Configuring SSH Certificates for Secure Login

Introduction

In this project, you will learn how to configure an SSH certificate for the labex user, so that the labex user does not need to enter a password when SSH logging into the local experimental environment.

👀 Preview

## No password required to log into localhost

## Log in directly to enter a new shell

🎯 Tasks

In this project, you will learn:

• How to create a .ssh directory in the labex user's home directory
• How to generate a new SSH key pair
• How to add the newly generated public key to the authorized_keys file
• How to restart the SSH service after configuring the SSH certificate
• How to test the SSH connection without a password

🏆 Achievements

After completing this project, you will be able to:

• Securely log in to the local experimental environment using SSH certificates
• Manage the SSH configuration for the labex user
• Understand the importance of using SSH certificates for secure access to servers

Create SSH Directory and Generate SSH Key Pair

In this step, you will learn how to create a .ssh directory in the labex user's home directory and generate a new SSH key pair.

1. Open a terminal and log in as the labex user:

   sudo su - labex
   

2. Create the .ssh directory:

   mkdir -p ~/.ssh
   

3. Generate a new SSH key pair:

   ssh-keygen -t rsa -b 4096 -C "labex@localhost"
   

   When prompted, press Enter to accept the default file location and leave the passphrase empty.

Add Public Key to authorized_keys

In this step, you will learn how to add the newly generated public key to the authorized_keys file.

1. Append the public key to the authorized_keys file:

   cat ~/.ssh/id_rsa.pub >> ~/.ssh/authorized_keys
   

2. Set the correct permissions for the authorized_keys file:

   chmod 600 ~/.ssh/authorized_keys
   

3. Restart the SSH service:

   sudo service ssh restart
   

Test the SSH Connection

In this step, you will learn how to test the SSH connection without a password.

1. Try to log in to the local experimental environment using the labex user:

   ssh labex@localhost
   

   You should now be able to log in without a password.

2. Once logged in, you can explore the labex user's home directory:

   ls
   

   You should see the Code, Desktop, golang, and project directories.

Summary

Congratulations! You have completed this project. You can practice more labs in LabEx to improve your skills.