Managing SSH Keys in VirtFusion

VirtFusion lets you store SSH public keys on your account and automatically deploy them to a server when it is built or rebuilt. This means you can connect without a password from day one, without needing to copy keys over manually after the server is up.

Where to Find SSH Keys

SSH Keys are managed at the account level, not per-server. Look for the SSH Keys link in the VirtFusion navigation after logging in to control.teklanhosting.co.uk.

Adding an Existing Public Key

If you already have an SSH key pair on your machine, you only need to upload the public key.

1. Go to SSH Keys in VirtFusion.
2. Click Add Key.
3. Give the key a name.
4. Paste your public key into the Public Key field. This is the contents of ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub (or id_rsa.pub, etc.) on your local machine.
5. Click Save.

Generating a Key Pair in VirtFusion

If you do not have a key pair yet, VirtFusion can generate one for you in the browser.

1. Click Add Key.
2. Click Generate Key Pair.
3. Choose your key options:
   • Key Type - RSA2, ECDSA, ED25519, or DSA
   • Key Size - 1024, 2048, or 4096 bit (RSA2 only)
   • Private Key Format - OpenSSH (for Mac/Linux/Windows Terminal) or PuTTY (.ppk)
4. Click Generate.
5. The public and private keys are shown. Copy the private key immediately - it will not be shown again and is not stored on TekLan's systems.
6. Save the private key to your machine (e.g. ~/.ssh/id_rsa) and set its permissions: chmod 600 ~/.ssh/id_rsa
7. Click Save to store the public key on your account.

Using SSH Keys When Building a Server

When you build a new VPS or rebuild an existing one, VirtFusion shows a list of your stored SSH keys. Select the keys you want pre-installed on the server. The selected keys are added to the root user's authorized_keys file automatically, so you can connect with ssh [email protected] immediately after the build completes.

If you skip this step and select no keys, VirtFusion will email you the root password instead.

Managing Keys

Each key on the SSH Keys page has four action buttons:

• Toggle - enable or disable the key without deleting it
• Share - share the key with another VirtFusion user
• Edit - rename the key
• Delete - permanently remove it

Deleting a key from VirtFusion does not remove it from servers it has already been deployed to. You would need to remove it manually from ~/.ssh/authorized_keys on each server if you want to revoke access.