How to enable SSH client on Windows 11?

Since the version 1809 update, SSH tools such as a preinstalled SSH client and an optional SSH server are offered by Windows. So you don’t need third-party software to remotely access your computer or server, even with Windows 11.

Quick Guide: Enable SSH Client on Windows 11¶

Enable the SSH client:

1. Go to “Settings > Applications > “Optional Features” and check if the OpenSSH client is installed. If not, you can install it by clicking “Add an optional feature”.
2. Open Command Prompt as administrator: search for “cmd.exe” in Windows Search and select “Run as administrator”.
3. Enter the CMD command ssh.
4. Establish the connection to the desired server with ssh nom@serveur.
5. Take the port into account: the default port is 22.
6. If this is a first time connection, confirm the host key fingerprint with “Yes” and enter the password.

Configure an SSH server in Windows 11:

1. Follow “Settings > Apps > Optional Features”.
2. Click “Add optional feature” and select “OpenSSH Server,” “Next,” then “Install.” This operation is only possible with administrator rights.
3. In Windows, open the « Services » application and set the startup type for « OpenSSH Authentication Agent » and « OpenSSH Server » to « Automatic ».
4. Check the firewall configuration in the Run With dialog box Get-NetFirewallRule -Nom *SSH*.
5. Connect to the SSH server by typing ssh <nom du serveur>.

What is the Windows 11 SSH client (Secure Shell)?¶

This feature, which has been available for a long time on Linux and Ubuntu, is now also possible on Windows: Windows SSH tools have been integrated starting with version 1809 of Windows 10. Thanks to a preinstalled Windows SSH client, you benefit from the advantages of Secure Shell ( SSH): Connect remotely to your own computer or server on the network via remote desktop and CMD commands. Remote access with administrator rights is secure and encrypted via SCP and SFTP. As with Ubuntu SSH, special third-party software is therefore not required for this.

From a security perspective, remote access using SSH has many advantages:

• Client-server authentication
• Encrypted data transmission
• Data integrity

How to use the Windows 11 SSH client?

The following conditions are required to use the SSH client in Windows 11:

• At least PowerShell 5.1
• Administrator rights

Follow the following steps to enable Windows 11 OpenSSH client:

Step 1 : check in “ Settings > Applications > Optional features » if the SSH client is already installed. If the SSH client tool is not in the list of features, click « Add optional feature ». Now search for “OpenSS Client”, then select “Install” after clicking “Next”.

2nd step : after installation, launch command prompt as administrator. You can access it, for example, by entering “cmd.exe” in Windows Search and then selecting the “Run as administrator” option.

Step 3: Now call the OpenSSH tool user guide with the following CMD command:

There you will be able to see the command syntax and SSH client settings.

Step 4: To access a Raspberry Pi via remote connection, connect to the Raspberry computer’s remote server using the following command:

“Pi” here represents the user you are addressing on the remote server, while “raspberrypi” identifies the remote server you are addressing. To target a specific IP address on the target network or an external remote server, use the following command:

ssh nom@monsiteweb.monnomdedomaine.fr

Step 5: the Windows 11 SSH client connects by default to the port 22. If the targeted SSH server uses a different port, use the following command to establish the connection:

ssh pi@raspberrypi -p (numéro du port)

Step 6: in case you are connecting to the server for the first time, you need to confirm thehost key fingerprint by typing “Yes”. After entering the user password, you will be able to control the computer remotely through the terminal.

How to set up an SSH server in Windows 11?

To set up an SSH server in Windows 11, you must first install it. Unlike the SSH client, this one is not preinstalled.

Follow the following steps:

Step 1 : open the menu “ Optional Features » via “Settings” and “Applications”.

2nd step : click “Add optional feature”, select “ OpenSSH Server » in the list and confirm by clicking on “Next”, then “Install”. To do this, you must have administrator rights.

Step 3: Windows now installs the “OpenSSH Authentication Agent” and “OpenSSH Server” services. To use the SSH client regularly, it is recommended to change the startup type of the services. To do this, go to “Services” via Windows Search. Open the application and right-click on each of the two services. In the respective menu, open the “Properties” option and set the startup type to “Automatic”.

Step 4: now check with the following command in the Run dialog box SSH firewall rules :

Get-NetFirewallRule -Nom *SSH*

Step 5: establish the connection with the SSH server using this command: