What is an SSH key pair?
By Joe Gardiner Tuesday, 23rd March 2010
An SSH key pair is the authentication used to create a secure channel for the SSH network protocol.
SSH is used to secure exchange data across a network, and is commonly used to issue commands to Linux based servers. You have SSH access to your vCluster, which allows you to carry out administrative tasks such as creating cron jobs.
To make an SSH connection secure public-key cryptography is used. In it simplest form this is a method for turning a message into an encrypted form that is only decrypted by the intended recipient.
For this encryption to work a Public and Private key are needed. The public key is used to transform the message into an encrypted for, and the public is required to then decrypt the message so it can be understood.
The user who expects to receive a message first must create a public and private key, and publish their public key. The person then sending the message takes this publicised key to encrypt the message at their location. This message is then sent to the original recipient who uses the private key to decrypt the message.
The sender can easily encrypt as many messages as they like using the published public key, however the private key is extremely difficult to work out based on their access to the public key.
When communicating with servers, your public key is saved on the server so that it can decrypt any incoming message or commands from your computer. The private key is saved on your computer so any communication using the SSH protocol, such as issuing terminal commands, can be decrypted successfully.
We have two guides for creating your own SSH key pair: Generating an SSH Key: Windows, and Generating an SSH Key: Mac OSX.
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Why do we use SSH instead of telnet?
By Joe Gardiner Tuesday, 23rd March 2010
Telnet (Terminal Network) is a protocol that commonly provides a virtual text-based command line interface at a remote location.
Telnet clients (the software that implements the telnet protocol) are built into virtually every operating system available, and if not available natively, there are many options available for download, such as PuTTY, AbsoluteTelnet, and TeraTerm. It is worth noting that these clients do not only offer telnet implementation, but usually also offer at least SSH implementation as well.
read more…
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Generating an SSH key (Windows)
By Joe Gardiner Tuesday, 23rd March 2010
This guide ois for generating an SSH key using the PuTTY ss client that must be donwloaded before use. To generate an SSH key in Mac OSX view Generating an SSH Key on MacOSX.
In Windows a couple of light weight applications are required, as the windows command prompt does not support ssh natively.
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Generating an SSH key (Mac OSX)
By Joe Gardiner Tuesday, 23rd March 2010
I have covered the topic of adding SSH keys to the CatN Control Panel in a previous guide, but this guide is specifically for generating an SSH key, not only for use with your vCluster.
The process differs between Mac OSX and Windows, and the Windows command prompt does not support SSH natively and must provide on a third party solution. Please note, if you have already know and have recorded your SSH key, then this guide is not for you!
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Setting up FileZilla
By Joe Gardiner Monday, 22nd March 2010
Our vCluster hosting supports FTP and SFTP, and although you can transfer files to your cluster through a terminal using SSH, it is often easier and more convenient to use a client with a GUI (Graphical user interface).
In fact, we recommend using a GUI FTP client in our CMS install guides, FileZilla for a local run solution.
Let’s have a look at why we think this is the best solution…
Posted in FTP, Getting Started, Guides | No Comments »