It is optional, but also a best practice.Ĭonfiguring your system for smooth operation with a passphrase-protected key introduces more moving parts.

You have the option to protect the key with a passphrase. Just press Enter here: Enter file in which to save the key (/Users/jenny/.ssh/id_ed25519): If it appears that your system is too old to support the Ed25519 algorithm, do this instead: ssh-keygen -t rsa -b 4096 -C 'DESCRIPTIVE-COMMENT'Īccept the proposal to save the key in the default location. ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C 'DESCRIPTIVE-COMMENT' For example, one public key for each computer you connect with.Ĭreate the key pair like so, but substitute a comment that means something to you, especially if you’ll have multiple SSH keys in your life.Ĭonsider the email associated with your GitHub account or the name of your computer or some combination, e.g. It is normal to associate multiple public keys with your GitHub account.Some people even have one key per computer, per service (I do not do this). You should probably have one key per computer (I do this). Don’t do weird gymnastics in order to have only one key pair, re-used over multiple computers.This can make setup and usage harder, so if you’re not up for that (yet), either don’t use a passphrase or seriously consider using HTTPS instead.

It’s best practice to protect your private key with a passphrase.You should swap out your SSH keys periodically.You can use one method from computer A and the other from computer B. If you are new to programming and the shell, you’ll probably find HTTPS easier at first (chapter 9).Add your public key to your GitHub profile.If you protected it with a passphrase, you may have additional configuration. Add the private key to your ssh-agent.Optionally, encrypt the private key with a passphrase (best practice). Literally, 2 special files, in a special place.

Openssh github