How to Generate SSH Keys

In your unix shell, type

ssh-keygen -t rsa

You'll see a prompt like this:

Enter file in which to save the key (/Users/username/.ssh/id_rsa):

To use the default location just hit enter.

If you need to use something other than the default, you can enter it.

A passphrase is used to encrypt the private key. It's advisable, but not required. You'll need to repeat the passphrase, or just hit enter to skip.

If you accepted the default settings, your ssh key will be located at ~/.ssh/ida_rsa.pub.

To view the key you can type:

cat ~/.ssh/ida_rsa.pub

To use it, you can add the key to your home directory on a remote server at ~/.ssh/authorized_keys. If you have to create the file you can use:

touch ~/.ssh/authorized_keys

Ensure the permission of the .ssh and authorized_keys files are correct:

chmod 700 ~/.ssh
chmod 600 ~/.ssh/authorized_keys