SSH Config File - Quick Connection

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Linux - This article is part of a series.

Part : Linux Iptables quick reference

Part : Bash History Expansion and Prompt Magic

Part : Debian Linux Post-installation setup

Part : SSH Tunneling and Port-Forwarding guide

Part : This Article

Part : Linux User switching with their own password

Using aliases with SSH for quick & easy connections

To connect to a remote server seamlessly and effortlessly using any Terminal (Linux, MacOS), you can set up SSH configurations and aliases. This way, you can simply open a new terminal window and connect to your remote server with minimal effort. Here are the steps to achieve this:

Step 1: SSH Key Setup
#

Generate SSH Key (if you don’t already have one):
```
ssh-keygen -t rsa -b 4096 -C "your_email@example.com"
```
Follow the prompts to save the key in the default location (~/.ssh/id_rsa) and optionally set a passphrase.
Copy the SSH Key to Your Remote Server: Use the ssh-copy-id command to copy your SSH key to the remote server:
```
ssh-copy-id username@remote_host
```
Replace username and remote_host with your remote server’s username and hostname or IP address.

Step 2: SSH Config File
#

Edit SSH Config File: Open or create the SSH config file (~/.ssh/config):
```
nano ~/.ssh/config
```
Add an Entry for Your Remote Server: Add an entry to simplify connecting to your remote server. Here’s an example configuration:
```
Host myserver
    HostName remote_host
    User username
    IdentityFile ~/.ssh/id_rsa
```
Replace myserver with a name you want to use for this connection, remote_host with your server’s hostname or IP address, and username with your remote server’s username.

Step 3: Automate Connection in the Terminal
#

Create a Script or Alias: You can create a shell script or an alias to automate the connection. For example, you can add an alias to your shell configuration file (~/.zshrc, ~/.bashrc, or ~/.bash_profile depending on your shell).

Open your shell configuration file:
```
nano ~/.zshrc
```
Add the following alias:
```
alias connect_myserver='ssh myserver'
```
Save and close the file, then reload the shell configuration:
```
source ~/.zshrc
```

Step 4: Connect Using our Terminal
#

Now, you can open a new Terminal (Or reset the RC file) and simply type connect_myserver to connect to your remote server seamlessly.

Additional Tips:
#

Auto-Login: If you don’t want to enter a passphrase every time, you can use an SSH agent to manage your keys. Add the following to your shell configuration file:
- Be cautious with this one
```
eval "$(ssh-agent -s)"
ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_rsa
```
Environment Variables: If you need to set environment variables or perform other setup tasks upon connecting, you can include them in your SSH config file using the RemoteCommand directive.