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This page will describe how to set up one or more SSH aliases. An SSH alias is a name used to refer to an SSH server or host on your network. If you have to run a lot of SSH comands, setting an alias can save you a lot of typing.
Setup
SSH aliases are configured on /etc/ssh/ssh_config (system-wide) or the the config file in $HOME/.ssh for user specific configuration.
You may need to create the user configuration file if it doesn't already exist:
cd mkdir .ssh chmod 700 .ssh touch .ssh/config
Usage
Let's say that you want to log into a machine. Normally you need to do
$ ssh mj2287@123.123.123.123:2222:/home/http
but it gets boring quickly.
Adding that information to your config file will simplify and reduce the number of keystrokes.
Host webserver Hostname 123.123.123.123 Port 2222 User mj2278
Now, you can replace the command to:
% ssh webserver
Notes on the configuration
The most comprehensive information is in the man page of ssh_config, but the basics are:
The line starting with
Host is the name you want to use as a shortcut to the machine. It has no relationship to the real name, domain or IP of the target.
Hostname indicates the IP address or name of the machine to connect to.
Port is the port to connect to. Will default to 22, so you may not need it.
User is the user name in the target machine.
There are many other configuration available and needed. Pay special attention to disallowing password authentication, and using public key authentication or certificate authentication only.
See also
SSH Config file at ssh.com man 5 ssh_config ?ssh