SFTP connection refused
What “connection refused” means for SFTP and how to fix port/service/firewall issues quickly.
Diagnose this automatically
Test whether the network port is reachable before investigating authentication problems.
Shareable output
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“Connection refused” means the host is reachable, but nothing is accepting connections on the target port.
This is almost always service-down, firewall/allowlist, or the wrong port.
Common causes
- SSH/SFTP service not running on the server
- Wrong port (SFTP is commonly 22, but not always)
- Firewall/security group blocking inbound connections
- Server allowlist blocks your source IP
Fixes to try
- Confirm the port with the vendor/admin.
- From a machine in the same network, test TCP connectivity to host:port.
- Verify sshd is running and listening on the expected port.
- Check firewall rules/security group and allowlist the source IP.
Quick commands
nc -vz <host> 22
telnet <host> 22
ssh -vvv <user>@<host> -p 22FTPMonitor Help
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Related
- ECONNREFUSED on port 22 — Meaning of ECONNREFUSED for SFTP/SSH on port 22 and the fastest ways to isolate firewall vs service vs wrong port.
- TCP connection timeout (firewall issue) — Why FTP/SFTP connections time out and how to diagnose firewall, routing, or allowlist blocking.
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