How to Connect to Your Ender 5 Max via SSH — Creality Nebula Pad

SSH gives you direct access to the Linux system running on your Ender 5 Max’s Nebula Pad. No special software needed — PowerShell on Windows and Terminal on macOS/Linux have everything built in. The whole process takes less than a minute.

Table of Contents

What is SSH?

SSH (Secure Shell) is a protocol that lets you connect to a remote computer over your local network and control it from a command line. Think of it as a direct line to the brain of your Ender 5 Max — you type commands on your PC and they execute instantly on the Nebula Pad.

Once connected via SSH you can:

  • Edit configuration files like printer.cfg
  • Install plugins and macros
  • Run diagnostic commands
  • Apply fixes without needing a screen or keyboard on the printer

Prerequisites

  • Root access enabled on your Ender 5 Max Nebula Pad (see our How to Enable Root Access guide)
  • The Nebula Pad rebooted after enabling root access
  • Your PC connected to the same Wi-Fi network as the printer
  • The IP address of your Nebula Pad

Find Your Nebula Pad IP Address

  1. On the Nebula Pad, go to Settings → Network
  2. Note the IP address displayed — it looks like 192.168.1.XXX
💡 Your IP address may change if your router assigns it dynamically. If the connection fails in the future, check this screen first. Consider assigning a static IP to your printer in your router settings to avoid this.

Windows — PowerShell

PowerShell is built into Windows — no installation required.

Step 1 — Open PowerShell

Click Start, type PowerShell, and open it.

Step 2 — Connect

Type the following command and press Enter — replace 192.168.1.XXX with your Nebula Pad’s IP address:

ssh root@192.168.1.XXX

If this is your first connection, you will see:

Are you sure you want to continue connecting (yes/no)?

Type yes and press Enter.

Step 3 — Enter Your Password

You will be prompted for the password:

root@192.168.1.XXX's password:
⚠️ When you type the password, no characters will appear on screen — this is normal Linux security behavior. Type creality_2024 and press Enter.
⚠️ The default password is creality_2024. It may vary depending on your machine and manufacturing date — check Settings → System → Root account information on the Nebula Pad if this does not work.

Step 4 — Confirm Connection

If successful, you will see a prompt like:

root@Ender-5 /root [ ]

You are now connected to your Ender 5 Max. Every command you type will execute directly on the Nebula Pad.

To disconnect at any time, type:

exit

macOS & Linux — Terminal

The process is identical to Windows PowerShell. Open Terminal and follow the exact same steps from Step 2 onwards — the commands are the same.

Troubleshooting

Connection refused

  • Make sure you rebooted the Nebula Pad after enabling root access
  • Verify the IP address is correct — check Settings → Network on the pad
  • Make sure your PC and the Nebula Pad are on the same Wi-Fi network

Password not working

  • No characters appear when typing — this is normal, keep typing and press Enter
  • Check the exact password on the Nebula Pad: Settings → System → Root account information
  • The password may have changed after a firmware update

Connection times out

  • The Nebula Pad may be in sleep mode — wake it up by tapping the screen
  • Try pinging the IP address first to verify it is reachable:
ping 192.168.1.XXX

What’s Next?

Now that you can connect to your Ender 5 Max via SSH, the next steps are:

Compatible Printers

This tutorial was written and tested on the Creality Ender 5 Max with firmware v1.2.0.21.

The procedure applies to any Creality printer using the Nebula Pad with root access enabled.

Tutorial by Christian KELHETTER — feel free to share and adapt with credit.
v1.0 — April 2026