[Updated] In one of the Microsoft updates released for Windows 10 (1709), a feature called OpenSSH was added to Windows 10. OpenSSH, also known as OpenBSD Secure Shell, is a suite of secure networking tools based on the Secure Shell (SSH) protocol. This tool provides a secure channel on an insecure network in the client and client architecture. OpenSSH was added in Windows 10 so that users can use it for remote terminal communication. In this article, we are going to explain OpenSSH in Windows 10 Fall Creators Edition. You can visit the packages available in Eldernode if you wish to purchase a Windows VPS server.
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Introduction to OpenSSH in Windows 10
Microsoft has added OpenSSH to Windows after much criticism has been leveled over the years for its remote terminal connection to CMD and PowerShell with Psexec and WinRM. Few people would expect that with Remote Desktop, someone in Windows would go to the remote terminal and control Windows and its services with Windows commands. But the truth is something else!
Professional Microsoft users and administrators who run Microsoft services at a very high level always try to provide the least direct access to the server for added security. Also, program the communications in such a way that not everyone can access the main server information with different attacks such as MitM or Sniffing.
Microsoft has come up with many solutions for this. Among these solutions, we can mention Psexec or WinRM, both of which had their weaknesses.
Psexec uses the simplest way to communicate and encrypt, and a mid-level hacker can easily hack it and infiltrate your system. Interestingly, many network administrators call it a security nightmare in Windows.
WinRM promised a powerful and complete system once presented. But its time-consuming installation and configuration, as well as its many steps to establish communication security, prevented many Windows users from accessing it.
Following the criticism of these connections, Microsoft finally decided to bring OpenSSH, which is widely regarding as a secure and standard protocol, into Windows. OpenSSH has been added as a beta in the Fall Creators update known as version 1709 in Windows 10. You can enable it and use the connection with SSH.
OpenSSH in Windows 10 has two different versions, which are calling OpenSSH Client and OpenSSH Server.
What is OpenSSH Client?
This version only has the ability to communicate with Windows SSH. OpenSSH Client is available to users through CMD and PowerShell environments.
What is OpenSSH Server?
The OpenSSH Server version is actually the server-side version that has the ability to provide SSH service. A system with a client version must connect to another system with a server version.
Benefits of Using OpenSSH in Windows
1- Simple settings and configuration
2- High security in communication
3- Quick communication
4- Can use in CMD and PowerShell
5- Ability to access by different users
6- No need to change the type of command structure
7- Flexibility in personalizing the service
And many other benefits
Conclusion
Microsoft has taken a very big step in the direction of communication between servers by introducing OpenSSH in Windows. This increases the security and flexibility of the Microsoft operating system in this area as well. In this article, we tried to introduce you to OpenSSH in Windows 10 Fall Creators Edition. You can refer to the article How to Install and Configure OpenSSH Server on Windows Server 2019 if you wish.
