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Keypairs Guide

Keypairs Guide

A practical, step-by-step walkthrough to generate SSH keys, import your public key as a keypair, use it for instance access, and manage keypairs. This guide complements the overview at Keypairs.

1) Generate an SSH Key (on your machine)

If you already have an SSH keypair, you can reuse it. Otherwise, generate a new one.

  • Linux / macOS:
# Generate a 4096-bit RSA key (recommended)
ssh-keygen -t rsa -b 4096 -C "you@example.com"
# or a modern Ed25519 key
ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "you@example.com"
 
# By default, keys are saved to ~/.ssh/id_rsa (or id_ed25519) and a .pub public key
  • Windows (PowerShell):
ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "you@example.com"

Locate your public key file (ends with .pub), e.g. ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub. You will paste its contents into the dashboard.

2) Create/Import a Keypair in the Dashboard

  1. Open Menu → Compute → Virtual Machine → SSH Keypairs.
  2. Click "Create Keypair".
  3. Enter a name (e.g., my-keypair-01).
  4. Paste your public key (starts with ssh-rsa or ssh-ed25519).
  5. Submit to create the keypair.
Instance Create

Tips:

  • Use distinct names per environment or team (e.g., dev-ci-key, prod-admin-key).
  • Never paste a private key; only the public key belongs in the dashboard.

3) Use the Keypair When Launching an Instance

  1. In Compute → Create Instance, enable SSH access.
  2. Select your keypair from the dropdown.
  3. Launch the instance.
Instance Create

After the instance is active, connect using SSH from your machine. Replace PUBLIC_IP and the username (e.g., ubuntu):

ssh -i ~/.ssh/id_ed25519 ubuntu@PUBLIC_IP

Or use Copy SSH action by going to Menu → Compute → Virtual Machine → Instances and select Copy SSH from the Actions menu next to the Instance.

Instance Create

If you set a passphrase when generating the key, you'll be prompted for it.

4) Delete a Keypair (Cleanup)

Only delete keypairs that are no longer in use.

  1. Open Menu → Compute → Virtual Machine → SSH Keypairs.
  2. From Actions for the target keypair, choose "Delete Keypair".
  3. Confirm.
Instance Create

Troubleshooting

  • Permission denied (publickey) when SSHing:
    • Ensure the instance is reachable (public IP / networking exposed as needed).
    • Verify the correct username (e.g., ubuntu, ec2-user, or image-specific user).
    • Confirm you selected the right keypair at instance creation.
    • Check key file permissions: chmod 600 ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.
  • Invalid public key format:
    • The field must contain a single line beginning with ssh-rsa or ssh-ed25519 followed by key data and optional comment.
  • Lost private key:
    • You cannot recover a private key from the platform. Generate a new keypair and update instances.

Related

Compute GuideNetworking Guide