Skip to main content

Generating a key

Create an SSH key pair on macOS, Linux or Windows, and add the public key to your account.

On this page

You log in to your machine with an SSH key, not a password. A key comes in two parts:

  • the private key, which stays on your computer and is never shared, and
  • the public key, a single line of text you add to your account. The machine is set up with it for your reservation.

Do you already have one?

Look in the .ssh folder in your home directory for a file ending in .pub:

bash
ls ~/.ssh/*.pub

On Windows, in PowerShell:

powershell
Get-ChildItem $env:USERPROFILE\.ssh\*.pub

If you see id_ed25519.pub (or id_rsa.pub, id_ecdsa.pub), you can use it — skip to Add it to your account.

Create a key on macOS or Linux

Open Terminal and run:

bash
ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "you@example.com"

Press Enter to accept the default file (~/.ssh/id_ed25519), then choose a passphrase. The passphrase protects the private key if your computer is lost; your SSH agent (the macOS Keychain, or ssh-agent on Linux) can remember it so you don't type it every time.

Then print the public key:

bash
cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub

On a Mac, this copies it to the clipboard instead:

bash
pbcopy < ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub

Create a key on Windows

Windows 10 and 11 include OpenSSH. Open PowerShell and run:

powershell
ssh-keygen -t ed25519

Press Enter to accept the default file, then choose a passphrase. Print the public key, or copy it straight to the clipboard:

powershell
Get-Content $env:USERPROFILE\.ssh\id_ed25519.pub
Get-Content $env:USERPROFILE\.ssh\id_ed25519.pub | Set-Clipboard

If ssh-keygen isn't found, turn on OpenSSH Client in Settings › System › Optional features.

Add it to your account

Go to SSH Keys in your dashboard and choose Add SSH key — or, from the reservation page, + New SSH key, which brings you back to your reservation afterwards with the new key selected.

Paste the whole line: it starts with the key type, such as ssh-ed25519, followed by a long block of characters and usually a comment such as your email address. The page checks the key as you paste it and shows its type and fingerprint. Give it a name you'll recognise, such as "MacBook Pro".

Never paste your private key. It's the file without .pub, and it begins with -----BEGIN OPENSSH PRIVATE KEY-----. The page rejects private keys.

Accepted key types

TypeStarts withNotes
Ed25519ssh-ed25519Recommended: short, fast and secure
RSAssh-rsaAt least 2048 bits
ECDSAecdsa-sha2-nistp256, -nistp384, -nistp521
Security keyssk-ssh-ed25519@openssh.com, sk-ecdsa-sha2-nistp256@openssh.comHardware keys such as a YubiKey

Managing keys

  • Names must be unique in your account, and so must keys: the same key can't be added twice under different names.
  • Deleting a key doesn't affect reservations already made with it. Each reservation keeps its own copy of the key it was booked with.
  • One key per reservation. You choose the key when you reserve. To use a key from another computer too, see Connecting.