Puttygen tool

In order to access the JSC computer systems you need to generate an ssh key pair. This pair consists of a public and a private part. Here we briefly describe how to generate and upload such a pair.

On Linux/UNIX

In order to create a new ssh key pair login to your local machine from where you want to connect to the JSC computer systems. Open a shell and use the following command

ssh-keygen -b 2048 -t rsa

You are asked for a file name and location where the key should be saved. Unless you really know what you are doing, please simply take the default by hitting the enter key. This will generate the ssh key in the .ssh directory of your home directory ($HOME/.ssh).
Next, you are asked for a passphrase. Please, choose a secure passphrase. It should be at least 8 characters long and should contain numbers, letters and special characters like !@#$%^&*.

Important: You are NOT allowed to leave the passphrase empty!

You will be asked to upload the public part of your key ($HOME/.ssh/id_rsa.pub) on the JSC web site when you apply for an account. You must keep the private part ($HOME/.ssh/id_rsa) confidential.

Important: Do NOT remove it from this location and do NOT rename it!

You will be notified by email once your account is created and your public key is installed. To login, please use

ssh @.fz-juelich.de

where 'yourid' is your user id on the JSC system 'machine' (i.e. you have to replace 'machine' by the corresponding JSC system). You will be prompted for your passphrase of the ssh key which is the one you entered when you generated the key (see above).

On Windows

You can generate the key pair using for example the PuTTYgen tool, which is provided by the PuTTy project. Start PuTTYgen and choose SSH-2 RSA at the bottom of the window and set the 'number of bits in the generated key' to 2048 and press the 'Generate' button.

PuTTYgen will prompt you to generate some randomness by moving the mouse over the blank area. Once this is done, a new public key will be displayed at the top of the window.

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