chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/latest.html

If the URL is not Simon Tatham's page, stop. Do not run that exe.

Confirm publisher Simon Tatham on the signed build

Program Files\PuTTY is the usual path. A putty.exe in Downloads from a banner is the case to delete.

For files, use WinSCP or pscp, not a browser FTP

PuTTY is the terminal. WinSCP is the SFTP window often paired with it.

Alternatives

Windows Terminal plus the inbox OpenSSH client. WinSCP for files. FileZilla if you only need FTP or SFTP in a different GUI.

Official help and downloads

Start with the vendor. Random exe sites are not a support channel.

Official contacts
Download	www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/latest.html Official installer or vendor page
Help	the.earth.li/~sgtatham/putty/0.83/htmldoc/ Vendor support
Official site	www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/ Start here, not a random exe host
PuTTY home	www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/ Simon Tatham's official page
Documentation index	www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/docs.html Current docs without pinning one mirror path

Related hardware

Any current Windows PC can run PuTTY. A serial adapter is a USB device question, not a GPU question.

Technical details

Vendor version numbers change. This article does not pin a build.

Sources and verification

Reviewed by Feex editorial. Last verified August 2026 Status: Feex Reviewed. How we research.

PuTTY official site · Vendor product page
PuTTY help · Vendor support
PuTTY latest download · Official Simon Tatham Windows binaries
Foxhole process map · First-party samples on Windows PCs. Not a lab benchmark.

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