If you have a Linux server, in order to connect, you will need to use a SSH client. Follow the steps under the heading for the operating system your local computer is running.

Windows

If you're running Windows, download and install PuTTY. While you can use Windows Terminal (free from the Microsoft Store on Windows), we have observed occasional issues with it when using it for SSH. Therefore, for less technical issues, you should use PuTTY.

Once PuTTY is installed, launch the main application. If you installed the full bundle, you may also see an application called "PuTTYgen". You only need to launch the application called "PuTTY".

You will see a new connection window. Type in your server's main IP address or hostname if DNS is setup properly. Keep the port as 22 and set the connection type as SSH. You can now click Open to open the connection or if you give it a name under saved sessions, click the save button so you don't have to re-enter all this information each time you want to connect.

You will then see a Security Alert window showing you the server's SSH fingerprint. You can click on Accept to have PuTTY store this key. When you connect again, you should not see this window pop up.

Now you will see a black box asking for a username. Type in root and press enter. If you're connecting to Ubuntu, we provision the default user as ubuntu so you would type that instead. Once you press enter, you will be prompted for the password. Type in or copy/paste the password (to paste in PuTTY, just right click - you will NOT see any menu, your clipboard is immediately pasted) and then press enter.

If you typed the password correctly, you should now be connected!

If you see a lot of failed logins, this is normal. Review our server hardening guide for how to secure SSH.

macOS / Linux

If you're running macOS or Linux, you can use your system's built-in terminal app to open a SSH session to your server. Open your application launcher/menu and search for "Terminal" and launch it.

Then type in ssh root@<ip> and press enter. Replace root with ubuntu if your server is running Ubuntu. Replace <ip> with your server's main IP. Once you do that, you will be asked if you want to continue connecting and you'll be shown the server's fingerprint. Type yes and press enter.

Next, type in the account password and press enter. You will then be taken to the server's console. If you see messages about failed logins, this is normal. Review our server hardening guide for how to secure SSH.