--- title: "Troubleshooting SFTP, FTPS, S3 and transfers" description: "Fix SSH host key warnings, SFTP keys and jump hosts, FTPS that won't connect, S3-compatible stores that list nothing, stopped transfers and license prompts." url: https://anybucket.app/support/troubleshooting lang: en --- # Something's off? Here's the fix The problems people run into most, each with the steps that solve it. ## The short answer - **Host key warning:** compare the fingerprint with your server's before you trust it. [Details](#host-keys) - **SFTP keys or jump hosts:** get `ssh user@host` working in Terminal first; AnyBucket uses the same `ssh`. [Details](#ssh-keys) - **FTPS won't connect:** install `python3` with `xcode-select --install`. [Details](#ftps) - **S3-compatible store lists nothing:** set the endpoint URL and turn on path-style addressing. [Details](#s3-path-style) - **A transfer stopped:** open Transfers (⌥⌘T) and press **Retry** under **Needs attention**. [Details](#stopped-transfers) ## “The key of … isn't known yet” or “changed” AnyBucket checks every SFTP server's host key against your own `~/.ssh/known_hosts`, the same file Terminal uses. It asks you when a key is new or has changed. **A key that isn't known yet** is normal the first time you connect to a server. 1. Find the server's fingerprint where its administrator publishes it, or ask them. On a server you run yourself, `ssh-keygen -lf /etc/ssh/ssh_host_ed25519_key.pub` prints it. 2. Compare it with the fingerprint AnyBucket shows. 3. Trust it only if they match. AnyBucket adds it to `known_hosts`, and Terminal knows it from then on too. **A key that changed** is expected after a server is rebuilt or moved. Otherwise, don't connect: someone may be between you and the server. 1. Confirm with the server's administrator that the key really changed. 2. Remove the old key in Terminal: `ssh-keygen -R example.com` (use the host name or address you connect to). 3. Connect again and check the new fingerprint as above. ## SFTP keys or jump hosts don't work AnyBucket runs `/usr/bin/ssh`, the `ssh` that comes with macOS. Whatever works with `ssh user@host` in Terminal works in AnyBucket: your agent, your `~/.ssh/config` (`Host`, `IdentityFile`, `ProxyJump`) and security keys. So try the same host in Terminal first: 1. Run `ssh user@host` with the same user and host name as the bookmark. 2. If it fails, run `ssh -v user@host` to see which keys it offers and where it stops. 3. Fix it there: add the key to your agent with `ssh-add`, set `IdentityFile` for the host in `~/.ssh/config`, or add a `ProxyJump` line for a host behind a bastion. 4. When it works in Terminal, connect again in AnyBucket with the same user and host name. More in [SSH keys and jump hosts](https://anybucket.app/guides/ssh-keys-and-jump-hosts). ## FTPS doesn't connect AnyBucket runs FTPS's TLS through a small Python bridge, so FTPS needs `python3` from Apple's Command Line Tools. 1. Open Terminal and run `python3 --version`. 2. If macOS offers to install the Command Line Tools, or the command isn't found, run `xcode-select --install` and follow the prompts. 3. Connect again. **Self-signed certificate?** AnyBucket asks once whether to trust it, and remembers your choice for that bookmark. Check with the server's administrator before you trust a certificate you didn't expect. Still not connecting? Check that the server offers explicit TLS on its FTP port. AnyBucket connects in passive mode, which most firewalls allow. ## An S3-compatible store lists nothing or refuses Stores other than Amazon S3 need their own endpoint, and many expect path-style addresses. 1. Edit the bookmark (or pick the provider's own tile: Cloudflare R2, Backblaze B2, Wasabi, DigitalOcean Spaces or Google Cloud Storage). 2. For any other store, choose **S3-compatible** and set the **endpoint URL** your provider gives you. 3. Turn on **path-style addressing** for MinIO, LocalStack and most self-hosted stores. 4. Check with your provider that the access key is allowed to list the bucket. ## A transfer stopped Transient failures, like a dropped connection, a timeout or a server restart, retry by themselves on a fresh connection after 1, 3 and 8 seconds. You usually won't notice them. A transfer that still fails waits under **Needs attention**, with its error, in two places: - the Transfers window (⌥⌘T) - the menu bar panel Read the error, fix its cause (a full disk, a permission on the server, an expired password), then press **Retry**. The transfer resumes. If you quit AnyBucket, or the Mac restarts, interrupted transfers come back when you open it again. The queue is saved in `~/Library/Application Support/AnyBucket/`. ## No notifications 1. Open **System Settings → Notifications**, find AnyBucket and allow notifications. 2. In AnyBucket, open **Settings → Notifications**. It shows whether macOS allows them, and has a switch for each kind: finished batches, failures, lost connections, finished syncs and license problems. Finished batches are announced when AnyBucket is in the background or the batch took a while, so a quick copy while you watch doesn't need one. ## AnyBucket asks for the license again Without internet, AnyBucket keeps working for seven days after its last successful license check. After that it asks to check again. 1. Make sure the Mac is online, then open AnyBucket. The next check renews the seven days. 2. If Polar refused the activation, for example because this Mac was removed in the [customer portal](https://polar.sh/nina-labs-ai-llc/portal), choose **AnyBucket → Manage License…**, deactivate, and activate again with your key. 3. If both of your Macs are already active, deactivate one of them first. See [license and updates](https://anybucket.app/support/license-and-updates). ## Still stuck? Email support@clevermechanisms.dev. Every message gets read. To get an answer quickly, include: - your macOS version and AnyBucket's version, from **AnyBucket → About AnyBucket** - the protocol, and for S3 the provider - what you did, what you expected, and the exact error message - for SFTP, whether `ssh user@host` works in Terminal Please never send passwords, secret keys or your license key. ## Questions, answered ### Is it safe to trust a new host key? Only after you've compared its fingerprint with the one your server's administrator published. A key you can't confirm is a reason not to connect. ### Why does SFTP work in Terminal but not in AnyBucket? AnyBucket uses the same `/usr/bin/ssh`, so check that the bookmark uses the same user and host name as the command that works in Terminal. ### What happens to a transfer if I quit? It waits for you. The queue is saved, and interrupted transfers come back when you open AnyBucket again. ### Where are AnyBucket's files on my Mac? Bookmarks, history, workspaces and the transfer queue are in `~/Library/Application Support/AnyBucket/`. Passwords and secret keys are in your login keychain. ## Read next - [SSH keys and jump hosts](https://anybucket.app/guides/ssh-keys-and-jump-hosts) - [Compatibility](https://anybucket.app/support/compatibility) - [License and updates](https://anybucket.app/support/license-and-updates) - [Help, setup and troubleshooting](https://anybucket.app/support) **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