- How to Generate and Manage GPG Keys on Ubuntu 18.04 16.04 Posted on by Student In some cases you may need to generate and manage GPG keys on Ubuntu.
- If this is the case, simply proceed to the next step. Additionally, the steps in this article assume that you authenticate to your server using SSH keys. If you use a password instead, certain steps in this article will not work. How to Use SSH Keys; Server Running Ubuntu 18.04; Topics.
- Jul 09, 2018 “How to Install and Configure OpenSSH on Ubuntu Server 18.04 LTS ” covers the entire process of installing and configuring OpenSSH on Ubuntu Server 18.04 LTS. OpenSSH is the leader in SSH technology, providing the most secure remote communication protocol available to system administrators and enthusiasts alike.
- Import public key from github to local ubuntu account. I'm setting up a new Ubuntu (18.04) server and noticed during install that I could import public keys from github. I've now finished setup and would like to create some more users. It seems ideal to keep importing their public keys from github if possible.
SSH, or secure shell, is an encrypted protocol used to administer and communicate with servers. When working with an Ubuntu server, chances are you will spend most of your time in a terminal session connected to your server through SSH. In this guide, we'll focus on setting up SSH keys for a Ubuntu 18.04 installation.
I am a new Ubuntu 18.04 LTS user and I would like to setup ssh public key authentication. How do I set up ssh keys based authentication on Ubuntu Linux 18.04 LTS server? How do I set up SSH keys on an Ubuntu Linux 18.04 LTS server? In Ubuntu 18.04 LTS, how do I set up public key authentication?Introduction: OpenSSH is a free and open source client/server technology for secure remote login. It is an implementation of the SSH protocol. OpenSSH divided into sshd (server) and various client tools such as sftp, scp, ssh and more. One can do remote login with OpenSSH either using password or combination of private and public keys named as public key based authentication. It is an alternative security method for user passwords. This method is recommended on a VPS, cloud, dedicated or even home-based server or laptop. This page shows how to set up SSH keys on Ubuntu 18.04 LTS server.
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Ubuntu 18.04 Setup SSH Public Key Authentication
The procedure to set up secure ssh keys on Ubuntu 18.04:
- Create the key pair using ssh-keygen command.
- Copy and install the public key using ssh-copy-id command.
- Add yourself to sudo admin account on Ubuntu 18.04 server.
- Disable the password login for root account on Ubuntu 18.04.
Sample set up for SSH Keys on Ubuntu 18.04
Where,
- 202.54.1.55 – You store your public key on the remote hosts and you have an accounts on this Ubuntu Linux 18.04 LTS server.
- Linux/macbook laptop – Your private key stays on the desktop/laptop/computer (or local server) you use to connect to 202.54.1.55 server. Do not share or give your private file to anyone.
In public key based method you can log into remote hosts and server, and transfer files to them, without using your account passwords. Feel free to replace 202.54.1.55 and client names with your actual setup. Enough talk, let’s set up public key authentication on Ubuntu Linux 18.04 LTS.
How to create the RSA/ed25519 key pair on your local desktop/laptop
Open the Terminal and type following commands if .ssh directory does not exists:
Next generate a key pair for the protocol, run:
OR
These days ED25519 keys are favored over RSA keys when backward compatibility is not needed:
$ mkdir -p $HOME/.ssh
$ chmod 0700 $HOME/.ssh
Next generate a key pair for the protocol, run:
$ ssh-keygen
OR
$ ssh-keygen -t rsa 4096 -C 'My key for Linode server'
These days ED25519 keys are favored over RSA keys when backward compatibility is not needed:
$ ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C 'My key for Linux server # 42'
How to install the public key in Ubuntu 18.04 remote server
The syntax is as follows:
For example:
I am going to install ssh key for a user named vivek (type command on your laptop/desktop where you generated RSA/ed25519 keys):
ssh-copy-id your-user-name@your-ubuntu-server-name
ssh-copy-id -i ~/.ssh/file.pub your-user-name@your-ubuntu-server-name
For example:
## for RSA KEY ##
ssh-copy-id -i $HOME/.ssh/id_rsa.pub [email protected]
## for ED25519 KEY ##
ssh-copy-id -i $HOME/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub [email protected]
## install SSH KEY for root user ##
ssh-copy-id -i $HOME/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub [email protected]
I am going to install ssh key for a user named vivek (type command on your laptop/desktop where you generated RSA/ed25519 keys):
$ ssh-copy-id -i ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub [email protected]
Test it
Now try logging into the Ubuntu 18.04 LTS server, with ssh command from your client computer/laptop using ssh keys:
$ ssh your-user@your-server-name-here
$ ssh [email protected]
What are ssh-agent and ssh-add, and how do I use them on Ubuntu 18.04?
How To Ssh Into Ubuntu 18.04
To get rid of a passphrase for the current session, add a passphrase to ssh-agent (see ssh-agent command for more info) and you will not be prompted for it when using ssh or scp/sftp/rsync to connect to hosts with your public key. The syntax is as follows:
Type the ssh-add command to prompt the user for a private key passphrase and adds it to the list maintained by ssh-agent command:
Enter your private key passphrase. Now try again to log into [email protected] and you will NOT be prompted for a password:
$ eval $(ssh-agent)
Type the ssh-add command to prompt the user for a private key passphrase and adds it to the list maintained by ssh-agent command:
$ ssh-add
Enter your private key passphrase. Now try again to log into [email protected] and you will NOT be prompted for a password:
$ ssh [email protected]
How to disable the password based login on a Ubuntu 18.04 server
Login to your server, type:
Now login as root user:
OR
Edit sshd_config file:
OR
Find PermitRootLogin and set it as follows:
Save and close the file. I am going to add a user named vivek to sudoers group on Ubuntu 18.04 server so that we can run sysadmin tasks:
Restart/reload the sshd service:
You can exit from all session and test it as follows:
## client commands ##
$ eval $(ssh-agent)
$ ssh-add
$ ssh [email protected]
Now login as root user:
$ sudo -i
OR
$ su -i
Edit sshd_config file:
# vim /etc/ssh/sshd_config
OR
# nano /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Find PermitRootLogin and set it as follows:
PermitRootLogin no
Save and close the file. I am going to add a user named vivek to sudoers group on Ubuntu 18.04 server so that we can run sysadmin tasks:
# adduser vivek sudo
Restart/reload the sshd service:
# systemctl reload ssh
You can exit from all session and test it as follows:
$ ssh [email protected]
## become root on server for sysadmin task ##
$ sudo -i
How do I add or replace a passphrase for an existing private key?
To to change your SSH passphrase type the following command:
$ ssh-keygen -p
How do I backup my existing private/public SSH keys
Just copy files to your backup server or external USB pen/hard drive:
Generating 2048 bit rsa keys keys will be non-exportable open. Jan 29, 2017 yes/no:% Generating 1024 bit RSA keys, keys will be non-exportable. OK (elapsed time was 1 seconds) Compressed configuration from 2653 bytes to 1370 bytesOKno Conditions: You will only run into this issue if your switch boots up with the factory default configuration and you go through the system configuration dialog. Now we can generate the RSA keypair: R1(config)#crypto key generate rsa The name for the keys will be: R1.NETWORKLESSONS.LOCAL Choose the size of the key modulus in the range of 360 to 4096 for your General Purpose Keys. Choosing a key modulus greater than 512 may take a few minutes. Choosing a key modulus greater than 512 may take a few minutes. How many bits in the modulus 512: 2048% Generating 2048 bit RSA keys, keys will be non-exportable. OK (elapsed time was 16 seconds) R2(config)# R2(config)# HTH. Please select what kind of key you want: (1) RSA and RSA (default) (2) DSA and Elgamal (3) DSA (sign only) (4) RSA (sign only) Your selection? 1 RSA keys may be between 1024 and 4096 bits long. And select 2048-bit (as Gnuk Token only suppurt this).
Ubuntu Generate Ssh Key Pair
How do I protect my ssh keys?
- Always use a strong passphrase.
- Do not share your private keys anywhere online or store in insecure cloud storage or gitlab/github servers.
- Restrict privileges of the account.
Tip: Create and setup an OpenSSH config file to create shortcuts for servers
See how to create and use an OpenSSH ssh_config file for more info.
How do I secure my OpenSSH server?
See “OpenSSH Server Best Security Practices” for more info.
Conclusion
You learned how to create and install ssh keys for SSH key-based authentication for Ubuntu Linux 18.04 LTS server. See OpenSSH server documents here and here for more info.
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Introduction
When establishing a remote connection between a client and a server, a primary concern is ensuring security. For Linux users, the best practice of accessing and managing your server remotely is through the cryptographic protocol known as Secure Shell (SSH).
SSH encrypts all data transferred from one machine to another, making sure that no sensitive information is compromised during the process. As a desktop client, you can safely run a command line, transfer files, secure network services, and much more.
By following the steps below, you will learn how to enable SSH on Ubuntu 18.04.
- Ubuntu 18.04 Bionic Beaver (or any other Debian-based Linux, including Ubuntu 17.04, 16.10, 16.04, etc.)
- A user with sudo privileges
- Permissions to access the remote computer
- Access to a terminal/command-line
- The
apt-get
tool, pre-loaded in Ubuntu and other Debian-based distros - OpenSSH 7.5 or higher
The SSH server is not installed by default on Ubuntu systems. To install and enable SSH on Ubuntu follow the steps found below:
1. Open the terminal either by using the CTRL+ALT+T keyboard shortcut or by running a search in Ubuntu Dash and selecting the Terminal Icon.
2. Before starting the installation process, check if an SSH server has already been installed on your computer. Use the following command:
If you see the following message, you will have to go through the SSH installation process.
3. To install SSH, first update the package repository cache with:
4. Now install the OpenSSH software package by entering:
If prompted, type in your password and press
y
(yes) to permit the installation.5. To verify the installation was successful and SSH is running use the command:
The confirmation message that you are looking for is:
Active: active (running)
![18.04 18.04](/uploads/1/2/5/7/125710413/221562058.jpg)
This means you have installed and enabled SSH on your remote machine, which can now accept commands from your SSH client.
6. To return to the command line prompt enter
q
.Once you have gone through the process of enabling SSH on Ubuntu 18.04, you are ready to log into your remote machine.
1. Open the terminal (CTRL+ALT+T) and type the following command:
Change the username and IP address to the username and IP address of the Ubuntu computer on which you have installed SSH.
2. If you do not know the IP address, you can quickly identify it through the terminal by typing the command:
This should display the public IP address of the machine where SSH was installed.
Once you have identified and typed in all the information, you have officially logged into your server. You are free to manage it from the comfort of your workstation safely.
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After successfully installing OpenSSH on Ubuntu, you can edit its configuration file.
You can change the default port (generally a good idea, as a precautionary security measure), disable the “root ” user or make other configuration adjustments.
1. Open your SSH configuration file with the command:
Gedit is a text editor which comes by default in Ubuntu, but you can also use other text editors such as nano. If you prefer using nano, you can easily install it by running the following command:
2. When prompted, type in your password and press
y
(yes) to permit the installation.)3. Then replace “gedit ” with “nano” type in the command:
4. Now that you have opened the file (using any of the text editors recommended above) find and make any necessary changes.
For example, if you wish to change the port number to listen on TCP port 2222 instead of the default TCP port 22, find the line in which Port 22 is specified by default, and change it to Port 2222.
Important: Changing the default port number is an SSH security best practice. Everyone is aware of the default port number so changing it is a recommended security precaution.
Disable Root
Another critical security precaution is to make sure that the root is disabled. That way, the root user cannot be invoked remotely, and security will be significantly improved.
1. In the configuration file, find the line that reads
PermitRootLogin_yes
and change it to PermitRootLogin_no
.2. After you have made the desired changes, save and close the file by using the CTRL+W keyboard shortcut (or the commands to save and close in your editor of choice).
3. For the changes to take into effect, restart SSH with the following command:
If you have decided to change the default port number, you must configure your firewall to allow traffic via the specified port.
Let’s use the example of Port 2222.
The default firewall configurations tool in Ubuntu is UFW, configure it with the command:
Some firewalls may require allowing traffic to the public IP address of the machine running SSH.
Note: The 'p2222” is the port number we have defined in the Configure SSH section. If you used the default port 22, then it is not necessary to put the port number.
How to Disable SSH on Ubuntu
To temporarily disable SSH:
To start SSH again:
To completely disable SSH after reboot:
To enable SSH on Ubuntu host again:
By following the simple steps above, you now know how to enable SSH on Ubuntu 18.04. Now you can establish a reliable and secure protocol between you and a remote device.
Get started by logging to your machine to perform sysadmin tasks with the command prompt.
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