This is an old revision of the document!
Table of Contents
... create an SSH key pair on Windows 10
Step 1 - Check if OpenSSH Client is installed
Open the Windows Settings panel and select the Apps category. In the Apps & features subsection, click on Optional features:
howto:ssh_keypair_windows_1-1.png
Check if OpenSSH Client figures in the Installed features list:
howto:ssh_keypair_windows_1-2.png
If “OpenSSH Client” is listed, continue with step 2. Otherwise, click on the Add a feature icon.
In the Add an optional feature dialog window, search for the “OpenSSH Client” list entry, select the corresponding checkbox and click on Install.
Step 2 - Generate SSH key pair
Press the Windows key on the keyboard or click on the Windows start button in the taskbar. Type “cmd” in the search field, right-click on “Command Prompt” in the Best match list and click on Run as administrator:
howto:ssh_keypair_windows_2-1.png
If prompted, confirm with clicking on Yes in the Do you want to allow this app to make changes to your device? dialog box.
In the Command Prompt, type “ssh-keygen -t ed25519” and press Enter:
howto:ssh_keypair_windows_2-2.png
Change the default name of the SSH key pair (optional). This option can help distinguish between different keys in case of using multiple key pairs. By default, the system will save the keys to C:\Users\<user name>\.ssh\id_ed25519.
- To continue with the default name “id_ed25519”, press Enter.
- To change the default name, type the desired name and press Enter.