A shell account is a user account on a remote server which gives access to a shell

Shell (computing)

A shell is a piece of software that provides an interface for users of an operating system which provides access to the services of a kernel. However, the term is also applied very loosely to applications and may include any software that is "built around" a particular component, such as web...

 via a command-line interface

Command-line interface

A command-line interface is a mechanism for interacting with a computer operating system or software by typing commands to perform specific tasks...

 protocol such as telnet

TELNET

Telnet is a network protocol used on the Internet or local area networks to provide a bidirectional interactive text-oriented communications facility using a virtual terminal connection...

 or ssh

Secure Shell

Secure Shell is a network protocol for secure data communication, remote shell services or command execution and other secure network services between two networked computers that it connects via a secure channel over an insecure network: a server and a client...

.

Originally they were provided by ISPs (such as Netcom (USA)

Netcom (USA)

NETCOM On-Line Communication Services, Inc. was an Internet service provider headquartered in San Jose, California.It was established in 1988 by Bob Rieger, an information systems engineer for Lockheed and Bill Gitow of System V. Netcom started off in San Jose, California as a service to allow...

 and Digex

Digex

DIGEX was an early provider of Internet services in the United States credited with creating the "managed hosting" business. Its corporate predecessor, Digital Express Group, and then DIGEX provided dialup "Public Access Unix" shell accounts in the Baltimore-Washington region beginning in the fall...

) and were used for file storage, web space, email accounts, newsgroup access and software development

Software development

Software development is the development of a software product...

.

Shell providers are often found to offer shell accounts at low-cost or for free. These shell accounts generally provide users with access to various software and services including compilers, IRC clients, background processes, FTP, text editor

Text editor

A text editor is a type of program used for editing plain text files.Text editors are often provided with operating systems or software development packages, and can be used to change configuration files and programming language source code....

 (such as nano

Nano (text editor)

nano is a text editor for Unix-like computing systems or operating environments using a command line interface. It emulates the Pico text editor, part of the Pine email client, and also provides additional functionality....

) and email client (such as pine

Pine (e-mail client)

Pine is a freeware, text-based email client developed at the University of Washington. The first version of this client was written in 1989. Source code was available for only the Unix version under a license written by the University of Washington...

). Some shell providers may also allow tunneling

Tunneling protocol

Computer networks use a tunneling protocol when one network protocol encapsulates a different payload protocol...

 of traffic to bypass corporate firewalls

Firewall (computing)

A firewall is a device or set of devices designed to permit or deny network transmissions based upon a set of rules and is frequently used to protect networks from unauthorized access while permitting legitimate communications to pass....

.

Shell accounts have been involved in illegal activity, such as denial of service attacks or distributing illegal software

Warez

Warez refers primarily to copyrighted works distributed without fees or royalties, and may be traded, in general violation of copyright law. The term generally refers to unauthorized releases by organized groups, as opposed to file sharing between friends or large groups of people with similar...

.

See also

• FreeBSD jail
  FreeBSD Jail
  The FreeBSD jail mechanism is an implementation of operating system-level virtualization that allows administrators to partition a FreeBSD-based computer system into several independent mini-systems called jails....
  
  
• Grex
  Grex
  Grex is the Latin word for herd or flock. The word is also used for:* GREX, the Georgetown Rail Equipment Company located in Georgetown, Texas...
  
  , a public access Internet service maintained by Cyberspace Communications
• SDF Public Access Unix System
  SDF Public Access Unix System
  Super Dimension Fortress is one of the oldest and largest nonprofit public access UNIX systems on the Internet....
  
  , one of the oldest and largest non-profit public access UNIX systems on the Internet.
• Shell code
• Slirp
  Slirp
  Slirp is a software program that emulates a PPP, SLIP, or CSLIP connection to the Internet via a shell account. It is largely obsolete for its original purpose, as dedicated dial-up PPP connections and broadband Internet access have in turn become widely available and inexpensive...
  
  , a free software
  Free software
  Free software, software libre or libre software is software that can be used, studied, and modified without restriction, and which can be copied and redistributed in modified or unmodified form either without restriction, or with restrictions that only ensure that further recipients can also do...
  
   application similar to The Internet Adapter
• SSH tunneling
• The Big Electric Cat
  The Big Electric Cat
  The Big Electric Cat, named for an Adrian Belew song, was a public access computer system in New York City in the late 1980s, known on Usenet as node dasys1.-History:...
  
   was a public access computer system in New York City in the late 1980s, known on Usenet as node dasys1
• The Internet Adapter
  The Internet Adapter
  The Internet Adapter was software created by Cyberspace Development in 1993 to allow SLIP connections over a shell account. PPP was added in 1995, by which time the software was marketed and sold by Intermind of Seattle...
  
  , a graphical application front end for internet access using shell accounts allowing TCP/IP-based applications such as Netscape to run over the shell account.
• The WELL
  The Well
  - Titled works :* The Well , 1986 novel by Elizabeth JolleyMusical albums:* The Well , by Waking Ashland* The Well, 2001, by Jennifer Warnes* The Well, a song from the "Come to the Well" album by christian group Casting Crowns...
  
  , best known for its Internet forums, but also provides email, shell accounts, and web pages.

External links

• Egghelp.org's Shell Provider List