GitHub SSH Setup (Windows)

Follow these steps to generate and use SSH keys on Windows for secure access to remote servers and services like GitHub, GitLab, or your own SSH server.

✅ Prerequisites

• Windows 10 or later

• Access to Command Prompt or PowerShell

• Git for Windows (includes ssh and ssh-keygen)

1. 🧰 Generate a New SSH Key

Open your terminal and run:

ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "[email protected]"

If your system doesn’t support ed25519, use:

ssh-keygen -t rsa -b 4096 -C "[email protected]"

When prompted:

• Save location: Press Enter to accept the default (C:\Users\<YourUser>\.ssh\id_ed25519)

• Passphrase (optional but recommended): Enter a secure passphrase

2. 🔑 Add Your SSH Key to the Agent

Start the SSH agent

eval $(ssh-agent -s)

Add your private key to the agent:

ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519

💡 Replace id_ed25519 with your key file if you named it differently.

3. 📋 Add Your Public Key to the Remote Server

Copy your public key to clipboard:

clip < ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub

Then, add it to:

• GitHub: Settings → SSH and GPG keys

• GitLab: Preferences → SSH Keys

• Remote Server: Add the contents to the ~/.ssh/authorized_keys file

4. 🧪 Test Your Connection

Test the connection:

ssh -T [email protected]

If successful, you’ll see a welcome message:

Hi username! You’ve successfully authenticated.