Thank heavens for SSHFS! SSHFS allows me to locally mount remote linux/unix filesystems. This allows me to create and edit remote files using all of my native software! Sadly, the documentation for SSHFS options are weak, and the default options never work well for me. I’ve used SSHFS nearly every day for the past 3 months, and here is my recommendation for options for OSX:

• nohup – makes the connection more reliable
• follow_symlinks – optional, but is necessary if you want symlink folders to work
• allow_other – let’s you assume file priviledges of the remote user
• no_readahead, noappledouble, nolocalcaches – reduces overhead and makes Finder work MUCH faster

BONUS Want to make SSHFS work beautifully with SSHFS?  Check out this teaser:

If you want this, follow these instructions:

1. Create a mount folder
2. In the folder, create a script with the extension “.command”
3. Add this to the script:

4. Allow the script to be executable.  I usually do this from the terminal by typing:

5. Now when you double click the script, the folder will turn into your remote folder.  To go back, simple click the eject icon next to the folder.
6. Profit.