iPhone / iPad Setup

Rho runs on a server. You connect from your iPhone using an SSH client. The agent keeps running when you disconnect -- reconnect anytime and pick up where you left off.

iPhone (Termius) --SSH--> Server (Rho in tmux)

What you need

• A server running Rho (home machine, VPS, or cloud instance)
• An SSH client on your iPhone (Termius recommended, or Blink Shell)

1. Install Rho on your server

SSH into your server from a computer (or do this from your phone):

npm install -g @mariozechner/pi-coding-agent @rhobot-dev/rho
rho init && rho sync
rho login

The installer sets up a mobile-friendly tmux config automatically.

Start Rho:

rho

2. Set up Termius on your iPhone

1. Install Termius from the App Store
2. Open Termius and tap + to add a new host
3. Enter your server's hostname/IP, username, and SSH key or password
4. Tap the host to connect

Once connected:

rho

That's it. You're talking to your agent.

3. Reconnecting after disconnect

When your iPhone sleeps or you close Termius, the SSH connection drops but Rho keeps running in tmux on the server. When you reconnect:

rho

This reattaches to the existing session. Nothing is lost -- scroll up to see what happened while you were away. The heartbeat kept running the whole time.

Termius tips

Keyboard toolbar: Termius has a configurable toolbar above the keyboard. Add these keys for a better Rho experience:

• Ctrl (for tmux prefix Ctrl-a)
• Tab (for pi autocompletion)
• Esc (for canceling)
• Arrow keys (for scrolling/navigation)

Font size: Settings > Terminal > Font Size. 14-16pt works well on iPhone, 12-14pt on iPad.

Keep alive: Settings > Terminal > SSH Keep Alive. Set to 30 seconds to prevent idle disconnects.

Snippets: Save rho as a Termius snippet so you can run it with one tap after connecting.

Home server with Tailscale

If your server is a home machine (Mac Mini, Raspberry Pi, old laptop), use Tailscale for remote access without port forwarding:

1. Install Tailscale on your server: https://tailscale.com/download
2. Install Tailscale on your iPhone from the App Store
3. Sign in to both with the same account
4. In Termius, use the Tailscale IP (100.x.x.x) as your host address

Tailscale is free for personal use (up to 100 devices).

VPS options

No home server? See VPS setup guide for options starting at $0/month (Oracle Cloud free tier).

tmux basics

Rho's tmux config uses Ctrl-a as the prefix (not the default Ctrl-b -- easier on mobile).

Action	Keys
Detach (leave running)	Ctrl-a d
Split vertical	Ctrl-a |
Split horizontal	Ctrl-a -
Switch pane	Alt + arrow
Scroll up	Ctrl-a [ then arrows
Exit scroll	q
Reload config	Ctrl-a r