--- title: "Getting started with AnyBucket" description: "Buy AnyBucket, install it, add your license, connect your first SFTP, S3, FTP or WebDAV server and copy files with F5. Every step, in order." url: https://anybucket.app/support/getting-started lang: en --- # From purchase to your first copy Four steps to set up, then your first copy. By the end you'll have a server in one pane, your Mac in the other, and files crossing with F5. ## The short answer 1. **Buy** AnyBucket on [the download page](https://anybucket.app/download) with your email. 2. **Download:** in your Polar purchase, download the ZIP and copy your license key. 3. **Install:** unzip it, move **AnyBucket** to your Applications folder and open it. 4. **Activate and connect:** paste the license key, then press ⇧⌘K, or paste an `sftp://`, `s3://` or `davs://` address into the palette with ⌘K. Then copy: press ⌘\ for a second pane, pick **This Mac** or another server, mark files with Space and press F5. ## Buy and download AnyBucket costs $9.99, once, with tax added at checkout where it applies. One license covers two Macs, and there's no account to create. 1. Go to [the download page](https://anybucket.app/download) and choose **Buy**. 2. Pay with your email address. Polar, the store that sells AnyBucket, then takes you to your purchase. 3. In your purchase, download `AnyBucket--macos.zip` and copy your license key. You can open your purchase again at any time in the [Polar customer portal](https://polar.sh/nina-labs-ai-llc/portal): sign in with the email you used at checkout. ## Install 1. Open the ZIP from your Downloads folder to unzip it. 2. Drag **AnyBucket** into your **Applications** folder. 3. Open it from Applications. Every build is signed with a Developer ID certificate and notarized by Apple, so it opens normally. AnyBucket needs macOS 15 or later and runs on Apple silicon and Intel from the same universal app. For FTPS you also need `python3` from Apple's Command Line Tools; see [compatibility](https://anybucket.app/support/compatibility). ## Add your license When AnyBucket opens for the first time, it asks for your license key. Paste it and choose **Activate**. - The same key works on your second Mac. - After a successful check, AnyBucket keeps working offline for up to seven days. - **AnyBucket → Manage License…** shows the license and lets you deactivate this Mac. More in [license and updates](https://anybucket.app/support/license-and-updates). ## Connect your first server Choose **File → Connect to Server…** (⇧⌘K). Pick a protocol under **Servers** (SFTP, FTP, FTPS, WebDAV or WebDAV over HTTPS) or a provider under **Cloud Storage** (Amazon S3, Cloudflare R2, Backblaze B2, Wasabi, DigitalOcean Spaces, Google Cloud Storage or any S3-compatible store). Fill in the server and your login, then connect, or save it as a bookmark first. Two things happen behind the scenes: - **Passwords and secret keys go to your login keychain**, one item per bookmark. - **SFTP uses your own `~/.ssh`** keys, agent and config, like Terminal does. If `ssh user@host` works in Terminal, it works in AnyBucket. See [SSH keys and jump hosts](https://anybucket.app/guides/ssh-keys-and-jump-hosts). Already have an address? Press ⌘K and paste it: `sftp://user@example.com/var/www`, `s3://bucket/folder`, `davs://dav.example.org/shared`. ↩ connects; ⌥↩ saves it as a bookmark and opens it. ## Copy your first files 1. Press **⌘\\** to split the tab into two panes. 2. In the new pane, open its source menu and pick **This Mac** or another server. 3. Press **⇥** to switch between the panes. 4. Move with the arrow keys and press **Space** to mark a file. It moves down to the next one, so you can mark several in a row. **+** marks every file that matches a pattern, like `*.jpg`. 5. Press **F5** to copy the marked files to the other pane, or **F6** to move them. The transfer runs in the strip under the panes and in the Transfers window (⌥⌘T). If a file is already there, AnyBucket asks what to do: replace, replace if newer, keep both, skip or resume. On a MacBook, the F-keys may need **fn**. Or turn on **Use F1, F2, etc. keys as standard function keys** in **System Settings → Keyboard**. Every key is also in the menus, and **Settings → Keyboard → Show Function-Key Bar** shows the F-keys under the panes. ## When you close the window Closing the last window keeps AnyBucket running in the menu bar, so transfers carry on. The menu bar panel shows progress, speed and time left, the servers you're connected to, your open tabs and recent places. The Dock icon only shows while a window is open. To stop AnyBucket, choose **Quit AnyBucket** in the menu bar panel. ## Where to go next - [Try it live](https://anybucket.app/try) in your browser, with sample servers, to learn the keys first. - [Every keyboard shortcut](https://anybucket.app/shortcuts) on one page. - [Copy files between servers](https://anybucket.app/guides/copy-files-between-servers-mac) in one step. - [Sync a folder with a server](https://anybucket.app/guides/sync-folder-with-server) with Compare & Sync (⌥F5). - Save your tabs as a workspace with ⌥⌘S, and open them all again later. ## Questions, answered ### What do I need to buy it? Just your email address. You buy AnyBucket with it, and the app only needs its license key: there's no AnyBucket account and no cloud service in between. ### Where do I find my license key again? In your purchase in the [Polar customer portal](https://polar.sh/nina-labs-ai-llc/portal). Sign in with the email you bought AnyBucket with. ### Can I try it before I buy? Yes, in your browser: [the live demo](https://anybucket.app/try) is AnyBucket's window with sample servers. Mark files with Space, press F5 and open the palette with ⌘K. ### How do I put it on my second Mac? Download the same ZIP from your purchase, install it and paste the same license key. One license covers two Macs. ### Can I use the mouse instead of the keyboard? Yes. You can click, drag files between panes and to and from Finder, and use the buttons under each pane. The keys are there when you want them. ## Read next - [License and updates](https://anybucket.app/support/license-and-updates) - [Compatibility](https://anybucket.app/support/compatibility) - [Troubleshooting](https://anybucket.app/support/troubleshooting) - [Keyboard shortcuts for every action](https://anybucket.app/shortcuts) **Buy for $9.99:** https://buy.polar.sh/polar_cl_pCF9yOjezTUaUqMPyUsxEho1EjcOvo6Bk49Q929LQCQ --- AnyBucket is independent software by [Clever Mechanisms](https://clevermechanisms.dev). It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Apple Inc. or any storage provider. Independent software in the spirit of Cyberduck and the classic two-pane commanders. Not affiliated with iterate GmbH (Cyberduck). Apple, Mac, macOS, Finder and Quick Look are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries and regions. Amazon S3 is a trademark of Amazon.com, Inc. Other product names are trademarks of their owners. Email support: support@clevermechanisms.dev