Initial Login

SSH key authentication is required

All new SSD VPS builds use SSH key authentication only. A root password is not set by default, and password login over SSH is disabled.

You must add a public SSH key to your account and select it when deploying your server. You then log in as the default non-root user for your operating system (such as debian or ubuntu) using the matching private key.

Why SSH keys?

SSH keys are considerably more secure than passwords:

• They can’t be guessed or brute-forced. Servers on the public internet receive constant automated password-guessing attempts. A modern SSH key is far too long to guess, and with password login disabled those attacks have nothing to target.
• Your secret never leaves your computer. When you log in with a key, your computer proves it holds the private key without ever sending it to the server. A password, by contrast, is sent to the server every time you log in.
• No shared or emailed credentials. There is no generated root password to store, copy, or send around. Only someone holding your private key can log in.
• Easy to revoke. If a device is lost or a team member leaves, you remove their public key from the server without changing anyone else’s access.
• Convenient. Once set up, you log in without typing a password (optionally protecting the key itself with a passphrase).

An SSH key comes as a pair: a private key that stays on your computer and must never be shared, and a public key (ending in .pub) that you upload to the control panel and which is installed on your server.

Step 1: Generate an SSH key

If you already have an SSH key pair you’d like to use, skip to Step 2. RSA and Ed25519 keys are supported; we recommend Ed25519.

macOS / Linux

1. Open a terminal and run:

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

   The -C comment is just a label to help you identify the key later.

2. Press Enter to accept the default location (~/.ssh/id_ed25519).

3. Enter a passphrase when prompted. This is optional but strongly recommended, as it protects the key if your computer is ever compromised.

4. Display your public key so you can copy it:

   cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub

   It will look similar to:

   ssh-ed25519 AAAAC3NzaC1lZDI1NTE5AAAAIGq4... you@example.com

Windows (PowerShell)

Windows 10 and 11 include the OpenSSH client by default.

1. Open PowerShell and run:

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

2. Press Enter to accept the default location (C:\Users\<you>\.ssh\id_ed25519).

3. Enter a passphrase when prompted (recommended).

4. Display your public key so you can copy it:

   Get-Content $env:USERPROFILE\.ssh\id_ed25519.pub

Windows (PuTTY)

1. Open PuTTYgen (installed alongside PuTTY).

2. Select EdDSA (Ed25519) as the key type and click Generate, moving your mouse over the blank area as prompted.

3. Enter a Key passphrase (recommended).

4. Click Save private key and store the .ppk file somewhere safe.

5. Copy the text from the box labelled Public key for pasting into OpenSSH authorized_keys file. This is the public key you will add to the control panel.

Danger

Only ever share or upload the public key (the .pub file, or the PuTTYgen “public key for pasting” text). Never share your private key.

Step 2: Add your public key to the control panel

Add your public key to your account so it can be selected when deploying a server. You can do this through the Console, API or CLI.

Add a new SSH KeyUpload your public key to your ICS account.

Then select the key in the SSH Key step when you deploy your SSD VPS.

Step 3: Find your server’s login details

Once your server is deployed, retrieve its username and public IP address.

Console

1. Navigate to Services -> SSD VPS.

2. Click the FQDN/Hostname of the server you wish to access. On the Server Information tab, note the Username and Public IP address.

API

Get a list of VPS servers

curl --request GET \
  --url https://api.ingenuitycloudservices.com/rest-api/ssd-vps/servers \
  --header 'Accept: application/json' \
  --header 'X-Api-Token: API_KEY'

Get server details for a VPS server

curl --request GET \
  --url https://api.ingenuitycloudservices.com/rest-api/ssd-vps/locations/{location_id}/servers/{server_id} \
  --header 'Accept: application/json' \
  --header 'X-Api-Token: API_KEY'

The username is the default non-root user for your operating system, for example debian on Debian or ubuntu on Ubuntu. Always use the username shown for your server.

Step 4: Connect to your server

The examples below use ubuntu as the username and 203.0.113.10 as the server IP. Replace them with your own details.

macOS / Linux

If your key is in the default location (~/.ssh/id_ed25519 or ~/.ssh/id_rsa), SSH will find it automatically:

ssh ubuntu@203.0.113.10

If your key is stored elsewhere, point to it with -i:

ssh -i ~/.ssh/my_vps_key ubuntu@203.0.113.10

The first time you connect you will be asked to confirm the server’s fingerprint. Type yes to continue.

Windows (PowerShell)

ssh ubuntu@203.0.113.10

If your key is not in the default location:

ssh -i $env:USERPROFILE\.ssh\my_vps_key ubuntu@203.0.113.10

Windows (PuTTY)

1. Open PuTTY and enter ubuntu@203.0.113.10 in the Host Name field, with port 22.

2. In the left-hand menu, go to Connection -> SSH -> Auth -> Credentials.

3. Under Private key file for authentication, click Browse and select your .ppk file.

4. Go back to Session, enter a name under Saved Sessions and click Save so you don’t need to repeat these steps.

5. Click Open to connect.

If your key was generated with ssh-keygen rather than PuTTYgen, open it in PuTTYgen with Load and click Save private key to convert it to .ppk format first.

Save your connection details (optional)

On macOS, Linux and Windows (PowerShell) you can add an entry to your SSH config file (~/.ssh/config) to avoid typing the username, IP and key path every time:

Host my-vps
    HostName 203.0.113.10
    User ubuntu
    IdentityFile ~/.ssh/id_ed25519

You can then connect with:

ssh my-vps

Running commands as root

The default user has sudo privileges. Run individual administrative commands with sudo, or open a root shell:

# Run a single command as root
sudo apt update

# Switch to a root shell
sudo -i

Troubleshooting

Permission denied (publickey)

• Check you are using the username shown in the control panel (for example ubuntu), not root.
• Make sure you are using the private key that matches the public key selected at deployment. Use -i to specify it explicitly.
• On macOS and Linux, your private key must not be readable by other users. Fix its permissions with chmod 600 ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.

I’ve lost my private key

• A lost private key cannot be recovered. Generate a new key pair, then use Recovery Reboot to add the new public key to the default user’s ~/.ssh/authorized_keys file on your server’s disk. If you need help, please contact our support team.

Adding more keys or users

• To grant access to additional people or devices, append their public keys to ~/.ssh/authorized_keys on the server (one key per line).

If you are still unable to connect, please contact our support team.