FAQ
Questions we actually get.
Commercial answers match the approved pricing matrix. Product answers match the shipped agent.
Yes. The agent discovers ports, stores history in SQLite, and talks to the CLI over local IPC. Cloud pairing is optional for fleet views, sync, notifications, and backups.
Only an allowlisted set of operations: ping, kill with ProcessGuard, service control, and PortPilot-named firewall rules. There is no shell or arbitrary exec API.
Free covers observation and core process/service controls on one machine. Pro is a lifetime licence by machine tier and adds firewall mutate, ngrok tunnels, and extra machines. Cloud is a subscription that includes the Pro feature set plus durable sync, notifications, and account backups. Active lifetime Pro takes £5/month off Cloud.
Machine state stays on the host by default. Paired machines can sync selected history to PortPilot Cloud. Account backups cover prefs and display metadata — not credentials.
No. Agents open an outbound WebSocket to the cloud gateway. Browsers never talk directly to a privileged local agent.
PortPilot is a local-first Windows and Linux agent that lists listening ports, explains health, and runs a small allowlisted set of controls. Pair machines to a website account when you want a fleet dashboard.
Developers, homelab operators, and server administrators who need to see what is listening on a host and act without opening a generic shell.
Yes. Windows 10 and 11 x64 via the MSI. ARM64 is not supported.
Yes. x86_64 Linux with systemd (Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, and Arch are in the QA matrix). There is no .deb or .rpm — use install.sh.
No. There is no Mac build and none is promised. PortPilot supports Windows 10/11 x64 and x86_64 Linux with systemd only.
Yes while the MSI is unsigned. Open More info → Run anyway only if you downloaded from portpilot.app (or another source you trust). Authenticode signing is planned; SmartScreen is not a substitute for verifying the download source.
No. Local discovery, history, diagnose, and licensed local controls work without an account. Cloud is optional for pairing, fleet dashboard, sync, notifications, and backups.
A machine is one installed agent. In the dashboard choose Machines → Add machine to generate a short-lived XXXX-XXXX code, then enter it on the host (Desktop or portpilot pair). The code is single-use. Never put your account password into the agent.
Port discovery, layered diagnose, local history, CLI, kill and service controls, Docker/proxy awareness, and optional pairing for core remote controls on one machine.
Everything in Free, plus firewall allow/block (PortPilot-named rules on Windows netsh and Linux UFW), ngrok tunnels, and extra machines. Pro does not include Cloud sync, notifications, or backups.
The Pro feature set plus durable history sync, in-app and email notifications, and account metadata backups. Default Cloud seats are 3, or the larger of your Pro seats and 3.
A one-time payment for the evolving Pro feature set and updates on that machine count. It is not “everything forever”: Cloud stays separate. Licences are not transferable.
Free: 1. Pro: 1, 3, 5, or 10. Cloud: max of your Pro seats and 3. Capacities do not stack.
Buy the deal, create or log into PortPilot, then redeem under Settings → Billing. AppSumo Pro maps to the same Pro entitlements. AppSumo Cloud is a 365-day grant. Do not enter the AppSumo code into the agent.
ngrok tunnels require Pro or Cloud. PortPilot talks to the ngrok API; it does not spawn the ngrok CLI and does not support Cloudflare Tunnel.
No. It attaches read-only Engine metadata to host ports. It will not start, stop, or exec containers.
Inspect is free. Mutate is Pro, and only PortPilot-named rules on Windows netsh and Linux UFW. nftables/firewalld mutate is not supported.
The helper only runs allowlisted actions. Kill uses ProcessGuard (pid + start time + exe). Cloud mutations require a session and CSRF. Agents connect outbound. We do not claim SOC 2.
No. It does not run models or generate shell commands. Website Cmd+K is an allowlisted command palette.
Install a newer Windows MSI over the existing install, or re-run the Linux installer with new binaries. Data directories are kept. There is no automatic updater yet.
Windows: Settings → Apps → PortPilot (ProgramData is kept unless you purge). Linux: sudo ./uninstall.sh (add PURGE_DATA=1 to delete /var/lib/portpilot).
Read the documentation and FAQ, then use the support form. Signed-in customers can also open a ticket from Settings → Support. Email [email protected]. We do not promise SLAs.
No. Redeem the AppSumo code under Settings → Billing. Pairing uses a short-lived dashboard code from Machines → Add machine. Do not type the AppSumo code into the agent.
Still stuck? Contact support or read the docs.