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Accepted
Karoh
Asked: 2020-10-25 08:44:02 +0800 CST

Adding ssh keys to a new server without having previously set up users on that server

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I've setup a clean new VPS running Ubuntu 20.04 LTS with Hetzner and would like to access it via ssh.

Here is what I've tried to do:

  1. I have added my public ssh key (passphrase-less) in Hetzner's online GUI. That looked something like this:
ssh-rsa blahblahblah= [email protected]
  1. But when I attempt to ssh-copy-id this key to the server, I run into issues. Since I haven't logged into the server to create users, I don't know what to put for the user in this command:
ssh-copy-id -i .ssh/id_rsa_pub [user]@serveraddress

I've tried adding the key to root user like so:

ssh-copy-id -i .ssh/id_rsa_pub [user]@serveraddress

But then I'm prompted for a password I don't know.

This leads me to the following questions I've had a hard time finding answers to:

1. How can I use ssh-copy-id to copy my public key to the server if I haven't setup a user yet?

2. What is the default root password on the server? How Would I find this out? I've tried ubuntu, root, the basics.

3. What does adding a public key via GUI on the server host's website normally do with regards to server users? Does it add the key to the known_hosts file?

4. What is the technical significance of the final comment line in my public ssh key, currently [email protected]?

ssh vps hetzner ssh-keys ssh-keygen

1 Answers

  1. Best Answer
    1. How can I use ssh-copy-id to copy my public key to the server if I haven't setup a user yet?

    You'd need the password for the user, and for SSH to accept passwords (not always the case). I wouldn't expect this to be the way forward in this sort of situation, where the VPS provider has a copy of your public key.

    1. What is the default root password on the server? How Would I find this out? I've tried ubuntu, root, the basics.

    There's nothing guaranteed; it will be defined by the VPS provider, and should be in their documentation.

    1. What does adding a public key via GUI on the server host's website normally do with regards to server users? Does it add the key to the known_hosts file?

    Close; it would add it to the .ssh/authorized_keys file in some users' home directory. As you've identified, knowing which user is opaque

    1. What is the technical significance of the final comment line in my public ssh key, currently [email protected]?

    Nothing technical, it's just a label for human use.

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