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powershell-creating-ssh-keys

tags: #ssh_keys #create_ssh_keys #powershell

PowerShell Creating SSH Keys

This guide walks you through the process of generating an SSH key pair using Windows PowerShell.

Prerequisites​

  • Windows 10 or newer
  • PowerShell 5.1 or newer

Steps to Create an SSH Key​

  1. Open PowerShell by searching for "PowerShell" in the Start menu.

  2. Check if you already have SSH keys by running:

    dir ~/.ssh

    If you see files named id_rsa and id_rsa.pub, you already have SSH keys. Be careful not to overwrite them.

  3. Generate a new SSH key pair by running:

    # replace with your actual user name
    ssh-keygen -t rsa -b 4096 -C "[email protected]" -f "C:\Users\YOUR-USER-NAME\.ssh\<ssh-file-name>"

    Replace "[email protected]" with your actual email address.

  4. When prompted to "Enter a file in which to save the key," press Enter to accept the default location (~/.ssh/id_rsa).

  5. When asked to enter a passphrase, you can either:

    • Enter a secure passphrase (recommended for better security)
    • Press Enter twice for no passphrase (less secure but more convenient)

  6. Your SSH key pair is now created:

    • Private key: ~/.ssh/id_rsa (keep this secure and do not share)
    • Public key: ~/.ssh/id_rsa.pub (this is what you share with services)

Viewing Your Public Key​

To view your public key, run:

cat ~/.ssh/id_rsa.pub

The output will look something like:

ssh-rsa AAAAB3NzaC1yc2EAAAADAQABAAACAQ... [email protected]

Using Your SSH Key​

  • For GitHub, GitLab, or other services: Copy the entire output of your public key to add to your account settings.
  • For connecting to servers: Use the ssh command with your private key.

Optional: Starting the SSH Agent​

To add your key to the SSH agent (so you don't need to enter your passphrase each time):

  1. Start the SSH agent:

    Start-Service ssh-agent

  2. Add your private key to the agent:

    ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_rsa

Troubleshooting​

If you receive an error that ssh-keygen is not recognized:

  1. Ensure OpenSSH is installed by running:

    Get-WindowsCapability -Online | Where-Object Name -like 'OpenSSH*'

  2. If needed, install OpenSSH Client:

    Add-WindowsCapability -Online -Name OpenSSH.Client~~~~0.0.1.0