Importing SSH Client Keys

MOVEit Automation can import existing keys that have been obtained from remote servers. The most common SSH implementation, OpenSSH, generates its keys via ssh-keygen and stores the keys in files named $HOME/.ssh/id_dsa or $HOME/.ssh/id_rsa, where $HOME is the home directory of the user and user is the user name.

Example of a Linux session that generates a key:

$ ssh-keygen -t rsa

Generating public/private rsa key pair.

Enter file in which to save the key (/home/user/.ssh/id_rsa):

Created directory '/home/user/.ssh'.

Enter passphrase (empty for no passphrase):

Enter same passphrase again:

Your identification has been saved in /home/user/.ssh/id_rsa.

Your public key has been saved in /home/user/.ssh/id_rsa.pub.

The key fingerprint is: 18:37:c3:bc:10:f0:c0:38:19:3e:80:7b:73:79:15:9c user@linuxsrv1

$

To import an SSH Client Key into MOVEit Automation:

1. Transfer the key (the file that does not end in .pub) to a location that can be accessed from the computer where you are running MOVEit Automation Web Admin.
2. In Web Admin, click RESOURCES > Keys and Certs. Click Import > SSH Client Key.
3. Browse to and select the key. The Add Imported SSH Client Key dialog box opens
4. Provide a Friendly Name and optional Password, and click Add Key.

Configuring the key on the SSH server

After a key has been created, the SSH server must be configured to authorize the key for logon. The procedure for this depends on the type of SSH software running on the server.

• OpenSSH:, Append the OpenSSH version of the public key (one very long line of text) to the file ~/.ssh/authorized_keys on the user's UNIX machine.
• SSH.com: Append a line like Key mykey.pub to the file ~/.ssh2/authorization, and create the file ~/.ssh2/mykey.pub with the contents of the SSH format of the key.
• SSH.com Tectia Server: Upload the SSH version of the public key to the user's authorized_keys directory on the server, with an arbitrary filename. This is typically
  • On UNIX: $HOME/.ssh2/authorized_keys
  • On Windows: %USERPROFILE%\.ssh2\authorized_keys

For other server types, see the documentation for that server.

PuTTY Key Generator

By default, the PuTTY Key Generator exports two files; one for a private key and one for a public key. To generate a file format for use in the SSH client, export the PuTTY key as an OpenSSH Key (using the Conversions menu, if available). The passphrase you designate will also be used for the exported OpenSSH key..

ssh.com Key Import

You can import only ssh.com keys that are not password-protected.

Note: Blank password OpenSSH and Password Protected OpenSSH keys can be imported.